Research Pays Off! Found a Virgin, Colonial Cellar Hole!!

[coinman123]

Hey guys, first real metal detecting trip this year! I did a lot of research over the past couple weeks to find places to metal detect this year. I spent most of my time looking a LiDAR of public wooded spots, after realizing that almost every single cellar hole on public land that appears on any map has already been heavily hit around here. I was pretty happy to find a very clear looking rectangular shaped impression on the LiDAR, with a 150 by 150 foot animal pen right behind it. The location of the cellar hole appeared on no maps dating back to the 1850's, which makes me think it was gone before any of maps were made of that town. I drove out 25 minutes to the location, walked in the woods for half an hour, a large portion of it off-trail. I noticed fresh footprint in the snow going down the trail, and off of it, but not coming back down the trail, which made me assume whoever made those footprints was still in the woods. I later heard very close by gunshots, probably from the same, and I was wearing a brown jacket. I then noticed a very faint cart trail going through the woods, the only way I could notice it was because of their being no snow in what looked like extremely ruts, spaced out in the right distance for an old cart. There was a raised looking area with more snow in between the slightly deeper ruts. I followed the trail through a break in a stone wall, and then to the old animal pen. I found an opening in the animal pen, turned off my gps, and found a clear cellar hole right where the LiDAR said it would be! Anyways, I only had around 20 minutes at the cellar hole, before I had to go home and run errands. My metal detector was only at one bar too, with the same batteries from last year. There was almost no trash anywhere either. Anyways, I quickly found two buttons, a musketball and a hand forged hoe head with almost no corrosion (I can even see where the two pieces of metal were joined), which makes me think that this place is definitely worth returning to! I love it when research pays off, and everything ends up being as I hoped! Who knows what else may be at this places, I hope to go back with my parents who now enjoy metal detecting (who I called, and they said want to come check out the place) on Saturday and spend the whole day there.

Forgot to take photo of hoe head and musket ball.

 

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[coinman123]

Excellent work finding the cellar. How do you suppose it’s virgin from 3 items? I’m not trying to hassle, I’m simply curious.

Either way, good luck hunting with the folks man. I hope you find a TON!

Thanks!! I can't wait to return on the weekend hopefully, I will keep you posted on if I find anything! And being a quarter mile off of the trail, and not showing up on any records or maps, I figured it would probably unlikely that anyone else would have known to go off the trail and deep into the woods looking for a place that doesn't appear anywhere. I also found the first button at 2 inches, 80 on my T2, 20 feet from the cellar hole. I found the second button close by, and shortly after finding the musket ball and hoe head I had to leave. I won't know for sure that it is virgin until I go back and do a real search of the place. The first trip was just to see if it was there, I just wish I had more time when I realized it was.

 

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[Relicific]

Keep us updated on your new spot.

 

[Scrappy]

Thanks!! I can't wait to return on the weekend hopefully, I will keep you posted on if I find anything! And being a quarter mile off of the trail, and not showing up on any records or maps, I figured it would probably unlikely that anyone else would have known to go off the trail and deep into the woods looking for a place that doesn't appear anywhere. I also found the first button at 2 inches, 80 on my T2, 20 feet from the cellar hole. I found the second button close by, and shortly after finding the musket ball and hoe head I had to leave. I won't know for sure that it is virgin until I go back and do a real search of the place. The first trip was just to see if it was there, I just wish I had more time when I realized it was.

That’s awesome. With signals like that, you can already tell at a minimum, the site hasn’t been hammered. I wish you the best of luck and hope you kill it out there. Safe travels to you and your folks. Cheers