Union Officers sword belt plate

[rhedden]

Union Officer's sword belt plate

This is a Union Officer's sword belt plate, Std. Issue of 1851, dug up at an old home site in Frederick Co., MD last summer. Was 3 to 4 inches deep and produced a silver dollar reading on my detector.

 

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[Dave (Pa)]

Union Officer's sword belt plate

Could be a kids toy dicarded or lost from a gift shop

 

[lab rat]

Union Officer's sword belt plate

I must admit I'm not familiar with Civil War relics, but it sure looks convincing to me.

 

[rhedden]

Union Officer's sword belt plate

It is real. birdoflard ought to listen to his girlfriend more often!

 

[coinshooter]

Union Officer's sword belt plate

Down in the bottom right corner, really small, it says "Made in China", doesn't it?

 

[boomer]

Union Officer's sword belt plate

Officer's Sword Belt Plate

officer's had to buy there own sword belt plate without a silvered wreath. This particular plate was used by the 11th N.Y. Cavalry.

Enlisted Man's Sword Belt Plate with Keeper

Enlisted men's plates were government issued and are less detailed. These plates are worn by enlisted men who carried swords, such as cavalrymen and field artillerymen. The wreath on enlisted men's plates were made of applied German silver. Some plates made by the Alleghany Arsenal were made with both the wreath and eagle sweated on a cast plate. Recovered plates are often missing their wreaths due to oxidation.
good find. boomer

 

[rhedden]

Thanks, Boomer

Thanks for the information, Boomer. I did not know it was specific to the 11th NY Cavalry. I think it's interesting that it relates to NY because I also found a CW era NY coat button nearby. There were also several coins from the 1850's and early 1860's. All were dug at a very old house site in Maryland that I suspect was also a CW camp site. This was not near any particular battlefield, interestingly. Did the 11th NY Cavalry see any action in either Antietam or Gettysburg?

 

[boomer]

belt plate

Research:
finding and working a site that was war related is a step into our forefathers past. finding out the name of a camp or fort will lead to finding out what units were stationed there. this will help in finding the list of troops for each unit. the value of a civil war item goes up when you have the camp, units and list of men stationed there. also it may lead to where the units battles were. this location is one of the best there is. always remember: research is 90% of the find. good luck. boomer

Cyndi's List of Civil War Genealogy Resources
Cyndi's list is quite extensive and contains regimental rosters and histories for both Union and Confederate soldiers.
www.cyndislist.com/cw.htm

 

[rhedden]

Union Officer's sword belt plate

topgun46,

Sounds like you found a camp. You should post some pictures of your finds. On the other hand, my plate was by itself without any bullets or other CW relics around. I think it was possibly just a spot where the soldiers stopped for a time to rest.