Wonderful Stuff...Some Unknowns...Revolutionary War Onward

[btjbtj]

Hi everyone,

I'm going to post a bunch of items we have unearthed over the past month via metal detector on my brother's 1683 four-acre property (a one-time tavern with blacksmith, farrier, 60-stable barn, Revolutionary War campsite(?), schoolhouse). We have found so many buttons, rosettes(?), buckles, so if anyone recognizes any of these items, we'd love to hear about them.

Thanks for viewing!

Lisa & John

 

[Davers]

WOW!
What a Site.
Scrappy's advice is Good IMO , Check out those Guy's mentioned. They know their Stuff , from experience.

Much much history ,you have uncovered there.
Davers

 

[DownNDirty]

What an amazing site-the buttons and some of the coins are drool-worthy. If you happen to find a decent amount of old pottery shards or black glass in an area on the site it is probably an old trash pit. If you find one by all means dig it to find non-metallic relics (pottery, glass, wig curlers, etc.) and also scan the dirt with your metal detector as you dig it out. If you really want to find the good stuff from a pit, sift the dirt through a screen made of 1/4 to 1/2 inch wire mesh (half inch is easier to sift with).

Keep working that site-there's always more there.

 

[btjbtj]

Great advice, thanks! We did incidentally find a shard from a plate with a classic, old blue design on it. Wish there was a detector for that type of stuff!

Interestingly, we started taking off the top layer of soil of areas we already investigated, and now suddenly we're getting hundreds or hits! It seems that since we disturbed the ground, it must've stirred up some more stuff. Looking forward to posting more. What a great group you all are! ~Lisa & John

 

[Steve in PA]

That is an incredible group of finds. So much history on a place like that, you never know whether the next find will be 17th, 18th, 19th or 20th century. Congrats on the 5th Mass button. It is in great shape. Most people brush on a mixture of Elmers glue and water to coat pewter buttons. It can be removed if necessary since Elmers is water soluble. You should practice on other pewter scraps until you are comfortable with the process.

 

[wkrp43]

Whoa! Awesome digging!

 

[Scrappy]

That is an incredible group of finds. So much history on a place like that, you never know whether the next find will be 17th, 18th, 19th or 20th century. Congrats on the 5th Mass button. It is in great shape. Most people brush on a mixture of Elmers glue and water to coat pewter buttons. It can be removed if necessary since Elmers is water soluble. You should practice on other pewter scraps until you are comfortable with the process.

Yep. I always use a 50/50 mixture of Elmers and water and brush it on. Worked well for me on a couple 1812 pewters, but haven't found a rev button yet....

 

[Ahab8]

Well now!!!!....way to kick down the tnet door and make a grand entrance! That Rev War button is absolutely amazing. It's also a fantastic sign as well as many of the other finds that your site probably had heavy occupation during the late 18th early 19th century which is kind of the sweet spot for detecting finds. I also love the 1600s finds but they are much harder to find and unless you pull a silver coin or something there's not a whole lot from that time frame that's considered rare or valuable. I personally just love any early history so it's all cool to me if it's early. You have a very special site there and I'm going to give you a bit of advice. I would be taking one section at a time and journaling your hunts. Try to figure out what age finds are coming from where. You will eventually begin to gain a more clear picture of what was where and during what time period. I log all of my hunts and it's been very helpful. It also helps when you are putting together displays so you know what belongs in which case. I hope you love every second you spend pulling out these incredible pieces of history. These opportunities are extremely rare and getting more rare all the time. Keep the great stuff coming

 

[Ahab8]

Btw I would certainly use a 50/50 Elmers glue and water mix to coat that button. If that baby flakes you will be heart broken. The key is to put thin layers on and let them dry completely in between coats. Good luck

 

[Zachbl92]

Congrats on all your finds! Some very very nice goodies! Congrats on the super old military button as well! Wow!

 

[DownNDirty]

Great advice, thanks! We did incidentally find a shard from a plate with a classic, old blue design on it. Wish there was a detector for that type of stuff!

Interestingly, we started taking off the top layer of soil of areas we already investigated, and now suddenly we're getting hundreds or hits! It seems that since we disturbed the ground, it must've stirred up some more stuff. Looking forward to posting more. What a great group you all are! ~Lisa & John

What that tells you is that there are a LOT of relics that are too deep for your detector to find when you swing your coil across the soil. That is a good sign because the really old stuff is usually buried the deepest. I would systematically take down the soil a few inches one small area at a time (say 5 feet square), and keep detecting there until you aren't digging any more nonferrous signals. Or better yet, dig down to just below the level where the signals stop, then work through the pile of dirt and fill it back in after you're done. Then repeat the process for the area adjoining it and so on.

 

[btjbtj]

Down, thanks!! I'll share this advice with John. -Lisa
QUOTE=DownNDirty;5104443]What that tells you is that there are a LOT of relics that are too deep for your detector to find when you swing your coil across the soil. That is a good sign because the really old stuff is usually buried the deepest. I would systematically take down the soil a few inches one small area at a time (say 5 feet square), and keep detecting there until you aren't digging any more nonferrous signals. Or better yet, dig down to just below the level where the signals stop, then work through the pile of dirt and fill it back in after you're done. Then repeat the process for the area adjoining it and so on.[/QUOTE]

 

[btjbtj]

Hi Steve, we're going to (squeamishly) try the Elmer's glue solution on the Grand Army button next time I go up to visit John. Will post pics after! Thanks again, -Lisa

That is an incredible group of finds. So much history on a place like that, you never know whether the next find will be 17th, 18th, 19th or 20th century. Congrats on the 5th Mass button. It is in great shape. Most people brush on a mixture of Elmers glue and water to coat pewter buttons. It can be removed if necessary since Elmers is water soluble. You should practice on other pewter scraps until you are comfortable with the process.

 

[btjbtj]

Gaspipe, thanks! We are having a blast! L&J

Wow great site. Given the history of the site ,and it's size there should be a lot more to come and it it looks like you are the first to detect. Have fun places like that don't come along often.

 

[btjbtj]

Thanks, Davers...our site keeps us very busy, for sure. And, this website and all you folks are amazing. -Lisa & John

WOW!
What a Site.
Scrappy's advice is Good IMO , Check out those Guy's mentioned. They know their Stuff , from experience.

Much much history ,you have uncovered there.
Davers

 

[btjbtj]

Thanks, Zach! L & D

Congrats on all your finds! Some very very nice goodies! Congrats on the super old military button as well! Wow!

 

[btjbtj]

Thanks, Skippy, we are on a grand adventure, for sure! -L & J

That is some COOL stuff! Love the coins you're finding!

 

[Tommy G]

What a great variety of finds! That property is looking like metal detecting heaven. Congrats, and keep it up!

 

[btjbtj]

Thanks, Tommy! Posted some new finds last night! -L&J
QUOTE=Tommy G;5116403]What a great variety of finds! That property is looking like metal detecting heaven. Congrats, and keep it up![/QUOTE]