My White's XLT meter read 78 “maybe a large cent”, I said to myself. Even though this late 1700's home site had been stingy with giving up colonial artifacts a large cent was recovered a few months ago. The detectors depth meter read one inch so I pin pointed it with my Garrett Pro probe. From the small plug I could see a large cent object. After carefully removing the clinging dirt from the disc all I could see was a large eagle. A little disappointed it wasn't a large cent, I brought the object closer to my eyes to see if I could read what appeared to be lettering above the eagle. “WAR OF 1861” the words rang through my head and a big smile appeared on my face followed by a vocal “WOW”. I knew I had in my hand a Civil War Dog Tag, I immediately turned it over hoping to read the soldiers name hoping it would be a former owner of the property I was detecting on. I could see some lettering but the disc would have to be cleaned a little before I knew more.
The quick ID of the object was possible because about 15 years earlier I had recovered my first Civil War Dog tag followed by lots of Internet research on the subject. A Civil War Dog tag is an identification disc many of which are about the size of a large cent with a pre stamped image on the front with the words WAR OF 1861. On the back of the tag is usually the soldiers name, company, regiment, hometown and state.
After cleaning my new found dog tag , the lettering on the back revealed that the disc belonged to Jacob Irving Whittemore , Company E 15th regiment from Manchester NH. It's so cool to just find out that much. But with some Internet research you can find out so much more. My guy was born Nov 3 1838 to Robert Parker Whittemore and Hannah J Cheney. He enlisted Sept 25 1862 and was mustered in on Oct 15 1862 as a private. He was wounded in the foot May 27 1863 at Port Hudson LA and was mustered out Aug 13 1863. There are even regimental histories on the Internet that tell you when and where the soldier went. I detected the dog tag in East Windsor CT so I plan on trying to find out if he ever lived in that area.
Because of the information that the Civil War Dog tags can lead you to , they are highly collectable with a dollar value from one hundred dollars to thousands depending on the condition and who the dog tag belonged to.
Captain Richard W. Wooley explains the history of Civil War Dog tags in his story Short History of Identification Tags by published in A Quartermaster Professional Bulletin-December 1988
The following two paragraphs are from it:
The Civil War provided the first recorded incident of American soldiers making an effort to ensure that their identities would be known should they die on the battlefield. Their methods were varied, and all were taken on a soldier's own initiative. In 1863, prior to the battle of Mine's Run in northern Virginia, General Meade's troops wrote their names and unit designations on paper tags and pinned them to their clothing. Many soldiers took great care to mark all their personal belongings. Some troops fashioned their own ID (identification) tags out of pieces of wood, boring a hole in one end so that they could be worn on a string around the neck.
The commercial sector saw the demand for an identification method and provided products. Harper's Weekly Magazine advertised Soldier's Pins which could be mail ordered. Made of silver or gold, these pins were inscribed with an individual's name and unit designation. Private vendors who followed troops also offered ornate identification disks for sale just prior to battles. Still, despite the fact that fear of being listed among the unknowns was a real concern among the rank and file, no reference to an official issue of identification tags by the Federal Government exists. (42% of the Civil War dead remain unidentified.)
I consider this Civil War Dog tag as one of my top ten lifetime finds. I'm thankful we have the Internet to do the research to make it more meaningful.
Happy Hunting
Bob Ellis
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Even better that you knew what it was. To find out the owners info is also super great. 
shocked04:g Tag to the Meeting as well as your other Coin. That was the first time I ever saw a Civil War Tag and to tell you the truth, I always wondered how they Identified the soldiers when they died. I'm surprised there hasn't bgeen anymore of these found over the years, or have there ?
Sal
