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Thread: Found a new tavern site - and it didn't disappoint

  1. #1
    Veteran Member BTV Digger's Avatar
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    Found a new tavern site - and it didn't disappoint

    Hi all and Happy Holidays. After some online research and a visit to a regional museum (about a 40 min. drive) I met some wonderful people and got access to an old hand drawn map showing all the first/early settlements in town and the original lotting plans from the 1770s. What a gold mine. After some cross referencing my first target was an old tavern/inn site that was in use from about 1790 to 1828. Finds came out of the ground slowly given the tall grass and thick clay soil common in this area which masks deeper signals, but they were steady enough to keep me coming back several times. The other difficult thing with this site is it's directly next to a modern and heavily traveled US highway next to an intersection, so the car and truck noise made it quite difficult to hear my pinpointer when I removed my headphones - sort of annoying. But I could ignore it seeing what came out of the ground from this site. Topping the list are a Phillip VI 1739 Pillar 2 Reales, a Ferdinand VII 1813 1/2 Reale, and 3 LCS (1803, 1809 and 1834). The corroded 1915 Barber Dime was clearly an unrelated and much later drop (the tavern was torn down in the 1830s). Relics were also quite numerous with about 25 buttons, a barrel tap key, small escutcheons, and some buckles and lead. I may return in the spring for a final cleanup as finds are getting quite thin now, but since I have pictures of the old map and have saved those to my PC, I'll spend the next few months reading, cross referencing, and narrowing down a few more early homesteads/cabin sites in this area. I've already found two others that I'll post about in a few weeks, and I'm sure there will be several others that I can pursue come spring 2022. Thanks for looking.

    John

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    Vermont relic hunting, one swing at a time.
    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCG2...OLib30A/videos

  2. #2
    Administrator del's Avatar
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    wow John !
    "Honesty is an expensive gift ,
    so don't expect it from cheap people"

    XP Deus II , DFX ,TDI sl -

    Click here to view my finds album


  3. #3
    I'll take Dan's "wow" and raise it to a YOW! Great site you got there John. Looking forward to seeing more goodies from it.
    Oldest find: 5,000 year old copper spearhead
    Oldest coin: 1699 William III halfpenny
    Purdiest coin: 1832 Capped Bust quarter
    Coolest find: USA button with blue threads still on shank

    "He who would search for pearls must dive below."

  4. #4
    Elite Member The Rebel's Avatar
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    John, I'll raise it further with Holy Cow! You've got a gold mine there!
    Minelab Manticore / SPECTRA V3i, Pro-Pointer II. Lesche Digger.
    Oldest Copper: 1694 William & Mary Halfpenny. Oldest Silver: 1663 1-Reale
    Cob.

    My Album

  5. #5
    Elite Member Bucknut's Avatar
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    Good night!! So many great old coins and relics!
    Detectors I use: Minelab Equinox 900 & Manticore
    Favorite finds I have made:
    1,000+ silver coins
    92pcs of 1700's Trade Era Silver
    Copper Culture Indian Artifacts
    125+ War of 1812 Era buttons and relics
    My wife
    (probably should have started with that one)

  6. #6
    OUTSTANDING! Congrats.

    Jeff
    I live my life one target at a time
    since '68

  7. #7
    Holy poop!! Excellent work!!
    On Instagram- oxshoedrew

  8. #8
    Another great job of researching my friend.
    Congrats on all of those great finds.

  9. #9
    Member Iceman-ny's Avatar
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    Awesome work on the research, what a haul Did ya do a ?
    Machines: Whites MXT / Tesoro Eldorado / Garrett Ace 350 / Equinox 800

  10. #10
    This is the kind of site dreams are made of! Your diligent research paid off big time. I'm sure there is a lot more there under the tall grass. I am eager to see what else you find there!

    Lifetime totals:
    9 Large Cents, 415 Indian Heads, 2 Two Cent Pieces, 1 Capped Bust Half Dime, 1 Seated Half Dime, 10 Shield Nickels, 68 V Nickels, 124 Buffalo Nickels, 31 War Nickels, 16 Seated Dimes, 131 Barber Dimes, 405 Mercury Dimes, 249 Rosies, 4 Seated Quarters, 18 Barber Quarters, 19 Standing Liberty Quarters, 89 Silver Washingtons, 1 Seated Half, 3 Barber Halves, 16 Walking Liberty Halves

    YouTube Channel: Tony Two-Cent https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmz...RlHTBIU42bUORg

  11. #11
    That is one amazing collection of finds. Boy I would love to find a 2R coin. Congrats!
    http://www.youtube.com/c/MrDigger

    Minelab Equinox 800, SE Pro
    Oldest coin: 1693 W&M halfpenny
    Oldest silver: 1751 Ferdinand VI Pistareen1 Real
    Oldest US coin: 1787 Mass State Copper
    Oldest US silver: 1821 Capped Bust Dime
    Favorite Find: 1806 Carolus IIII 8 Reales

  12. #12
    Elite Member
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    Nice research and congrats on all the great recoveries. WD
    Total silver 3 - Goal 50 (2024 Finds) - 0 Washington - 0 Barber Dimes - 0 Mercury Dimes- - 3 Roosevelt Dimes - 0 V Nickels - 0 Buffalos - 0 War Nickels - 0 Indian - 10 Wheats - $ 3.44 in clad
    Relics: MILESTONES since 2012: 1700 silver coins - 8000 Clad Quarters - 500 Roosevelts - 750 Mercury Dimes

  13. #13
    Senior Member
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    Great job on the research and it paid off. I am dumbfounded and awestruck at what you found. Finding one of those items in WI would be an awesome day. If I detected in VT and hit a site like that, I would be sitting there crying the whole time due to extreme happiness. Congrats John! Well deserved!!!!
    Garrett AT Pro, Garrett Waterproof Pinpointer, CTX3030 with 6,11,17" coils.

  14. #14
    Veteran Member BTV Digger's Avatar
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    Thanks everyone for the nice words! Most of the finds have thinned out from this site, but wait, I'm getting the XP Deus II this spring! I'll definitely bring it to this site and hopefully sniff out a few more relics/coins in the thick iron that the AT-Pro missed (or myself by random chance - it's not all the metal detectors fault btw!).

    John
    Vermont relic hunting, one swing at a time.
    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCG2...OLib30A/videos

  15. #15
    Elite Member Digger_O'Dell's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Rebel View Post
    John, I'll raise it further with Holy Cow! You've got a gold mine there!
    I'll raise that to 2 holy cows, a yowza and an ox shoe!! There's proof that research pays off, and that all has not been found even in heavily pounded and researched areas. One may never know what is still lost until it's found!
    Equipment:
    Minelab: CTX 3030, GPX 4800, X-Terra 705. Whites TDI SL.

    2023 Silver: 1 Gold: 0

    Best finds: 28 silver dime spill, 1800s Dutch customs seal.
    Oldest/best coins: 1837 Upper Canada large cent, 1877 Seated Dime
    Oldest find: 1800 Sailors Luck token
    You Tube: Rediscovering America

  16. #16
    Veteran Member BTV Digger's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Digger_O'Dell View Post
    I'll raise that to 2 holy cows, a yowza and an ox shoe!! There's proof that research pays off, and that all has not been found even in heavily pounded and researched areas. One may never know what is still lost until it's found!
    Thanks! Yeah, this was a virgin site from the start, but now, of course it's quickly approaching pounded status. Haha. Virgin sites are not all that uncommon here in VT if you take time to do the research. Now, you're not finding gold coins laying all over the ground I admit, but many of the undetected early sites around here date from 1780s so indeed, there are cool things awaiting the coil if you take the time and do the research.

    John
    Vermont relic hunting, one swing at a time.
    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCG2...OLib30A/videos

  17. #17
    Elite Member Digger_O'Dell's Avatar
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    Awesome to hear John, and I have to say you are SO lucky to have that kind of detecting available to you. My area had a rich history, although not quite as old as yours in most cases (other than a few explorers, traders, and trappers passing through). But in the name of "progress" in the last 50 years or so most everything has been built over, paved over, or removed completely. The few remaining areas to be found are either mostly pounded to death or made off limits by property owners or the government. But it's often strictly luck finding the rare undocumented little niches of soil that can pay off, such as a little 15x60 foot strip of grass along a railroad I scored my Canadian LC and half cent 2 years ago. Who woulda thunk it?
    Equipment:
    Minelab: CTX 3030, GPX 4800, X-Terra 705. Whites TDI SL.

    2023 Silver: 1 Gold: 0

    Best finds: 28 silver dime spill, 1800s Dutch customs seal.
    Oldest/best coins: 1837 Upper Canada large cent, 1877 Seated Dime
    Oldest find: 1800 Sailors Luck token
    You Tube: Rediscovering America

  18. #18
    Senior Member fyrffytr1's Avatar
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    I am a little late to the party but I agree with everyone else's replies. I have not found a large cent since I have been here in south Georgia. Congrats on some very nice finds and keep them coming!
    My wife does all the driving, I just hold the steering wheel!

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