BTV Digger
New member
Hi folks,
Hope this note finds you all well. Here are a few of my better finds from the past month dug from two primary sites. Didn't find too many coins but did snag some nice relics. More noteworthy in the wide shot is an officer's Eagle Infantry I button (c. mid to late 1800s, perhaps civil war) and my second Rutland & Burlington early RR tag dating from approximately 1849 to 1867 (years of operation of the line). Ironically I found the tag at the same site as my first and about 5 feet away. How I missed it the first time dunno but now I have the matching pair with identical numbers, way cool. Shown are the original tag found last year on left, and the new tag on right with the little star next to the "3". The button's "I" in the shield has curved serifs upon closer examination so probably Albert's GI 85C or GI 91A though as he states there are many variants. Very happy with that one as well. Also nabbed my second pewter whistle, a plain though very old lead rosette, little iron skeleton key, 1896 IH/1937 wheat, a tin of DeWitt's Witch Hazel Carbolized Salve (thankfully empty!) and a nice little door to a cast iron stove that's shown about halfway through electrolysis. The final shot shows another interesting find that I decided to lug out of the woods. It's the porcelain top and inside mechanism/nodes of an early Gladstone-Lalande battery cell from the very early 20th century. I was intrigued by the early patent dates on the lid, thus my decision to haul it out in my backpack. After a bit of research I discovered these were among the very earliest of batteries whereby the mechanism would sit in a larger jar of conducting liquid with usage in telegraphy and railroad signalling. Thomas Edison was key in the development of this type of battery cell, building on the earlier French model. Thanks for looking and best regards.
John
Hope this note finds you all well. Here are a few of my better finds from the past month dug from two primary sites. Didn't find too many coins but did snag some nice relics. More noteworthy in the wide shot is an officer's Eagle Infantry I button (c. mid to late 1800s, perhaps civil war) and my second Rutland & Burlington early RR tag dating from approximately 1849 to 1867 (years of operation of the line). Ironically I found the tag at the same site as my first and about 5 feet away. How I missed it the first time dunno but now I have the matching pair with identical numbers, way cool. Shown are the original tag found last year on left, and the new tag on right with the little star next to the "3". The button's "I" in the shield has curved serifs upon closer examination so probably Albert's GI 85C or GI 91A though as he states there are many variants. Very happy with that one as well. Also nabbed my second pewter whistle, a plain though very old lead rosette, little iron skeleton key, 1896 IH/1937 wheat, a tin of DeWitt's Witch Hazel Carbolized Salve (thankfully empty!) and a nice little door to a cast iron stove that's shown about halfway through electrolysis. The final shot shows another interesting find that I decided to lug out of the woods. It's the porcelain top and inside mechanism/nodes of an early Gladstone-Lalande battery cell from the very early 20th century. I was intrigued by the early patent dates on the lid, thus my decision to haul it out in my backpack. After a bit of research I discovered these were among the very earliest of batteries whereby the mechanism would sit in a larger jar of conducting liquid with usage in telegraphy and railroad signalling. Thomas Edison was key in the development of this type of battery cell, building on the earlier French model. Thanks for looking and best regards.
John
