Met up with some old friends and Dayton Diggers at an old park in their city. The 1920 dime was my first target of the day, the Wheats and Indian Head were all in one small area.
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Copper or brass spike marked "CITY" on top about 2" long. No clue what it marked or when it dates from, but being solid and heavy, it's got some age to it. Nothing else today except a bit of clad and some trash. The coin in the picture just for scale.
This saloon token was found at a 1920s school. John Clendenin is listed in the 1913, Newark, Ohio City Directory as a bartender for White & Meier Cafe. White & Meier also had the Bazaar Saloon. White & Meier issued their own aluminum tokens for that saloon in about 1917.
John B. Clendenin, Jr. was born October 22, 1880 in Gallipolis, Ohio, son of John B. and Elizabeth McGuery. He married Mildred Myrtle Houke (Houck) at the First M.E. Church in Newark, Ohio, on October 7, 1915. The Newark Daily Advocate of June 15, 1895, reported that John's father, (Captain) John B. Clendenin, Sr. had started serving a sentence of three years for grand larceny at the Ohio Penitentiary. By 1915 the Clendenins had moved to Gallipolis, Ohio. In 1917, John was manager and owner of the Libby Hotel at 444 Second Avenue. The Clendenins lived in the back of the first floor of the hotel. The Clendenins ran the hotel until the mid 1960s. John died December 22, 1967. Some construction and excavation at a local park turned up the Spirit of 1776 watch fob, a 1931 Canadian cent, a folded aluminum AA token and a sterling silver spoon with the name Irene engraved on the handle. There were also a few Wheat cents and some clad coins.
This pinback enameled badge from the Columbus Dispatch Playground Safety Council dated 1934 was discovered in what was the backyard of a razed house. Over the course of a number of hunts at this site, I kept turning up Wheat cents. I could probably head over there again tomorrow and find another one or two more. Other notable finds from this house site included a silver Roosevelt dime and a 1945 Washington quarter. Two good merchant tokens turned up. One was an aluminum 5 cent token from Henning's Cafe in Elyria, Ohio, circa 1915-1920. The other was a great Columbus token for a saloon located in a building I had already done research on for another non-detecting project. The brass token was good for 5 cents at Maggie (Margaret J.) Donovan's Saloon, located in the building she owned at 1533 Mt. Vernon Avenue and dates from circa 1893-1908.
It was another year with no time for detecting. I did get out about a half dozen times and found an 1841 Seated half dime, one of my favorite coins and a detecting first for me. Some Indian Head cents, a few silver dimes, a 1912 nickel and some Wheat cents were about all I added to my collection.
Other things more important than detecting took over in 2011. The year started out more-or-less as usual, but then some tough decisions needed to be made. At first I thought I could manage to juggle everything and continue all of my many metal detecting related activities, but I was already over-extended. Eventually I had to hand over the reins and bow out of the Central Ohio Metal Detecting Association and despite my best efforts and intentions, stop editing and publishing Ohio Metal Detecting magazine. Everything detecting related was, out of necessity, put aside and in some cases rather abruptly and without apology or explanation.
In looking back at some of my posts on the Buckeye Treasure Hunter Forum, it helps me remember some of the finds made earlier that year. A gold plated 1883 "racketeer" nickel, a number of Indian Head cents and older nickels, the usual assortment of silver coins, some oddball foreign stuff, some toys and a few pieces of silver jewelry. I do remember several hunts from the spring. There was a hunt with Dave at a local park where there was some dirt being moved around and I found an 1887 Seated dime. There was a hunt with Steve Greene of the Dayton Diggers where I picked up some silver coins and an unexpected 1820 large cent. I know I did some other detecting too as opportunities arose or I made time to get out and away, and remember finding a 1903 Indian Head cent at a hunt with the Central Ohio Metal Detecting Association at Franklin Park in Columbus. Got out yesterday evening for a few hours at the park. Provided another interesting assortment of finds, many of them twins or in matched pairs. (Once you start thinking like this, you can't stop!)
Tuesday's finds were 1881 and 1898 Indians, dateless and 1915 Buffalo nickels, 1935 and 1943 Mercury dimes, an anchor watch fob and a Marines screw-back emblem (with anchor), an old cufflink, a marble, a brass tag/token (second one of this type from this area), a tag marked "1011", wheats dated 1919-D, (2) 1920-D, 1927, (2) 1944, 1950-S, picked up a dollar bill and two pairs of sunglasses laying on the grass ,and the creepiest thing I've ever had pop out of a hole, a decomposing bendable rubber mummy toy. Also three "clad" coins... 1966 dime, 1964-D cent and nickel. PAIRS: Monday and Tuesday, two 1881 Indians Monday and Tuesday, two 1915 Buffalo nickels Monday and Tuesday, two marbles in dug holes Two 1920-D wheats Two 1944 wheats Two Mercury dimes Two Indian Head cents Two Buffalo nickels Two anchor emblems (fob and Marines emblem) Two pairs of sunglasses picked up from the surface. Well it's a trick that's 128 years old and it worked for a second. A racketeer nickel tumbling out of the dirt in the hole sure does look like a $5 gold piece! I Got back from traveling Sunday afternoon and needed some time moving around after being in the car so long. So I headed to the park to see what I could find. I hit a messy patch of signals and started to sort them out. First was a memorial cent, then a wheat. Next up was the fooler of the day, the gold plated 1883 nickel and lastly a clad quarter. Definitely an interesting assortment of signals from one small area. I also managed a few wheats and an Indian from another small area... 1906, 1919, 1929, 1935-D.
Had an opportunity for a short hunt at an 1800's farmhouse a few weeks ago. The heat was oppressive and I had limited time, but hopefully I'll be able to return. I got a handful of wheats, an 1880 Indian and a 1944-P war nickel there.
Next opportunity to hunt was last Saturday. I was sick, but needed to get out of bed and the house. Also there was a small sidewalk tearout that I wanted to get to while I still could. At the tearout I got a lot of clad and a 1942 quarter. Later, Dave called. He and Dan were headed to an old park not far away and I decided to join them. I managed to get an 1885 Indian and the Colorado Tax Token early on, then it was just clad and wheats the rest of the time there. Yesterday I had a little time to get out again, so hit an old part of a park that has produced Indians in the past. I was hoping for another, and came close with 1909 and 1911 wheats, but the real surprise was the 1907-D Barber quarter than was less than 2 inches deep! It had been sitting on top of a rock and was a clear 12-47 signal. A nice surprise when I was expecting a clad quarter! A nice hunt where all the coins were old (no clad at all) and silver to boot. Got out for a while in a park construction project with Dave on Saturday morning and whoopee! An 1887 Seated dime! Also picked up a few wheats and marbles there, and a few dollars in clad.
Sunday afternoon I ended up with some time to fill and the drizzle wasn't too bad so I headed over to a nearby park. Got the 1887 Indian head and was pleased, but then hit a little pocket spill... two nickels (1939 and 1941) with a 1927 Mercury dime. Set aside a day for detecting Sunday and met up with Steve aka Dayton Digger, and Mark at a park. It was windy but the sun kept peeking out and it was great to leave everything behind and just focus on detecting for a while. Pretty early on I got one of the Mercury dimes, then about an hour later the 1820 large cent turned up and was a big surprise. I was digging lots of wheats and clad and the
other silver dimes popped up in between, about one keeper each hour... just enough to keep me going. Got out for a bit today. Needed the time to clear my head! I think this might be a record for me for V nickels... 1883 (with cents), 1900, 1901 and 1902 and a 1941 wheat. That was it for coins, all old and four of them over 100 years old makes for a good day.
Saturday hit a park and first hit was a 1901 Indian, a good start considering its the first time I've been out since early January. A bunch of wheats (oldest 1912 and one with the remains of two nails in it), a 1945-D war nickel and two old kiddie rings.
In the afternoon I had another window of time, so back to an old school (now private property) that I have permission to detect. Finds are few and the place is full of dog poop, but I picked up a cool brass skeleton key, 1964 dime, a 1945 wheat and a 1946 nickel. Sunday I met up with Suzanne and afterwards we hit an old school that was really cleaned out. She managed a 1935 wheatie and I got a 1926 buffalo nickel. We then hit a park for a bit, got a few clad, I picked up a wheat and another 1946 nickel. We parted ways and later I had some time to get out for another quickie and scored THREE INDIANS in one hole! 1876, 1884 and 1892. Dave called this morning and said he and Anthony were headed over to a park nearby. I wasn't feeling so good (I have a cold) and dang it was cold outside, but I figured I could go out for a bit since it was close by. Dave was dead set on finding all the pulltabs he could. Oops, I mean, finding some gold jewelry. Anthony was the first to succumb to the cold (he found a piece of silver necklace), I was second to go and Dave stuck it out. I turned up a "B" pin and two junk rings, both old, one marked with the U and arrow mark of Uncas Manufacturing Company. In business since 1911, that ring probably dates to the 1920s. The other ring is a circa 1935, Babe Ruth Quaker Cereals Club Member's Premium Ring. Also got two old tokens, a few wheats mostly in the teens and a 1925 buffalo nickel. No silver for me today.
Stopped by an old school and picked up some wheats, including a railroad smooshed one and a 1944 dime. Went back over to my old park in the area that was good to me in November and was digging sick, weak, iron-y signals and came up with two deep wheats and two Indians, 1906 and 1907. At the park, the first 4-5" was thawed, but there was a 3" thick frozen layer under that that fortunately wasn't too hard to get through.
An almost 60 degree day on December 31 was a great way to end the year. This was a year of quality over quantity. In sheer numbers, 2010 was not as good a year as 2009. I found only half as many silver coins and wheat cents as last year, but the quality and age of my finds increased, and overall for old coins it was much better, Two large cents, two Canada bank tokens, a two cent piece, 47 Indian Head cents, Seated dime, multiple Barber dimes and quarters and many old nickels.
I had not set any goals for the year other than finding a Seated Liberty coin. I knew it would be challenging to top last year's 299 silver coins, especially since I hunt the same sites all the time. In fact, in 2010 I think only three or four of my hunts were on private property. Everything else came from parks and schools. In November alone though, I found over 20 Indian Head cents, so I set a late goal of having 50 for the year, but the cold came too quickly and I only ended up with 47. Important factors in my results for 2010 were: 1) Learning my detector more and honing in on deeper, less solid signals. 2) Lack of new sites, squeaking more out of the same old places. 3) Avoided digging shallow clad coins, spending time seeking deep old targets. 4) Spent more time at the heavily hunted, oldest parks seeking old coins. About $140 in clad coins (last year was nearly $350) Over 1,500 total coins and tokens.(last year was over 4,700) 167 silver coins, (last year, 299) 575 wheat cents (last year, 1244) Many pieces of silver jewelry and one gold ring. A lot of firsts for me in 2010. I finally found a Seated Liberty coin, it's in terrible condition, but that's fine by me. It's great to cross it off the list. I also found my first "fatty" Indian Head cent, dated 1862 and also of that era my first 3-ringer minie ball. Other firsts included a Chinese cash coin and Canada bank tokens and large cent. Click any photo below to view larger. Great weather, but the detecting gods favored Suzanne by far. In the morning we hunted the house where we found the wedding band and as she describes, it was less than we had hoped. I was cranky, no doubt. With some assistance, I located a 1936-D Mercury dime along with nine wheats and a toy figure, so I felt like I could still leave with my respectability intact.
After leaving there, I headed to the park where I hunted for about four grueling hours and came up with a little clad, a stickpin and finally, one Indian Head, which still leaves me three short of my goal of 50 for the year. Got out this morning at the park I've been hunting and didn't find a blasted thing! So I called up Dave to see if he was out freezing today and he and Anthony were at another park nearby. They were kind enough to extend an invitation and I headed over that way. Slow going at first. When I arrive Dave had a wheat and Anthony was in another part of the park. Later, on his way out he showed me his nice finds! I hit an area Dave had covered before and found some very iffy signals that turned out to be wheats. A good sign for me, so I stayed in this area and another iffy signal turned out to be a 1943 dime. An 01-35 signal turned out to be a sterling silver cross on a chrome plated chain. A few more wheats and then a 10-46 signal right next to one of Dave or Anthony's holes was a worn 1918 dime. About that time I was hungry, losing feeling in my fingers and needed a restroom so I checked in with Dave and he was still chasing silver. I felt confident he'd get one as soon as I cleared out, so I left him to it.
Cold and dark seems to be keeping everyone from getting out detecting. I made a little time before darkness set in to rework the spot I've been hunting at the park. Managed one of the most worn old Mercury dimes I've ever dug, a 192_ and a few wheats that Suzanne and I missed.
Went back over to the park, still looking for Indians in that same area. Things started out well with a 1902-S Barber dime, then an 1891 Indian. Not long after a 1918-D Mercury dime and then, my first fatty Indian head, an 1862! Also picked up two wheats, a giant 4" square nail and a clock winder key.
Got up early and bundled up to continue at the hot spot I've been working at the park. First hole dug was after walking about 12 feet. It was an xx-33 signal, first out of the hole was a thin copper disc with a ragged hole, then a large cent and wait... there's more, a shield nickel. What a way to start! The copper disc turned out to be an 1837 Montreal Canadian Bank Token in the denomination of Un Sou. I have not been able to see a date on the large cent or the shield nickel and I'm not very hopeful.
Continued to pick up interesting keepers, a very old Chinese coin, a skeleton key with fantastic emerald green patina, an octagonal trade token, a 1942 Mercury dime, two Indians - 1880 and 1896 and a few wheats, including a 1919 that looks like it was stabbed hard with a screwdriver. Time for lunch, so I took a break, and Suzanne called so we made plans to meet up a little later back at the park. And wow, what a difference! We had hunted out our site! We were begging for targets and both picked up some wheats, but the difference was night and day. Suzanne picked up a two nice things from another part of the park, and I did find my first ever old 3-ringer bullet. Suzanne took off and I went back over to our former hotspot to try to squeak out at least one more Indian, but it was not to be. I got a few more deep and promising signals, but they turned out to be wheats. After finding a ring for a super nice guy this morning Suzanne and I hit the park for a bit, and we both came up with some nice oldies. She did better than me with six Indians and two silver, but I got a super nice 1865 two cent piece.
Ended up with seven wheats all from the late 30s and early 40s, five Indians: 1865, a great 1873, 1905, a corroded 1887 and a dateless one that looks like a 1900s coin, 1917 buffalo, the 1865 two center and a 1914 Barber dime. I could get used to detecting like this! And why the heck couldn't I have found this spot when it was a little warmer! |
AuthorI'm Nick A. and I am a metal detector hobbyist in Central Ohio. I have been metal detecting since 1990, and currently use the Minelab E-Trac detector. Archives
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