Finding Camps

[Canewrap]

I've been doing my usual trying to find a needle in haystack without help and it occurred to me to ask the following from those that might know. Has anyone found any new camps lately? That includes any that might show signs of being hunted before, but you're still finding relics. Or, are most relic hunters hunting camps that they've been hunting for years? Also, I know a few hunters that have said they were going to transition over to hunting primarily old homesteads in hopes of finding CW era relics. Is anyone doing that primarily? Now, I'm not asking for any site info, but it would really help if you mention what state you're hunting in as well, since it seems that a big percentage of the finds I see posted anymore are coming out of Virginia and I only hunt in Tenn or Alabama. This is just a way to judge how thin things might be getting.

Thanks in advance,
Bill in 'Bama

 

[LaRelic]

Lately I have been hunting an area that civil war battles and skirmishes occurred. Most of my finds lately are coming from old homesites that date to the period. I guess the troops were using the houses for protection or cover from enemy fire. I am bad about once I get away from the homesite the targets become thinner and I return back to the original area. But I'm sure there's plenty to be found away from the homesites as well, as far as civil war relics go. Now the areas I've been hunting have been hunted for years but relics still turn up every trip. I am located in south louisiana and may not find as much as the guys in Virginia but I go very often and the finds add up. Persistence and patience pays off well for me. I have only located one small camp that had not been detected heavily and found lots of stuff. It was located in a not so obvious area. Everyone else was hunting the obvious spots and making few finds. I kept at it and it took me 2 years to actually locate the main camp. It was really fun when that happend! Unfortunately over time it became to hard to locate any more good finds. I have since moved on to new sights with permission in areas that have been hunted for years and still make good finds. Most of them still being around old homesites. I usually locate old maps from civil war sights and hunt around the old homesites. Although this is the obvious area and I could be missing out on some good finds....you just never know, sometimes you have to walk that extra mile to stumble across something nice. But overall things have gotten very thin since the late 50's up until now. I know old timers that use to use ww2 mine detectors and have massive collections. Then in the 80's detectors became much better and so much was cleaned out its hard to imagine. I wish I could have been around through those days....anyways don't know if this helps just a little of my experience. HH

 

[Canewrap]

Yes, it helps and I'll bet it helps more than just me to see how others are faring. Thank you.

 

[Smith1]

I have a camp that my hunting buddy and my self have been unable to locate. We know the area and who's land it was on, the farm and house are still there. my buddy found a harmonica reed and old brass key and we both have found a lot of horse shoes but no main camp. We know it has never been detected before. I guess it just isn't ready to be found yet. HH

 

[LaRelic]

Keep at it man, there were times when I almost gave up. If you've done your research and know they were there things will turn up eventually. Depending on how big the camp was,how long they were there and how much land you have to cover. If its a large area it could take some time and several trips out. I know it is common for them to have a water source nearby, and often times an old road close buy. I've dug many harmonica reeds from campsites and horseshoes. Often there is alot of iron in the ground at the campsite. Officers sometimes would stay in the house while the rest of the troops camped nearby. If you can locate an old map of the area it can be a big help. If there was fighting in the area ,that might influence the location of the campsite. Wish you luck...HH

 

[fowlercharles]

Hi, Canewrap , I can and do , when commenting on this subject always speak of one method that has produced good results for me and my digging Buddies. River and stream ferry crossings on "Old" roads will always have campsites where literally everyone of that particular time period would have camped while waiting for high water to go down so they could cross. These, many times began as Buffalo crossings, Indian Path crossings and later on Settler/Soldier/You name it crossings. The camps will be scattered all about however much high dry ground you figure may have been available at that time of high water. If possible locate modern high water aerials and compare with Topos.The older the crossing the more wagon roads/walking, and horse path aproches would have had to have been made. Wagon ruts really made some deep cuts over time and would have mostly followed the sides of the hills before easing on to the higher ridges. Foot and horse paths changed also. Some road cuts may even show up on Topo elevation lines. I have hunted several such crossings and they all have proven to be similar to one another in these ways. I'm not saying you will find a CW, RW, or Indian War camp at every crossing but after you hit the old maps and aerials of these places and get into the dirt work don't be surprised at what you do happen to find. HH Charlie

 

[Cajuncoinhunter]

Watch YouTube. Hunters give away their locations way too often and bring other hunters right to the hot spots.

 

[LaRelic]

There are much better resources out there than You Tube!! Lol...but you do have to be careful with your locations. A lot of greed in this hobby. Sometimes even friends will go behind your back to hunt your sights without you around. You know sometimes I ride the old roads and I find my eyes are the best tool for finding good areas to hunt. Put yourself in the right area after some research and just take a look around. Sometimes the clues are right in front of you....HH

 

[Canewrap]

That's great info Charlie and a very usable strategy. I will incorporate it into what I'm doing. Thanks!

 

[relics4plus]

Lots of good tips posted here for you CANEWRAP. I am in Maryland and only minutes away from G'Burg a good buddy of mine has found four virgin camps over the last 15 years. He uses old maps and drives along the "Old" roads. Old roads are sometimes overlooked because they are replaced by more modern ones and often called secondary roads but back in the day they were the "Highways" that everyone used used. My friend would simply drive these old roads and look for places that would have offered a good location to stop and make camp. Every one of them were near a good water source. One, which was a confederate camp was only 100 yards from the "Original Road". 2 were at a cross roads where two or more roads connected and the third was a large union cavalry camp found near a river ford. So, old maps and old roads is a place to start. The maps don't have to be from the period either. He uses maps from the early 1900's as well. So the next time you are driving around and see a location and your first thought is "boy, this would have been a good place to camp!" go for it. Sometimes your instinct will pay off. Don't forget to secure permission.
HH Hunting!

 

[rlchntr]

In case you don't already know, there is a very useful book entitled "Finding Civil War Campsites in Rural Areas" by Poche Associates. Many topics covered were mentioned in this post.