I need help from you deep woods type detector-est.

[John 'n' W.Va]

I have been an urban old house type detector-est. Some houses I have found over 40 wheat's and a lot of neat old stuff. When I lived in the city, I would go to the old part of town. Usually it was the slums. I'd MD them 6 AM when most of the trash would leave the streets. I also dressed to look bad. Hey it worked. I now live in WV. and have been MD'ing old houses for three years, that where being torn down for a hi-way. The houses are gone and I need to look elsewhere.

Old log cabins are everywhere around here. You would think they are a great place to MD. I am having a hard time thinking so. Now if finding old pieces of iron coal stoves are good, than they are a great place to MD. There is so much iron around the foundation I used my small coil on my F-70 to detect it. I also checked all over the chimney.

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As I got away from the foundation I switch to the stock concentric coil. I had the sen. at 90, threshold at +5 and decriminalization at 1. I also used 2 tone. It ran very quiet in nowhere land.

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I forgot to load the pictures of my finds, but they consisted of 7 shot gun shells, 3 -22 casings and 2 -22 lead bullets. Of course I found stove parts, bottom to an iron pot and an old plow blade which I didn't drag out of the woods. I dug anything that jumped from iron to a higher reading on a semi consistent basis. This is the third log cabin site I have detected and haven't done very well at any of them.

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The better finds where a busted carbide lamp, harness guide, two brass miner's tags and one wheat. I am open to any tips on improving my good finds.

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I like the mid-1800's houses and newer. It seems the people that lived in log cabins were poor as a church mouse. I don't know why this guy built a cabin here all there is, is rock in the ground. These piles testify to that. Yes I checked all the piles.

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I am not a novice to MD'ing, but I can see room for improvement on this type of detecting. So you guys that are proficient at this type of detecting, please help me out. I promise to stay out of your woods. I seem to have the forest to myself around here. I see few people MD'ing around here and those who I have seen think I am a professional. Yea, I think that is funny. I told one guy that turning everything up to it's fullest doesn't help you find everything, especially that discrimination knob he had turned up.

 

[Hightone]

I've run into a lot of those type places in the extreme SW VA places I hunt. One was on a small mountain with a car/buggy trail with a few of those older cabins on the way. I usually use my Deleon with the 10X12 to find areas that may have been where the people hung out. I've found an area, where the view was nice, was one place. Another, where there some old cars parts, a place where someone may have worked on things, though if a build was there, it was long gone. Once I find these areas, I would switch to a smaller coil (usually used my Compadre with the 5.75) to fine tune search the area. Like you, I seemed to find much more junk over anything of value. Sometimes, the dilapidated foundation gave me a clue to where the porch or entry was. I once found an area with old "still" parts. Lots of broken pottery, and some old pennies (about 6, if I remember correctly).

Mostly tin and iron is what I found at these type sites. Good luck.

Dan

 

[Low-Boy/LCPM]

Maybe these people didn't have a lot of money but I would look for where they may have dug a hole and hid there moeny

 

[teleman2525]

since i started to hunt the woods and old celler holes my over all coin counts way down but kool stuff and better coins are also found heres some photos most have been posted other places in these forms all are 1700to1800 cellar hole woods finds as for hints just keep at it the older the site the quiter the area some places i hunt here in vt. are little more then ground depressins no big standing chimneys just rock structor in some centers most not even that old 1800 maps new topos lots of reading re search goole earth helps old cematary locations lead to cellar holes of the first buried there within 200 yards as poeple did not travel far to bury there dead do not dig the cematary bad karma just not respectfull have fun dig on

 

[dave5710]

I'm thinking that the problem is not your method of detecting, but the location. You say you have been detecting for years, so you know your machine and how it performs.

Those tall chimneys have been attracting detectorists for years. Those sites have been hit several times I'll bet. I'm not saying that they aren't worth checking out either.

If the people who lived there didn't have a well, they would have hauled water in from somewhere. A rain barrel might help some, but I doubt it got the job done. Any old paths to a stream or small river nearby? Look for a place where someone would sit on a bank and fish, or strip down and bathe. Or look for a good vantage point where someone might hide and wait for game in the field below. People would have spent alot of time just suppling their basic needs. Any cleared land nearby or younger growth, where a farm field or a garden may have been.

Just some thoughts, good luck. Dave

 

[Mtnmn]

I hunt those type of places in my neck of the woods (northcentral PA) with results similar to yours. Think there are two reasons why we don't find much of value, like you mentioned most backwoods people were dirt poor and 2.) like Dave said: I can almost guarantee you that they have already been searched by other detectorists in years past and most of those guys (gals) were just as good at their craft as we are with our modern machines. It seems like no matter how far back in I go, somebody has been there ahead of me. Good luck with your future hunts! Russ

 

[Low-Boy/LCPM]

You may just have to go deeper and deeper to find a homestead that has not been hit

 

[John 'n' W.Va]

I went to one place that was 2 mile hike to get there, with the same results. A friend and I are planing a MD'ing trip to an old ghost town that is a 7 mile hike. I also think with faster and better separation I would find more. I may be naive, I don't believe all these places have been detected. Also there is no such thing as being hunted out.

Just a thought, one house that got demo-ed I found 2 IH. 42 wheat's, 1942 royal air force hat pin, 3 tokens, 3 merc, 4 buffalo's and a complete set of war nickels which was strange. I don't think it was detected before.

 

[jimpugh]

trenching is the best kept secret just choose your spot wisely......friend mine had results like yours ....told him to check real close around the well....he went back and to make along story short found 3 gold coins stacked on top of each other all pre- civil war a double eagle, eagle and half eagle and what was left of the leather pouch... it was faint target ....he almost did not dig it....just some thoughts on making dry holes Gush.....
momma hid her egg money and poppa hid his houch money ....I do not care how poor they where....so think like momma and then think like poppa....beware post hole banks modus operindus in those times as well as these drug times....

Happy Trails
jimpugh

 

[John 'n' W.Va]

I did my best to find any signs of a privy or other buildings. I couldn't detect even a path of any kind. I have found them at other places, but not here.
I have no idea what this guy did for a living, it couldn't have been farming. It was hard to stick a shovel into the ground, because of all the rock.

I appreciate the tip. It will make me better at recovering the past. THANKS.

 

[kickback]

John
I had similar results as you while hunting old original homestead house sites in Montana and the Dakotas.The old houses you hunted before you moved had people occupying them longer,there was more "traffic" so more lost coins.Who knows how long those old cabin sites were occupied? There may not have been an commerce,the exchange of money there.I worked in long term care and got to talk with residents that had lived in the area all there lifes.Most said they didn't have any money to lose while living in those old homesteads.Old ghost towns were way better in my experience.Bill