need help to identify this big thing

[stacey1080]

found this item although it is very rusted and not worth a dime ,would still like to know what it was used for i was thinking a wagon mule team or something as it looks like a huge buckle but im really stumped on this one ,thanks in advance ohh and just for comparison my feet are a size 6 womens so hope that helps

 

[dave5710]

I'm trying to figure out how it would be attached to a wagon. It appears to only have one hole near the center of the rectangular piece. If the U shaped part had square shoulders then it probably wasn't used with leather straps. So perhaps it was attached to a tractor with a clevis. Was it found near an old mining site or near an old railroad? Because it might be part of an old mining car or boxcar. There will be someone along who will know for sure. I'm just guessing. Please tell me you wear sturdy shoes when you are out detecting. You could get into alot of nasty stuff hunting barefoot.

 

[stacey1080]

you are to funny actually i wear flip flops lol ! JUST AS BAD !! i actually do live about a half mile from an old railroad that made this town in the first place you can research it if you would like its called florahome,fl anyways we bought this place wasn't told alot about it but i did find out there was an old house they had to tear down i have found lots of mason jars with the old milk glass lids buried but nothing in them just huge pits with lots of buried glass and clay jars an blue glass. i have found numerous wierd things out here some to stupid to put up on the forum . but lots of melted aluminum or ? big gobbs of molted something i did find were the house would be i think. found a 1900's hand pump still in the ground grown up over time ran right into it, didnt know it was even there. so infront of that is another site i have found clay bricks ontop of metal wire rolled up an stuffed down holes ???? would like to know what thats about . the elders around here tell me it was an old place that had cattle rustlers come through cause it is lake bed as well for watering the cows .an they said they would come threw then make there way threw the old etoniah creek an sale the cows in palatka. idk ??? but we did find lots of railroad spikes lol.so that makes sense.sorry i wrote you a novel LOL.

 

[Aarong81]

The holes with rolled wire covered with bricks may have been shallow wells to collect water. It seems there would be a better way to keep the hole from filling in with debri but I'm sure people have tried less affective methods as well.

 

[connkuku]

honestly i thing it is something way more simpler than what you guys are thinking about like .. a horse shoe it could be a very old version of a horse shoe??? that is what it looks like to me and the rectangular piece could of hooked on to the back of the hoof.... just my guess.

 

[Aarong81]

There is no back of the hoof. There are some modern horse shoes that have a plastic cover over the frog if the horse has injured his frog and needs to keep it clean. They naturally shed the frog every so often as well and it is tender until it regrows.

The area on this ID piece that would cover the frog on a hoof is hinged as well as protrudes way too far back to be a frog cover. This hinged part looks like it may have been bent in half and was originally a straight hinge. But it would be quite a coincident that it bent perfectly to fit inside the rounded part.

 

[shadowman]

It looks like a latch from a chest or large gang box.

 

[charlie dert]

looks to me like a tie-down loop that would have been found on a heavy duty wagon for freight like barrels etc.

 

[PowerDetecting]

It looks like it has a hinge on it possibly for a gate?

 

[Ism]

Looks like a foot to me, but what's that big iron thing next to it?

Ok, Ok..couldnt resist.

Actually it kind of looks like a door knocker or a hook for towing or lifting bail for a cement cover.
Thats all I've got.