Dirt-Fishing

Sometimes the metal detecting gods are watching, and they reward people for good deeds. You see, I had to take the entire morning off last Saturday from metal detecting to babysit, which of course was wonderful as I got to spend time with my daughter. Nonetheless, I was itching to get back to a new site I had recently discovered. So on this day, I would have to start hunting at 2:00 p.m. and probably only get in a few hours before the dark would settle in.

There really are no words to describe the satisfaction one feels when a long winter’s research pays off exactly as one was dreaming about all those cold, long winter evenings. I had the good fortune to feel that way on this memorable early spring hunt.

You see, I had employed my entire internet and Google Earth skills to come across a section of an old town that I felt might have been inhabited quite a long time ago. In fact, my research showed this section was part of the original settlement in this town, but it was abandoned sometime in the early 1800’s. That put the timeframe it was inhabited from roughly 1650 to 1830. Nowadays, the entire section is wooded over, and lies beyond a large office park complex. Well, that sounded like a recipe for success to me.

In fairness, this was the fourth time in the last month that I had hunted this location. My first hunt yielded a nice 1899 Indian Head penny and a beautiful 1748 King George II Hibernia half penny. The second time netted me a beautiful 1826 Matron Head Large Cent. Hunt #3 was an 1833 Robinson’s Jones Hard Times token. So I knew these woods were productive.

On this hunt, I headed to a location that was three or four old fields beyond an old cellar hole I had found. Thus far, I have found two cellar holes in these woods, which is not much of a feat as they are both right off the main path. My research indicates there are at least three other cellar holes waiting for me to find. These woods are loaded with nice stone walls that crisscross throughout.

The section I hunted on this day was clearly an