Virginia Trip

RicksCod.JPG

Dig-it! — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 01:47:41 GMT

RicksCod.JPG

Wow, Rick looks like I owe you an apology... I found a reference to your find in one of my relic books.

Turns out it is a half of an Armored Cod-piece from the uniform of a French Queen's Beret Regiment.

The Queen's Beret's were formed as a militia in 1859, in Paris, France. When the American Civil War broke out, they immediately petitioned the US Government to allow them to fight. Their requests were ignored until early 1862, when Lincoln over-ruled his staff and allowed them to join the Union Cavalry.

The Union Officers, under strict orders, tolerated their "peculiar" ways, but the enlisted men loathed them. Oddly enough, a large percentage of this Brigade were killed by friendly fire very early in the battles they participated in. This is owed to the fact that the backs of their bright pink uniforms were emblazoned with red & blue concentric circles, resembling a bullseye.

The Confederate forces positively despised them. Major Culp of the 17th SC wrote in his diary of the Queen's Berets: "This band of perverted scallywags do not deserve the honor of being called Damned Yankees!" As hard as the Union troops were on their so-called allies, the Confederates were nothing but brutal. Upon spotting these soldiers, (which was easy to do from a great distance due to the large fanned-out plume of dyed ostrich feathers protruding from their hind-quarters), the Southern forces tended to focus their fire upon them, sometimes with utter disregard for the battle at hand.

Culp also mentions a "point system" adopted by his Brigade... a flesh wound was worth 2 points, a severe maiming 5 points, killing a Queen's Beret soldier was worth 10 points and personally hacking his cod-piece to bits with a saber garnered 25 points.

Due to almost 40% of the Queen's Beret Brigade being killed by friendly fire and the other 60% being mowed down by the Confederates, the entire Brigade was removed from the rolls by late 1863, and condemned to a minor footnote in history.

So, I reckon you were right. Actually, I'm kind of glad YOU found it.

The really good news is that 145 years ago, some local boy likely scored 25 points off your find.

Dig-it!

SITE #1 OLD PICTURE FROM JANUARY 1865

Dig-it! — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 02:54:50 GMT

SITE #1 OLD PICTURE FROM JANUARY 1865

SORRY FOLKS, I HAD TO REMOVE THE ORIGINAL PICTURE FOR SECURITY REASONS... HOPE YOU UNDERSTAND. WE HAVE ONGOING PERMISSION TO SEARCH THIS SITE, AND WE CAN'T AFFORD TO HAVE SOMEBODY ELSE JUMP OUR CLAIM, SO TO SPEAK. IT WOULD BE DIFFICULT FOR ANYONE TO OBTAIN PERMISSION, SINCE IT HAS BEEN PROMISED TO US, BUT WE JUST CAN'T CHANCE SOMEBODY TRESPASSING AND/OR LEAVING OPEN HOLES AND MESSING UP THINGS FOR US.

HERE'S THE ORIGINAL POSTING THOUGH, INCLUDING AN EXCERPT FROM "THE UNOFFICIAL RECORDS"

This is a picture of where we are going this afternoon. We have permission on one side of the road... looks promising, huh?

ARMY OF THE CAROLINA'S, 1st DIVISION, En Route
Rock Hill, S.C., April 11, 2008, 1:13 PM.

Major-General Ellman,
Commanding Army of the Carolina's:

GENERAL: Our advance scouts report possible contact with the enemy within about 1 hour of our present location. Conditions look favorable for contact - we will advise you at the earliest opportunity.

I have the honor to be, your obedient servant,

C. L. Watson,
Colonel, 17th SC Cavalry, Div. of Engineers

Site #2

Dig-it! — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 02:42:11 GMT

Site #2

From this picture, you get a sense of the vastness of the places we were searching. About 1/10 of the area of Site 2 is shown in this picture! We have barely scratched the surface!!! Notice how beautiful the land is in this area. The scenery was breathtaking.

I was standing on the very spot where I dug a bullet moments earlier when I took this picture.

I have others like this that I cannot post for reasons of security - my all time favorite picture is one taken from the same vantage-point as the sketch of Site #1. It gives you goose bumps when sitting side-by-side.

... perhaps I'll bring them to the next meeting.

ALL ABOUT BILL

Dig-it! — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 02:24:37 GMT

ALL ABOUT BILL

When we loaded up the truck Friday morning, Bill held up his "field case" and announced that he was going to bring it back filled up.

Naturally, we horse-laughed him.

Looks like he got the last laugh. He actually ran out of room in in case!!! He has more stuff than this. As a matter of fact, he found so much stuff, that by Saturday afternoon, he had to start culling out the lesser stuff and leaving it behind - like his 1809 1/2 penny, for instance.

Say, has anyone checked the Red Book to see if that is a rare date? I've been afraid to.

Regardless, it was all about Bill on this trip - and from the picture, you can see why he took home the Kitty!

Incidentally, Bill was kind enough to buy us dinner Sunday evening - now that's a good winner.

Frags

Dig-it! — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 02:08:00 GMT

Frags

Shell Fragments are cool! Everybody got a good one except for me - I dug bullets. These are a couple of Wylie Bill's fragments. You can see the threads where the fuse screwed in on one of them. We did not search for the fuse - yet... That'll wait until a later date. I think it's out there. I intend to Dig-it!

Randy Hunts

Dig-it! — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 02:04:14 GMT

Randy Hunts

This is a nice picture of Randy at Site #2. Bill found his 1/2 cent piece about 50 yards from where Randy is searching in the picture. We had a really good "hunting-time" ratio on this trip. I would say we had coils on the ground for 5 hours Friday, 8 hours Saturday and another 6 hours on Sunday. The rest of the time was spent driving and talking with land-owners. We did almost no recon on this trip - most of that work was done last September. We knew where we were going before we left Rock Hill - that's important when you make a long trip like this. We actually had a few sites that we never visited - save them for a future trip!

Pollys Ring

Dig-it! — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 01:53:13 GMT

Pollys Ring

You take him all the way to Virginia to dig relics and he still manages to dig a gold ring! This came from a spot that Bill and I had hunted many times. I have no doubt that we had both been over it at least a half dozen times - it just goes to show you, that in the end, you've got to Dig-it!

Cool Dude

Dig-it! — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 01:50:28 GMT

Cool Dude

You'll never guess what I've dug in this picture - yep a bullet! It doesn't matter how many I've dug, I still like digging them.

Ricks Plate

Dig-it! — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 01:48:10 GMT

Ricks Plate

This is a bit of a heart-breaker - had it been whole and in good shape, Rick may have been taking the Kitty home with him! As it is, it is still pretty darn neat and better than anything I came home with!!! How many days do you get to dig a plate?

Randys Ding-a-ling

Dig-it! — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 01:45:37 GMT

Randys Ding-a-ling

This is kind of a cool non-military relic. It's a BIG cow-bell that Randy found. It pays to dig that iron!

And, what we learned is that if it beeps, Dig-it!

EAGLETIP.JPG

Dig-it! — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 01:58:18 GMT

EAGLETIP.JPG

This is the Flag Pole Eagle that Wylie Bill found. It looks good. It is going to take some research to see if it is Civil War or not. Sure do hope so. Such a find is exceedingly rare.

Scrap Metal

Dig-it! — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 01:51:45 GMT

Scrap Metal

Rick was really excited when he found this. He thinks it is some kind of Sword Hanger attachment.

I explained to him that it is just an ornate piece of hardware from one of the nearby houses - perhaps a shutter latch. He didn't take it well - he insists that it is a military piece and is probably rare. As gently as possible, I explained to him that no self-respecting heterosexual soldier would ever wear a frilly piece of ornamental junk like that onto a battlefield for fear of being laughed at to the point of becoming the battles first casualty!

Now he is convinced it is a FRENCH Sword Hanger.

You can lead a horse to water, but sometimes they are just too darn stupid to take a drink.

Dig-it!

ARMY OF THE CAROLINA'S, 1st DIVISION
In the Field, April 13, 2008.

Major D. Kirkland,
Office of Psychiatry, Army of the Carolinas:

MAJOR: I have urgent need to inquire as to the proper procedures regarding a Section-Eight discharge for one of the cavalry officers under my command. He has recently been spotted wandering aimlessly around on the field of battle, wearing a ridiculous ornate brass piece of shutter hardware around his neck and swinging what appears to be a broom while hollering BEEP, BEEP at the top of his lungs.

I fear greatly for his safety and for the overall well being of the men under his command.

Please advice.

General W. E. Stiles, Commander, 1st Division, Army of the Carolinas

And the Winner is...

Dig-it! — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 23:44:04 GMT

And the Winner is...

Sorry for going incommunicado for the day, but the hunting was most excellent today! Not even time to break for a real lunch - we had to eat cold beanie-weenies in the field, using pretzel sticks as chopsticks!

We went back to several sites first thing in the morning to search for Bill's pill bottle that contained his 1/2-penny that he lost yesterday. No luck. This is a huge loss. We are all sick about it.

After searching for the lost pill bottle, we went back to Site #1. Yesterday, we located what we felt was the battle lines. This morning, we hunted them pretty hard. It produced lots of Sharps bullets and a few neat odds and ends. Randy dug another shell fragment, as did Rick. Bill found what he thinks is the Eagle that sits on top of a flag pole... not sure on this one - but if it is from the period, it is a BIG find! Rick dug most of a breastplate - it had unfortunately tangled with a plow a couple of times, but it is still a cool find. I dug bullets... We talked with the land owner. She is going to call us when they harvest the fields that we could not hunt. These should produce lots of fired bullets and shell frags, we hope. She also offered to get us onto the other side of the road... should be some goodies over there too. We sealed the deal by letting her know that we will be sending her a display back up of some of the stuff we found. We've got exclusive hunt privileges on this land now.

In the afternoon, we drove north to a town where Bill had gotten permission for us to hunt a hilltop where our research showed an artillery encampment. 30 seconds with the F75, and I was back to the truck - man was it trashy!!! I was ready to give up - but Bill and Rick stayed out there while Randy and I discussed the situation. Within 5 minutes, Bill had dug some camp lead, so I unpacked the Whites XLT and dove in. It wasn't long before I found a .69 caliber bullet, and then another, and then another... come 5:00pm, Rick had to physically drag Bill off the field to start the trip home!!!

Bill got a nice Scabbard Tip at this site, and he also dug 4 2-ring .69's - these are rare.

Taking stock of all that was found...

Over 75 bullets, a few button backs, a scabbard tip, several nice shell fragments, a couple of gun tools, a gold ring, a 1/2-penny, most of a breastplate, a possible flag pole finial eagle... we are all in agreement that this was a successful trip. Everybody did well. Randy has almost certainly doubled his Civil War Collection with his finds from this trip!!!

Oh yeah, the BIG KITTY... drum-roll please... was unanimously awarded to Wylie Bill. Yes, I hate losing. I REALLY hate losing to Bill, but there was no question that his gold ring, scabbard tip, 1/2 penny, and shell fragment all beat my bullets. Come to think of it, Rick's breastplate and shell fragment and Randy's shell frags and, heck, his knap-sack triangle for that matter all beat my bullets. I found bullets, though.

We are on the road heading home now. If I can get Rick to stop for a few minutes, I'll post some more pics of some of our finds. We've got several more pictures to post, so keep watching - I'll get them up this week.

Dig-it!

ARMY OF THE CAROLINA'S, 1st DIVISION
In the Field, April 13, 2008 7:18PM.

Major-General Ellman,
Commanding Army of the Carolina's:

GENERAL: I have the honor to inform you that the Army of the Carolinas has achieved victory this weekend!

After 2 days prior of heavy engagement with the enemy, the tables turned in our favor today. Despite suffering a great personal loss yesterday, General Stiles carried the day, and is well deserving of the honor and credit bestowed upon him. Colonel Baker's cavalry is equally deserving of our praises, having transported us over 800 miles on this campaign. For his extraordinary efforts in the field in the face of the enemy, Major Gatchel has been awarded a field-promotion to the rank of Colonel. General Stiles' entire staff agree that he is deserving of new equipment and hope that a requisition will be approved by the Quartermaster-General - J. Gatchel.

The Army of the Carolinas is en route to our home base of operations for resupply and recuperation. We expect to be back in the field by next Saturday, moving to the vicinity of Allendale County, SC.

Your obedient servant,

C. L. Watson,
Colonel, 17th SC Cavalry, Div. of Engineers

BULLET1.JPG

Dig-it! — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 12:09:14 GMT

BULLET1.JPG

It was all about Bill today...

Saturday produced mostly bullets. We hunted Site #2 for most of the morning. Wylie Bill managed to find a NICE 1809 1/2-Cent - and then lose it!!! It's in a cotton-filled pill bottle, if you happen across it. Sunday morning, we have to go back to a few spots to look for it. Bill did manage to get a nice shell fragment back to the truck, though. Rick & I found a picket where we dug a few bullets.

Late in the evening, we went back to a spot Bill & I found some years ago to dig a few deep ones. Randy dug a nice knapsack triangle, but Bill carried the day with a Gold Ring with diamonds in it!!! Never know where you'll find jewelry!

We hunted a few other spots that didn't produce much but a stray bullet or two. Lots of looking, and not much finding today. It's like that sometimes.

We have a few spots lined up for Sunday, so hopefully one will produce big for us.

Dig-it!

Bill Swings in the Fields

Dig-it! — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 02:43:26 GMT

Bill Swings in the Fields

We hunted Site #1 for most of the afternoon. Randy did well... a few bullets and a shell fragment. Bill found a couple bullets. I found 3 bullets - one was an uncommon type that will go in my collection. Rick found part of a Spencer Case. Not enough stuff in the fields on this site... we'll move on.

Drove down the road and made contact with the owner of Site #2. Nice fellow. He has about 1000 acres. He said that Gen'l Meade stayed in his house during the War. He gave us permission to hunt his place in the morning, telling us to stop in mid-morning and he would put us onto another spot. We think this guy may know more than he is letting on... maybe a "retired" relic hunter of the good old days???

Also talked to a Preacher-friend of ours in the neighborhood. Bill and I have found relics around the church. He said we were welcome to search some more. This will be a good "back-up site" for tomorrow.

We moved onto one of our old sites of yester-year, where we spent the last hour of daylight looking for a tidbit or two that Bill & I missed in prior years. Lots of good stuff came out of this site, but we've hammered it hard! Rick managed to redeem himself by digging a DEEP bullet we'd missed... I agreed to award him 5 points for digging one we missed. I got one more from about 8-9" down... only came through in all-metal mode. Randy did not hunt, opting to do a little recon of some nearby woods.

First Digs

Dig-it! — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 20:17:18 GMT

First Digs

We arrived at our destination and have hunted for about 2 hours now. I found a bullet fairly quickly - which usually means I should just go back to the car... Randy has scored 2 bullets now - hunting VERY hard, he is! Bill & Rick are still looking for their first goodie. Huge area. The prime area has been planted, so we can't get into it on this trip.... now, back to the hunt!

Dig-it!

ARMY OF THE CAROLINA'S, 1st DIVISION
Rock Hill, S.C., April 11, 2008 12:00 Noon.

Major-General Ellman,
Commanding Army of the Carolina's:

GENERAL: We arrived at the appointed location ahead of schedule and immediately set about our tasks. In short order the 17th SC engaged the enemy, with my Engineering Corps scoring the first battle.

While we remain engaged, Gatchel's Troopers have shown great valor in their efforts, with the bulk of the fight falling on their shoulders. General Stiles commands the fields, while Colonel Baker's cavalry patrols the flanks.

Respectfully,

C. L. Watson,
Colonel, 17th SC Cavalry, Div. of Engineers

THE KITTY

Dig-it! — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 16:15:53 GMT

THE KITTY

Now, it is customary, that on trips longer than 2 hours, or to other states, that all hunters put up a dollar into "The Kitty". At the end of the day, the person who has the best find, takes home the Kitty.

The smack-talking is in rare form this time around, and being a trip of such magnitude, the Kitty was increased to $5 per hunter!!! This represents the first time in modern history that the Kitty has been this high! We've had a few $2/per Kitties, and we've had a few that totaled as high as $10, but this is completely unprecedented!

Wylie Bill has practically already claimed it for himself, and he's not even swung his Fisher F75 yet! Rick, is so sure the Tejon is going to make it his, that he has tucked it all into the visor on HIS side. Somehow, Randy thinks he is going to take it home with his Fisher Model 1 (circa 1945)... might have to learn to use the Shadow on this hunt, Randy! Now, just for the record, everyone knows who brought home the Kitty on the last VA trip, don't we!!!

Dig-it!

ARMY OF THE CAROLINA'S, 1st DIVISION
Rock Hill, S.C., April 11, 2008 12:00 Noon.

Major-General Ellman,
Commanding Army of the Carolina's:

GENERAL: It is my pleasure to inform you that the morale of the troops has never been higher.

General Stiles feels assured of victory, his artillery being armed with the formidable Fisher F75. Colonel Baker is of equally high regard, his cavalry being supplied with Tejon carbines. There is some concern with Major Gatchels equipment, it being of older manufacture and "well worn". We feel the need to press his Troy Shadow into service for this campaign. My regiments are well armed with the finest equipment (Fisher F75 & Whites XLT), and are ready for any engagement.

I have not seen the spirits this high in a long while.

I shall keep you duly informed as opportunity arises.

Respectfully,

C. L. Watson,
Colonel, 17th SC Cavalry, Div. of Engineers

Breakfast!

Dig-it! — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 14:52:49 GMT

Breakfast!

Now, if you've ever traveled with Wylie Bill, you know that you will not go hungry! We stopped for Breakfast at Bojangles in Salisbury, NC - where we discussed our hunting plans for the afternoon. Bill's got us a good site lined up - unless we come across somewhere else to hunt along the way! I'll try to post a picture of the site that was drawn back during the War.

ARMY OF THE CAROLINA'S, 1st DIVISION
Salisbury, N.C., April 11, 2008.

Major-General Ellman,
Commanding Army of the Carolina's:

GENERAL: I have the sincere honor to inform you that our movement to Virginia is back on schedule thanks to the concerted efforts of General Stiles and Colonel Baker's cavalry. The command has paused briefly at this point to gather forage and evaluate strategies.

Our next stop is expected to be in Danville, VA.

Advance reports from Central Virginia are very favorable. We expect to arrive on schedule, pending any encounters with the enemy along the way.

Your obedient servant,

C. L. Watson,
Colonel, 17th SC Cavalry, Div. of Engineers

Packing up & Randy's Late!

Dig-it! — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 14:36:29 GMT

Packing up & Randy's Late!

Well, we are off to Virginia! We were supposed to leave at 6:30 this morning, but Randy was late... we've lost 15 full minutes of digging time, now! Shameful! Deduct 2 points from Randy. Rick is trying to make up for the lost time by going 0.16 MPH faster. I don't think anybody got any sleep last night... excitement and anticipation is high for this one. Weeks of research and dozens of phone calls to land owners went into planning this one. Hopefully it will pay off for us. Dig-it!

ARMY OF THE CAROLINA'S, 1st DIVISION
Rock Hill, S.C., April 11, 2008.

Major-General Ellman,
Commanding Army of the Carolina's:

GENERAL: I have the honor to inform you, that we broke camp at 6:45 this morning, and are proceeding en route to Virginia. General Stiles is in command. Colonel Baker's cavalry is leading the effort. Detachments, under my direction, have reconnoitered the roads as far North as Culpeper, and have gained all the information possible regarding the enemy and the country.

Major Gatchel's command was late to start this morning, delaying our progress. General Stiles wishes to inform you that he has dealt with this infraction in a severe manner.

I will post dispatches whenever possible as to our progress in this effort.

I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

C. L. Watson,
Colonel, 17th SC Cavalry, Div. of Engineers