Sunday, my brother (I a thr)took me to the site of an settlement dating back to the late 1850s. 150 years ago there was a couple houses, a school and a church. John Brown is reported as to having spoke at the church on several occassions. Apparently not all the people were sympathetic to that cause as the settlement was burned to the ground in 1865. There are no buildings there today. From the road, it looks like every other corn field in this part of the Country.
I had planned to run in all metal, to help find traces of the old buildings. But with glass fragments, limestone blocks and old square cut nails laying all around, it was easy to see we were in the right place. With the 7.5 kHz coil, slightly modified Pattern 1, Sensitivity at 27, GB at 31, I did pull out a couple keepers. (Not as nice as the 1841 Seated dime my brother found, but keepers none the less.) I found an 1865 IH cent and what I thought was going to be my first large cent. I hate to wipe coins off in the field as I learned many years ago that you can damage the surface of a nice coin very easily. So, I took a bottle of water and swirled the "coin" around until I could plainly see it was not a large cent afterall. It is what is known as a Hard Times Token, dated 1837. This Hard Times token, know as "Jackass running" is one of the first instances of the symbol of the "Democratic party" of Andrew Jackson. When President Andrew Jackson issued the Specie Circular, which required silver or gold, rather than often worthless bank notes, to be used in the sale of public land, cries of outrage and sighs of dismay ran through the financial world. Shortly thereafter, Jackson was succeeded by Martin Van Buren, who continued these "hard money" policies and declared in his inaugural address, "I follow in the steps of my illustrious predecessor." The result was a run on the banks, rampant hoarding, a sudden scarcity of cash, and an unpleasant little phenomenon known as the Panic of 1837. To cope with the shortage of coinage, many merchants and entrepreneurs began issuing what came to known as "Hard Times" tokens, most of which were the same size and traded at the same value as the large cents formerly in circulation. It is said that the burdened tortoise symbolizes the slowly struggling economy, and that the long-eared, braying galloper on the reverse represents Van Buren.
So, even though this token is the same size, shape and traded at the same value as large cents, I am still looking for my first one. And with sites like this one, I am sure it is just a matter of time! HH Randy
I had planned to run in all metal, to help find traces of the old buildings. But with glass fragments, limestone blocks and old square cut nails laying all around, it was easy to see we were in the right place. With the 7.5 kHz coil, slightly modified Pattern 1, Sensitivity at 27, GB at 31, I did pull out a couple keepers. (Not as nice as the 1841 Seated dime my brother found, but keepers none the less.) I found an 1865 IH cent and what I thought was going to be my first large cent. I hate to wipe coins off in the field as I learned many years ago that you can damage the surface of a nice coin very easily. So, I took a bottle of water and swirled the "coin" around until I could plainly see it was not a large cent afterall. It is what is known as a Hard Times Token, dated 1837. This Hard Times token, know as "Jackass running" is one of the first instances of the symbol of the "Democratic party" of Andrew Jackson. When President Andrew Jackson issued the Specie Circular, which required silver or gold, rather than often worthless bank notes, to be used in the sale of public land, cries of outrage and sighs of dismay ran through the financial world. Shortly thereafter, Jackson was succeeded by Martin Van Buren, who continued these "hard money" policies and declared in his inaugural address, "I follow in the steps of my illustrious predecessor." The result was a run on the banks, rampant hoarding, a sudden scarcity of cash, and an unpleasant little phenomenon known as the Panic of 1837. To cope with the shortage of coinage, many merchants and entrepreneurs began issuing what came to known as "Hard Times" tokens, most of which were the same size and traded at the same value as the large cents formerly in circulation. It is said that the burdened tortoise symbolizes the slowly struggling economy, and that the long-eared, braying galloper on the reverse represents Van Buren.
So, even though this token is the same size, shape and traded at the same value as large cents, I am still looking for my first one. And with sites like this one, I am sure it is just a matter of time! HH Randy
There also has to be a joke in there somewhere concerning your story about the political party represented. That one is one to be proud of! Congrats.....
