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How to document your finds?

R

Road Gang

New member
I'm brand new to metal detecting and have been reading these and other forums (this one is the best btw). I would like to learn more about documenting your finds. I understand that one of the stigmas against MD'ing is we are viewed as pillagers of historic artifacts. That isn't my intention at all. If I make a find that I think is of historic interest I will be glad to donate it to the local historical society. Is there some information somewhere that gives the correct procedure for documenting your finds? What kind of photos to take? What measurements to make? GPS coordinates?

What do you veterans of this hobby do, dig and don't worry about it? Or do you follow some procedure? How do you determine what should be documented? I don't want to log every pull tab I recover either lol.

Thank you for your help with this.

Gary


OMG, I just noticed it's snowing again! I got to get out of this frozen wasteland (Maine)!
 
Gary, I have a composition notebook I record stuff in, from places I want to go, places I have been and what I found of value at that place with the date. A very simple form of record keeping. My finds are common though-coins, costume jewlery, marbles and of course, pull tabs and beer bottle screw caps.
I will make a note if the place is totally trashed, or too much construction debris, bad time of day like this morning I went too early and the park was not even open, went to another and there were middle school kids there hooting and playing till they had to walk across the street for school. That's what I do but I also been doing this about 2 months.
Joan
p.s. Sunny and 85 here in south florida! :wave:
 
Joan, it sounds like you use your composition notebook more as a journal. That's a great idea too. I would probably do some of that as well since I travel quite a bit and it would be hard to remember the details of places I find to hunt otherwise.

Where are you in south Florida Joan? I'm heading your way in a couple weeks. I'll be staying at Patrick Airforce Base down in Melbourne/Cocoa Beach area for a few weeks. Are you familiar with that area? I'd would like to hook up with any MD club in that area too since I stay there a few weeks a year most winters. Do you know of any? I'm very new at this and would like to make some connections with others who are involved in this hobby. Human networking as they say. :) Lots of beaches in that area and I have no idea what restrictions they may have regarding detecting either. Also, can I park my motor home in your driveway while I detect your neighbor's lawns? hehe j/k. You probably thought I was a normal guy till I said that huh? lol

Thanks for the info!
 
Hi, I have had this discussion with a couple of people who belong to those types of societies that think we are robbers. My first statement to them is, unless you are on a historical site that is uncharted, most of what you find is irrelevant to history. My point being that it doesn't matter if that clad dime you found in the park is 3" down or 4". Even at foundation sites, everything recovered is standard tools and coins of the period, and is well documented already. Plus the fact that most areas were tilled, does not allow accurate measurements. Another point of conflict is ownership. Some societies think you should donate your finds. REMEMBER most places that want those donations are private (just like you) and are not bound to keep or display those finds. In other words they can hide them in their own collections and sell them if they wish. Don't be fooled by their fancy names (even if they include your town name). They can still be private. So don't be concerned about logging too much. If you find anything completely out of the ordinary, research it, and only then, bring in outside help. And my final argument with them was the fact that all of these organizations exist, but in my area I haven't seen one of them digging and preserving anything. Will we let acid rain rot it in the ground? I think not. So keep finding, cleaning, and recovering those items for future generations to enjoy. It's a great hobby. :clapping:
 
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