Keeshond John
New member
I live in a coastal town in northeastern Massachusetts. So I have the option of digging dirt or sifting sand. I tend to spend more time in the dirt mainly because I find more objects, both jewelery and coins. When I was beach hunting more I used a PI machine and still rarely found much of anything but highly corroded clad coins. I did find some rings but no more than I found at inland sights. My feeling is northern beaches (like I search) do not get nearly the traffic that southern all-year beaches get. Up my way we have maybe 50-60 truly nice beach days per year. On those few days there is lots of traffic but compared to Florida with its all year round weather and 300+ beach day traffic it's hard to compete for finds. Does anyone concur with this?
Now the story and how I got interested in metal detecting:
Fifteen years ago I was in a Key West bar and met an older sun-beaten man who was wearing all kinds of odd gold jewelery. I was in my late 30s at the time and he must have been about 60 - a very hard looking 60. We got to jabbering because I am a jeweler by trade and casually admired some of what he was wearing.
That's all it took. He gave me a history of every piece and how he found it. The conversation was started. Seems this man had moved to Sarasota in the middle 1960s and was once standing on the railing of a long pier that extended out into Tampa Bay up off Anna Marie Island. His wife at the time had her hands over the railing and lost a cheap silver watch and band combination into the drink. This man went back to his car and got a mask and snorkel and proceeded to dive into about 8 feet of water. He found the cheap watch but was stunned to find a gold necklace and several other articles including some badly ruined wrist watches that had been down a long time. He gave the silver watch back to his wife and spent several more minutes bobbing around. Guy told me he came up with at least 6 gold articles by just swimming along a short length of pier and simply taking things off the sandy bottom.
Then he got the lightbulb over his head and returned home for an aluminum pasta strainer. He went back at sunset and started working the sand along both sides of the pier with his strainer. The year was about 1963 he told me. Not many folks had water detectors then or even thought about gold hunting in the water. He was probably on virgin territory for he claims to have salvaged more than one hundred gold articles alone along the long pier in a week's time. This with a simple strainer and his bare hands while breath hold diving.
This man told me he sold some jewelry as it was and sold some for scrap value alone. Anyway, he make enough money to buy a new car from that one pier alone. He started to understand the magnitude of his find. The numbers of places along the Florida coast with docks and piers, mariners and such. He started an underground business on public sights and later started to offer his dive service at many old private establishments that catered to the water set. And he claims to have absolutely cleaned up. Of course he got into underwater detectors after asking around and finding a dealer in Miami who was carrying the early models. He never told this dealer how well he was doing. This man approached detecting like a fisherman went after bonefish. He studied people and how they grouped around waterfronts and docks, how they lost things.
The man in the bar told me he had virtually no competition for almost 10 years and by that time had earned enough money to buy a home in Key West and essentially retire. Never told me how much money he made, and I was not drunk enough to ask. He went on to say that he still metal detected in the water for fun, but today's (1995) hunting is a shadow of what it once was.
This guy was very believable. And he had the weird bling to back it up. I'd like to think this story he told me is true. I think it is.
Now the story and how I got interested in metal detecting:
Fifteen years ago I was in a Key West bar and met an older sun-beaten man who was wearing all kinds of odd gold jewelery. I was in my late 30s at the time and he must have been about 60 - a very hard looking 60. We got to jabbering because I am a jeweler by trade and casually admired some of what he was wearing.
That's all it took. He gave me a history of every piece and how he found it. The conversation was started. Seems this man had moved to Sarasota in the middle 1960s and was once standing on the railing of a long pier that extended out into Tampa Bay up off Anna Marie Island. His wife at the time had her hands over the railing and lost a cheap silver watch and band combination into the drink. This man went back to his car and got a mask and snorkel and proceeded to dive into about 8 feet of water. He found the cheap watch but was stunned to find a gold necklace and several other articles including some badly ruined wrist watches that had been down a long time. He gave the silver watch back to his wife and spent several more minutes bobbing around. Guy told me he came up with at least 6 gold articles by just swimming along a short length of pier and simply taking things off the sandy bottom.
Then he got the lightbulb over his head and returned home for an aluminum pasta strainer. He went back at sunset and started working the sand along both sides of the pier with his strainer. The year was about 1963 he told me. Not many folks had water detectors then or even thought about gold hunting in the water. He was probably on virgin territory for he claims to have salvaged more than one hundred gold articles alone along the long pier in a week's time. This with a simple strainer and his bare hands while breath hold diving.
This man told me he sold some jewelry as it was and sold some for scrap value alone. Anyway, he make enough money to buy a new car from that one pier alone. He started to understand the magnitude of his find. The numbers of places along the Florida coast with docks and piers, mariners and such. He started an underground business on public sights and later started to offer his dive service at many old private establishments that catered to the water set. And he claims to have absolutely cleaned up. Of course he got into underwater detectors after asking around and finding a dealer in Miami who was carrying the early models. He never told this dealer how well he was doing. This man approached detecting like a fisherman went after bonefish. He studied people and how they grouped around waterfronts and docks, how they lost things.
The man in the bar told me he had virtually no competition for almost 10 years and by that time had earned enough money to buy a home in Key West and essentially retire. Never told me how much money he made, and I was not drunk enough to ask. He went on to say that he still metal detected in the water for fun, but today's (1995) hunting is a shadow of what it once was.
This guy was very believable. And he had the weird bling to back it up. I'd like to think this story he told me is true. I think it is.
But I like your story and take it for what it is. Whether its one told by a fisherman or treasure hunter we all enjoy lore and a glimpse of past triumphs.