Ranking the best places to find coins

C4igrant

Junior Member
Joined
Feb 16, 2011
Messages
35
Location
Ohio
Since I am new to this, I will ask the more experienced members about where the best locations are for hunting.

Thoughts on the below list and how you would rank them (based off of your experience):

1. Schools (still running)
2. Schools (gone or abandoned)
3. Farms (barn and home)
4. Railroad stations (gone or abandoned)
5. Swimming holes
6. Churches (still running)
7. Churches (gone or abandoned)
8. Fields that were farmed long ago (1800-1900)
9. Post offices (gone or abandoned)
10. Parks
 
Are you looking for quantity or quality? That is, do you want lots of coins, or would you rather find old coins?

Since you are new to the hobby, finding a lot of coins will be pretty exciting to you, and to do that your best bet would probably be tot lots (school playgrounds with woodchips or shredded rubber surfaces).

You left out your own yard, and other private yards. They should be high on the list, too.

Old farms are usually not too good for coins. Listen to my podcast #030 about that (http://thetreasurecorner.com). Parks and schools can be good or bad, depending on whether or not other treasure hunters are covering them regularly. Swimming holes can be good, but go when they aren't busy - offseason or right after a rain. Churches are fine, but members may be angry if they think you are there without permission.
 
Here are some to add to your list..also remember to get permisson to hunt..some of these spots will not be available in all areas every where is different...Buster.....:grin:

Parks
Athletic Fields
Carnival Sites
Schools
Circus Grounds
Picnic Groves
Homesties
Swimming Holes
Swimming Beaches
Scout Camps
Ghost Towns
Play Grounds
Campgrounds
Rodeos
Roadside Rest Stops
Sidewalk Grassy Strips
Rural Mail Boxes
Revival Meeting Sites
Amusement Parks
Rural Dance Areas
Reunion Areas
Fort Sites
Military Installations
Winter Sledding Areas
Lookout/Overlook Sites
Church Supper Groves
Fishing Holes
Resorts
Fishing Camps
General Stores
Outhouse Areas
Battle Sites
Band Shells
Court Houses
Racetracks
Rural Boundary Walls (Stone Walls)
Roadside Stands
Farmstands
College Campuses
Under Seaside Boardwalks
Near Telephone Booths
Around Parking Meters
Flea Markets
Your Relatives Homes
Ski Slopes
Drive in Theaters
Motels
Vacant Lots
Bus Stops
Old Taverns
Old Inns
Canal Towpaths
Construction Sites
Barns & Other Out Buildings
Front Yards/Back Yards
Railroad Stations
Fence Rows
Hiking Trails
Trailer Parks
Near Historical Markers
Old Gas Stations
Highway Cafés
Lovers Lanes
Town Common
Town Square
 
Are you looking for quantity or quality? That is, do you want lots of coins, or old coins?

Let's cover both.

Since you are new to the hobby, finding a lot of coins will be pretty exciting to you, and to do that your best bet would probably be tot lots (school playgrounds with woodchips or shredded rubber surfaces).

Understand. For me personally, I am really not interested in a nickel made in 1998.

You left out your own yard, and other private yards. They should be high on the list, too.

I kind of thought these were a given so I did not list them.

Old farms are usually not too good for coins. Listen to my podcast #030 about that (http://thetreasurecorner.com). Parks and schools can be good or bad, depending on whether or not other treasure hunters are covering them regularly. Swimming holes can be good, but go when they aren't busy - offseason or right after a rain. Churches are fine, but members may be angry if they think you are there without permission.

Thanks.
 
Excellent Buster.

What I am also looking for is what the experienced members find in schools vs say farms. QTY OR quality?
 
There is no way to list every possible place to find coins, new or old. The reason being is that anywhere people have been can produce coins. A place where people would put their hands in and out of their pockets has a high probability of coins. The older the location, the older the coins. The more people that congregate at the location, the higher the probability of coins being lost.

Nobody likes to dig junk, pull tabs, bottle caps, nails, etc. but the good thing about a location with trash is that it means people have been there and that means there is probably coins lost there.

All of us would love to go out every single time and hit the jackpot but as you can see from just about every thread/post on this forum, it just doesn't happen. Some of the folks here are luckier than others and have more than paid for their equipment with their finds and others probably have more money invested in this hobby than they'll ever get out of it.

All of the places that have been mentioned already can be big producers but it's not gauranteed, there can probably be many more locations added.

I wish you luck and happy hunting :)
 
Thanks for the posts on this. I was looking for spots this morning that I might have overlooked. There's a bunch!:lol:
 
I have been saying this for awhile...

Parking lots!

The pic with the grassy islands is a high school parking lot...the other pic is a dirt parking lot for the stadium above it.

When people park, they get out of their cars and trucks and pocket contents can fall out.
When they are on their way back to their vehicles, they pull keys out of their pockets and other things can easily come with them.
Also rings can come off, bracelets and necklaces can break and when you are over dirt and grass like in these type areas, nobody hears them drop.

I have found close to $40 in clad and a few wheaties just between these two areas, not to mention all kinds of other great stuff including 2 gold and 1 silver ring, and 2 silver necklaces at the high school lot.
 

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I'm far from an old salt at this but what I tend to do is mix up my hunting. I have a few areas that are great for clad and hunt those when I'm in a slump and not finding much from my older areas where I'm searching for those lost gems(I've yet to find anything really great). Some don't like to dig clad and only want older coins so I'm sure the sites they hunt would be different from some of mine. Living in a bigger city it seems to me that alot of the obvious places are hunted often and it's harder to make better finds so I have started to branch out in my research and try to "think outside the box" as you will often hear the more experienced members here speak of. I look for areas, like mentioned already, that are older and many people have congregated over time. It's usually hit or miss but I think that is all part of the hobby, I like the challenge myself. Just my 2 pennies worth, good luck.
 
Are you looking for quantity or quality? That is, do you want lots of coins, or would you rather find old coins?

Since you are new to the hobby, finding a lot of coins will be pretty exciting to you, and to do that your best bet would probably be tot lots (school playgrounds with woodchips or shredded rubber surfaces).

You left out your own yard, and other private yards. They should be high on the list, too.

Old farms are usually not too good for coins. Listen to my podcast #030 about that (http://thetreasurecorner.com). Parks and schools can be good or bad, depending on whether or not other treasure hunters are covering them regularly. Swimming holes can be good, but go when they aren't busy - offseason or right after a rain. Churches are fine, but members may be angry if they think you are there without permission.

Just listened, great podcast! I just went through this myself. I got permission to detect an old farm out in the country. I found my first old coin there (1900 Barber dime) and when I was told I could come back I got so excited thinking surely I'd find more old coins. Nope, just bits of msc. metal and junk. Sounds like I was pretty lucky to have found the coin I did :lol:
 
Some of my best finds have been at old schools, other old institutions, and old houses/farms. Someone here said that old farms were not good for coins-- maybe not as good as parks, but I've had a lot of luck. You may not find silver, but I've found Indian heads, shield nickels, a half cent, and various large coppers. Also, at old farms I have found sites of other, even older houses, in the farm fields or wooded areas.

My best spot was where there used to be a fair held on grounds of an institution that has been in existence since the 1880s, and there was a farm on the land before the institution was there.
 
Since I am new to this, I will ask the more experienced members about where the best locations are for hunting.

Thoughts on the below list and how you would rank them (based off of your experience):

1. Schools (still running)
2. Schools (gone or abandoned)
3. Farms (barn and home)
4. Railroad stations (gone or abandoned)
5. Swimming holes
6. Churches (still running)
7. Churches (gone or abandoned)
8. Fields that were farmed long ago (1800-1900)
9. Post offices (gone or abandoned)
10. Parks



In most of these places and situations I dont think its realistic to include both quantity and quality of finds without doing seperate lists. Many of the sites that produce quality do not produce quantity and vice versa. There are many possible places left out of this basic list , some very good ones which should be right up near the top....sledding hills for example and fairgrounds. But I will rank the ones in this list according to my experience.

1. parks
2. swimming holes
3. schools ( still running)
4. schools ( gone or abandoned )
5. churches ( gone or abandoned )
6. railroad stations ( gone or abandoned )
7. fields that were farmed long ago
8. churches ( still running )
9. farms ( barn and home )
10. post offices ( gone or abandoned )

Not to say that one of the locations toward the end of the list couldnt be a real honey hole if you found the right one , and if talking about more "quality" finds I may organize the list a little differently , but generally speaking certain locations usually pan out a little better than others and usually its because there was more opportunity for things to be lost there over the years.
 
1. Schools (still running)
2. Schools (gone or abandoned)
3. Farms (barn and home)
4. Railroad stations (gone or abandoned)
5. Swimming holes
6. Churches (still running)
7. Churches (gone or abandoned)
8. Fields that were farmed long ago (1800-1900)
9. Post offices (gone or abandoned)
10. Parks[/QUOTE]
Need to add: All are good
11. river crossings,
12. hiking trails,
13. any area in the neighborhoods, that kids could play games
14. old military camps
15. Boy Scout camp, or any camps
16. Any beach
17. any existing or old pick nick areas
18. Any parking areas for dating.:laughing::shock:
 
In terms of quality, by far I've had the best luck with Urban, older homes.

Farms have always been awful for me...lots of junk. I've always had lots of luck with homes (pre 1930s), lots of high quality coin finds on these.

Quantity, hunting parking lots, and public athletic areas at parks has yielded me large amounts of modern coins.

Honestly though, the most fun I've had is hunting older urban homes (urban being the key).
 
Amen, Lunchable!

The most productive sites for old coins:

1. Older homes
2. Near downtown
3. On corners

I own a house that fits all three of those requirements, and I've pulled over a hundred coins from the yard, including Mercs, Buffalos, and Indian heads.

Country folk seldom had coins in their pockets. The only time they carried money was when they were going to town. My mother grew up on a farm, and she dropped a nickel in the yard once when she was about 10, and she spent HOURS on her hands and knees, looking for that nickel. (She found it!)

But city people always had change. Lots of vending machines in town! Kids got Cokes and candy bars and chewing gum, adults got cigarettes - and all those machines required coins.
 
My oldest coin came from an old fairground. I have found several old coins at old parks, churches and sports fields.
 
Schools and parks older than 1960 or somewhere in the woods...those are my bread and butter hunting grounds. The only other place I frequent is the beach.
 
Old private yards are my number one choice. I hunt in the country (farm houses) 90% of the time and in town the other 10% of the time. majority of my OLDEST coinage (indians, large cents, and older silver) comes from farm houses. They are also great for buttons, tokens, and relics. So if I had to pick my favorite spot it would be old farm houses hands down
 
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