Interesting morning

markinswpa

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Pittsburgh Pa.
Due to heat, rain, and home projects I have not got out much and when I have finds have been sparse.:( This is a low point for me in this hobby and reading other members posts keep me going and knowing the next cool find is only a plug turn over away. So my neighbor is having some concrete work done and one of the guys that work fore the contractor says he's a digger. I say you do metal detecting, he says nope, just digs. He proceeds to tell me he has been working the same site for years, has dug thousand of coins, tokens, and artifacts. Gold and silver, he said he has even found gold teeth. The site is where they hauled the debris from the 1936 Pittsburgh flood. Then he said don't ask.Said he has drawers full of stuff and that he would bring a few back with him. This morning I was having my coffee on my back porch and he came over with a bag full of tokens, buttons, and some foreign coins. Including a Grand Army of the Republic medal. a Remember the Maine medal and bunch of other cool stuff. I remember a while back one of the other members posted one of those and I thought what a cool piece of history. After seeing how much I enjoyed the piece he said go head take it, pick one more, I've got drawers full the stuff. Even though I didn't dig it its still a great piece if history and glad to have it. The other token makes me chuckle because the neighborhood where they want you to buy a house is just the hood these days.So that was way back when.

Now I have a 10 o'clock app. to get fitted for my new glasses so I decide to stop on the way back at the local Wal-mart and do a little shopping. I go in and spy this guy at the coin star. I'll have to keep an eye on him I thought so periodically I would check back and yep he was still there. Now I was in the store for at least 40 min. and he was still pouring coins in there. I get in the shortest checkout line and don't you know I got the slowest cashier. He's still pouring coins in. Just about the time I finishing I see him pull his slip, I said damn, timing couldn't be better. He walks off and I head over and the tray has a pretty good hand full of coins left in it, I pocket them noticing a bunch off foreign coins which is all I usually get from the coinstars and as I'm walking out I see the guy come back and check the return slot, Sorry too late. After checking them I got a Toonie, 6 quarters 6 dimes, ,and 5 Canadian nickles, Also a coin from the Netherlands, 1 from Bermuda, 1 from Aruba and one from Nambia. A memorial penny and YES my first US silver a 58 Rosie . So as you can see it was an interesting morning. Two tokens and a silver without detecting, not quite the same but I'll take it. Sorry for long winded post but I wanted to share. HH Mark

ps. last pic is from my last hunt at the local park
 

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That was really nice of him to give you the fob and token, I think I remember that thread you were talking about, Had someone's name on it if I remember right. Funny you saw the guy come back to the coinstar, I got a good chuckle outta the " Too late" reply. Excellent day on all fronts, Congrats!
 
Those good luck tokens are interesting. I found a Boy Scout token like that one, with the same symbol on the back.
 
That is really awesome!
Are you syaing the guy found hundreds and hundreds of coins and tokens and such without a metal detector?
Imagine what else could be there and found with one:shock:
 
Matt thanks

That is really awesome!
Are you syaing the guy found hundreds and hundreds of coins and tokens and such without a metal detector?
Imagine what else could be there and found with one:shock:

Although the guy didn't say, I assume he does some type of sifting, Now he did tell me that guys have been there with metal detectors but there not much good because of all the iron. Apparently they tore down all the damaged houses and loaded them into railway cars took them out somewhere and dumped them and lit the pile on fire, my guess is to get rid of the wood and any possible disease. He said he has done pretty good on scrap copper and brass as well. I did tell him I have a new machine that can see through the iron pretty well and I plan on working on him a little bit to see if he won't give up the location.
HH Mark
 
Ron, thank you

That was really nice of him to give you the fob and token, I think I remember that thread you were talking about, Had someone's name on it if I remember right. Funny you saw the guy come back to the coinstar, I got a good chuckle outta the " Too late" reply. Excellent day on all fronts, Congrats!

Ya know, before I started mding I never thought one way or another about tokens but since I get a kick out of digging a cool token as much a a silver coin. They seem to commemorate a tiny piece in time, whether it be an event, a purchase or what have you. So yes I do love tokens. HH Mark
 
He proceeds to tell me he has been working the same site for years, has dug thousand of coins, tokens, and artifacts. Gold and silver, he said he has even found gold teeth. The site is where they hauled the debris from the 1936 Pittsburgh flood.

The town where I grew up has a fair every year. Every year, they totally destroy the sod on the fair grounds and have to replace it. I'd love to get access to where they dump the old sod.

BCD
 
I tried doing a search to see if there was info online as to where the debris site could be as you would think a project that big was not a secret but didn't find that info.

Maybe you could call the historical society and ask about that flood and casually ask "where did they ever move all that debris to ?"

http://pittsburghistoricalsociety.org/

https://newsinteractive.post-gazette.com/thedigs/2013/03/15/the-great-st-patricks-day-flood-of-1936/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pittsburgh_flood_of_1936

http://www.brooklineconnection.com/history/Facts/Flood1936.html
 
Congrats on the quality coinstar haul! I have some relatives who live on the North Side who live in an area where they supposedly dumped some of the flood debris. They constantly dig up old bottle fragments, some complete, along with other old "trash." I tried my Etrac there with the 8x6 SEF and it was pretty difficult with all of the EMI around and junk in the ground. It's a very densely populated area nowadays. And who knows if that was really a flood debris dump site or not. That's just the local neighborhood rumor. It was a definitely a dump site of some sort though.
 
Thank you sir

I tried doing a search to see if there was info online as to where the debris site could be as you would think a project that big was not a secret but didn't find that info.

Maybe you could call the historical society and ask about that flood and casually ask "where did they ever move all that debris to ?"

http://pittsburghistoricalsociety.org/

https://newsinteractive.post-gazette.com/thedigs/2013/03/15/the-great-st-patricks-day-flood-of-1936/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pittsburgh_flood_of_1936

http://www.brooklineconnection.com/history/Facts/Flood1936.html

Gary, thanks, those are some great links and make for interesting reading. I remember my mother talking about when I was a kid but never realized how devastating it was. I did talk the guy since and he told me the site was on private property and that he first found something while playing in the woods when he was 9. He is now 39. I told him I would be willing to place my hand on the good book and be sworn to secrecy , but I think it had little or no effect. By the way when he stopped back he had albums of coins and tokens. The collection was unbelievable. HH Mark
 
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