Why are there military buttons everywhere?

[filmiracle]

Why are there military buttons everywhere? I'm talking even in areas where there was no military activity. I'm sure we've all noticed it so what's the deal?

[Iron Patch]

Because there was many soldiers and they had to live somewhere after the war. I live in a place hundreds and hundreds of miles from any Rev War action but I am pretty sure i have found more Rev buttons than anyone else on this site. That's because most of the the "losers" came this way... and I'm sure glad they did!

[goes4ever]

My guess is because soldiers come from all 50 states, they come home after duty, and they loose stuff on their property. There was no civil war activity in the area I live in, but I still regularly find CW buttons at old farms and field sites of 1800s homes

[The Valley]

I thought I had a CW button right out of my back yard. After taking it down to the historical society I was told I was mistaken, that is was from The French and Indian War!!

[Iron Patch]

Originally Posted by The Valley

I thought I had a CW button right out of my back yard. After taking it down to the historical society I was told I was mistaken, that is was from The French and Indian War!!

A marked or plain button?

[bb_in_maine]

Originally Posted by goes4ever

My guess is because soldiers come from all 50 states, they come home after duty, and they loose stuff on their property. There was no civil war activity in the area I live in, but I still regularly find CW buttons at old farms and field sites of 1800s homes

Same here.

[Lightningjack]

Even the land owner doesn't know what these are doing in his field, this is 2 hunts worth & not including the half dozen or so I gave the owner & theres still more there...

[Iron Patch]

[QUOTE=Lightningjack;1406009]Even the land owner doesn't know what these are doing in his field, this is 2 hunts worth & not including the half dozen or so I gave the owner & theres still more there...




Just a couple coats can give up a pile of buttons. What's too bad is the older the buttons are the less chance it seems they will be found in high numbers, but it definitely does happen. The most the same I ever found on a site was probably 10-12, but they were Rev War so was pretty good.

[Jressman]

Because the % of citizens that was in the military/militia back then is MUCH higher than today % of today.

[The Wolf]

Around here it not uncommon to find a pile of Civil War buttons on a small site. The large camps would literally house thousands of troops on a few acres. And there were a lot of camps. Some of my best buttons were found on sites smaller than my backyard.

If you have seen the movie "Hatfields and McCoys", there is one scene where one tells the other to cut off his buttons and throw them away, because the shimmer of the newly issued buttons could alert the enemy's attention. Being a CW relic hunter, I thought that was pretty cool.

[daddydigger]

Originally Posted by The Wolf

Around here it not uncommon to find a pile of Civil War buttons on a small site. The large camps would literally house thousands of troops on a few acres. And there were a lot of camps. Some of my best buttons were found on sites smaller than my backyard.

If you have seen the movie "Hatfields and McCoys", there is one scene where one tells the other to cut off his buttons and throw them away, because the shimmer of the newly issued buttons could alert the enemy's attention. Being a CW relic hunter, I thought that was pretty cool.

I'm with you. All during the show I kept thinking "I would love to MD there and there and there!"

[AIRFORCEMIKE]

Originally Posted by daddydigger

I'm with you. All during the show I kept thinking "I would love to MD there and there and there!"

yup saw that and that still is a common practice of todays soilders not buttons but with ranks.

[Pa Hunter]

i have found over 300 buttons in the last year on one property. iv found CW buttons war of 1812 buttons i even found a button for the 1st reg artiliary from 1798 these have all been from the same property only diffrence is this property has alot of military history leading from 1600s to 1950s and its never been hunted but by me.

[HugoBorchardt]

I rarely hunt a homesite in Mississippi without finding at least one ww1 or wwii era button. I imagine the vets coming home and giving the kids various buttons and other minor bringbacks, which the kids proceed to go and lose. I also find lots of old small toy cars. Funny: I guess I try to relate finds to each other in my mind.

[dwentzel228]

Another consideration is that back in the day veterans wore their uniforms for almost every special occasion and holiday. Today less than 1% of the current US population serves or has served in he military. As little as 70 years go that number was much higher, 16 million out of around 130 million us population, approx 10-12 percent depending on what stats you look at. The farther back you go the higher the number of veterans. So it really is no surprise that military buttons and items are found in areas with no specific military activity/ history

[Rick_72]

Don't forget, they also had to make those buttons and coats somewhere...and that wasn't on the battlefields. During pre-Vietnam wars, the entire country mobilized for the war efforts, and I'm sure there were garment factories in some of these towns no where near the battles.

[Charlie Tuna]

The military was everywhere, period! They had camps and posts all over this country for hundreds of years. I've metal detected a few sites that were either forts or garrisoned by soldiers during the Civil War and I live in Colorado! There were forts and camps everywhere. Places they stopped to water horses, places they stopped to camp, small skirmishes that don't even have names! They are everywhere!

Charlie

[Midknight]

Soldiers have been everywhere.

[NHKeith]

There was so many people in the military throughout the history of the country..

[The Valley]

Originally Posted by Iron Patch

A marked or plain button?

An Eagle button