Below, you can check out some of my favorite miscellaneous finds. Click on the thumb and a larger image will appear.

Above: if you traveled between Youngstown and Cleveland on the old Erie Railroad back in the 1800s, this might have been the baggage tag you lost in Aunt Blanche's front yard.

Above: In the early part of the century, in Fremont, Nebraska, Grosshan's Garage gave out these aluminum tokens, good for a buck's worth of stuff. Just give the operator a call and ask for "Phone 51".

Above: For years I had found melted pieces of "white metal" some kind of zinc alloy that may have also contained lead. I stuck them in my pocket and pitched them when I got home. This stuff was all found in an area that I believed to be an old campsite in the local mountains. I had found numerous coins from as early as 1910 through the 30s there, including a 1929 dime and 1931 penny. One day, February 17, 1991 to be exact, I found the source of the white metal. I dug this 1879 counterfeit dollar along with a 1928-S penny nearby.

Above: I rarely detect iron or steel, but for some reason, this caught my attention. I don't remember if it was partially out of the ground or if its small, round shape fooled my detector, but I dug it. It's a Junior Ranger pin from the 50's or early 60s...memorabilia from when I was a lad.

Above: This undated token would hook you up with a ride on the Toledo Trolley.

Above: This coin was issued as a fund raiser. I think it was done in the 30s to help raise funds for the restoration of the USS Constitution, AKA Old Ironsides. The metal from this coin was from the cannon of the USS Constellation, the first ship in the US Navy (1797). I found it not too far from Grizzly Lake. I figure some hiker/Boy Scout lost it in the 40s or 50s. The reverse reads:

THIS COIN STRUCK FROM PARTS OF THE FRIGATE CONSTELLATION: FIRST SHIP OF THE US NAVY

Above: Back in the old days, California fishing licenses used to come in a copper frame with a tinplate backing. The paper is gone and the steel completely rusted away, but the copper frames make interesting relics.

Above: Silver jewelry I've found over the years.

Above: Antique toy cars.

Above: Promotional thimbles - Cholerine for Fowls; MacIllenny's Tabasco Sauce; Fuller's Rubber Cement

Above: All the gold rings I've found over the years.