Top Ten Relic Finds of 2007

VACSDigger
Karen King
Buzzardjaws This model 1861 Remington .44 cavalry pistol was found at Fort Powhatan on October 19th, 2007 during the fall GRD hunt. Making a find like this was something I never dreamed possible, truely a find of a life time. Sharing the experience of digging it out of the ground with my hunting buddies that day (the "famous" Short brothers) made the recovery even more special. Seeing the faces and reactions of everyone at the camp-out as I showed them the gun was an awesome experience, and I am humbled at the many congratulations, high-fives, and slaps on the back I got from everyone over the rest of the hunt. But the experience of discovery was not over yet. One week later, as I was at home and began to remove some of the dirt that was still caked to the gun, I discovered that the pistol was STILL LOADED..!! I cannot impart to you in words how significant this discovery suddenly became to me. After a rather lengthy search for someone to clean and restore this gun, I ultimately decided!   to do the restoration myself. The experience of cleaning and restoring this unique find was an opportunity that I doubt I would ever have had the chance at again, and I have NO regrets at having done it all myself. And the overall experience only continues to unfold, as more and more people get the opportunity to actually hold this unique piece of history in their hands..!!
Civilwarped
John Willmington
Don in VA
Digit
Andrew Earl
North 40
Dave SC