1877 Indian Head found in the woods! I Still Can't Believe it!

[Tony Two-Cent]

My dad and brother jointly own 40 acres of woods and meadow lands that they use for hunting. We had always known that there was an old well on the property, now filled in. My brother mentioned that there was a spot near the old well where tiger lillies come up every year, and there was also a huge old cedar tree in the same area.

Although it isn't typically the type of site that I would hunt, my brother suggested that I try hunting around the old well just for the heck of it. To be honest I wasn't expecting to find anything, but I decided to try it just to satisfy his curiosity.

Boy, am I glad he talked me into it. :yes:

The detecting was very difficult because of the scrub brush, fallen branches and small saplings everywhere. However, within 10 minutes I got a solid 12-35 signal that was only about 4" deep. I was honestly very surprised when an Indian Head cent appeared in the dirt. When I wiped some of the dirt off the front I couldn't believe my eyes.

It was an 1877! My first one ever! :happy:

We immediately took the four wheeler back to the deer cabin so we could put our glasses on and make sure our eyes weren't deceiving us. Sure enough, the date was clearly 1877. We secured the coin at the cabin and went back to the site. About 10 feet away from the spot where I found the 1877 I found another Indian Head. It was only about 2" deep and it was dated 1899. Further detecting in this area yielded only a few shotgun shells, lead slugs, a copper ring and a D buckle.

My dad and brother are going to clear the area of saplings, scrub brush and fallen branches and then my dad is going to mow the entire area with a Bush Hog. I will definitely be detecting the site again in the future. Right now it's so difficult to swing the detector that it's truly a miracle that I was able to find anything.

Here are all of the finds from the site:
60947


Here is the 1877 Indian Head before I did anything to it:
60951


And here it is after I got some of the dirt off of it. All I've done so far is rub it with my fingers. I'm afraid to do anything more to it.
6094960950



I got the recovery of the 1877 Indian Head on video, so I will be uploading that tonight. I don't think any metal detecting find has ever excited me as much as this one, and it was made extra special because my brother was with me. Needless to say, he was thrilled that his hunch about this site was on the money!

Thanks for looking and happy hunting! :beerbuddy:

[CTTodd]

Nice coins and spot

[pulltabsteve]

Congrats Tony!! :clapping: That's going to be a killer place to hunt! My friend found a crusty '77 a few years back that wasn't in as good shape as yours. He ended up selling it on Ebay for $500.00.

[OxShoeDrew]

I'M SOOOOOOO HAPPY FOR YOU!!!!!!:wow::congrats::yahoo::envious::happy: That is some find, and in good shape, congrats and welcome to the cellar dweller's club :lol:

[Bell-Two]

Wow Tony that is awesome! I am so happy for you my friend I can't wait to see it, I wish I could have been there with you so I could celelebrate with you! :wow: :congrats: :perfect10:

[Skamaniac]

Wow, what a great find! Now I'm looking forward to seeing what you find when the area is cleared.

[dave in iowa]

Wow tony, what a find , now will you sellit ,,, i dont know what i would do.

[Timewarpdigger]

That is an awesome find. Congrats Tony, you are one lucky man.

[BTV Digger]

Fantastic Tony! Great green patina as well. You can certainly make out some of the Liberty on the headband, and looking at your pics, definitely worth a few hundred bucks for sure. Though I imagine given the specialty of the moment you may want to keep that one for awhile!

BTV Digger

[POKIE73]

just goes to show you never never know what will show up makes this hobby what it is congrats on a great find and a good spot for the future dennis

[del]

:shocked05: what a sweet looking Indian :happy: very happy for you Tony :cheering:congrats again on finding "the Indian" among Indians , can't wait to see what else after the area has been cleared.

Dan

[Full Metal Digger]

Congrats Tony. I am so happy for you and I hope you have many more awesome finds like that one! HH, Dave.

[JdsCoins]

:wow: SWEET find Tony! I was SO relieved when I saw the shallow N on the reverse and the last feather pointing between "IC" in America. There are so many expertly crafted altered dates for those 1877 indians. But yours looks 100% genuine to me. WAHOO! :clapping:
Not saying you will, but it would sell for roughly $700 in that condition. :grin:

[Digger Don]

Very nice Tony. I didn't understand why you were so excited, you've dug hundreds of Indians. Then I looked it up. WOW Great Find !!!!
Being with your brother will make it that much more memorable. CONGRATS

[Otis Campbell]

So very nice, what a day one coin can make! Good to go Tony Two Cents, by the way I dig your handle! Sounds a little Italian.

[Tony Two-Cent]

Thanks for the comments, everyone!

Here's a short video of the hunt:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPXb_Jtoj9g

[Thiltzy]

Just watched your video Tony. It's obvious how happy you were and it couldn't have happened to a better person. Congrats:thumbsup01::congrats::clapping:

[Ill Digger]

Well, well, well,.... there it is! :shocked01: Wow what a find!
I was so happy for you when you sent me that text! :cheering: Honestly.......a little envious too :envious: :lol:
THE IH of all IHs! It's in pretty good shape too!
Congrats on a coin of a lifetime! :beerbuddy:

[giant056]

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! that is one totally awesome coin Tony a HUGE congrats on that one :thumbsup02: ................................ That's the Holy Grail :grin:

.................................................. ... :congrats:

[milco]

Congrats on recovering the holy grail of IH's!! Good luck on your return trips, I am sure there are plenty more items to be found!

[The Rebel]

WTG Tony On the Holy Grail of IH's! :congrats: :perfect10:

[RobW]

Not only is that a great find...but it's in great shape too:perfect10:

[coinnut]

Beautiful Indian Tony :notworthy: It's the real deal and it even comes with a gorgeous green patina :clapping: I'm guessing this is a good year detecting so far? :lol:

[Tony Two-Cent]

Fantastic Tony! Great green patina as well. You can certainly make out some of the Liberty on the headband, and looking at your pics, definitely worth a few hundred bucks for sure. Though I imagine given the specialty of the moment you may want to keep that one for awhile!

BTV Digger

Yeah, I'll never sell it. I would regret it for the rest of my life if I did. I'd have to say that it's the single best find of my metal detecting career.

(So far!) :thumbsup01:

Thanks for all the kind comments, everyone! :)

[aloldstuff]

Tony, what a great find. You just never know about a site, but this one sure paid off. Can't wait to see what you find after the "landscaping".

You said that this is your 1st one ever.......how many you expecting? :lol:

[skribnodsister]

:omg::wow::shocked05: Holy cow Tony, that's once in a lifetime find!!!! Huge Congrats and good luck to you on your next trip back to those woods! :perfect10::perfect10:

[Lodge Scent]

Awesome find! Great shape too !

[wisconsin digger]

WOW!!!!!! is all I can say. Wisconsin Digger

[don in ny]

WOW Tony! You didn't just find an 1877 Indian, you found a nice one. Always love seeing people digging great finds and this is sure one of them. Way to go!
:congrats:

[jkress]

:clapping: :clapping: :clapping:

A great big 1877 congratulations to you Tony! :groovy: A super amazing score.

There are not too many things better than finding an 1877 IH... but you got it on video too. :yahoo:

I'm very happy for you buddy! :beerbuddy: Congratulations.

[Longhair]

Sweet Tony!! :thumbsup02: Congratulations on a once in a lifetime find! :clapping:

[tanacat]

Awesome!!!! :happydance02: Love your story about doubting that site and the old well & lilies :) Will watch your vid. Congrats on that rare IH!

[Rgorman]

Nice find Tony two-cent! Out of all the lost indians out there you managed to find the big cheif! congradulations to you Tony on your great find!:clapping:

[KCFindIt]

Hard to top that great find, and not much more I can say than what everyone else has said. However, I will say, I would highly nominate your find for "Coin of the Month" Award. It would be well-deserved and I will vote for it!

[Robbie]

Tony you are the man when it comes to Indian Head cents:notworthy::thumbsup02:

[Sal66]

Congrat's and hope the rest of the year is that good or better !!
Take Care. Sal

[Fire Fighter 43]

That is a fantastic find Tony, WTG.

[DiggerAl]

Congrats Tony, ik this is a bit old now, just wanted to congratulate you. Very nice coin.

[slvrsrchr]

Happy for you, very nice find-that IH is in great shape!

[brownbeardad]

congrats Tony on the rare IH. hope the rest of the search goes that well.

[geodehunter]

How are you ever going to top the 1877 Indian. What an awesome find for sure. It's called a dream hunt. Doesn't get any better then that. :congrats: