Charleston’s amateur relic hunters dig up signs of Lowcountry’s history

Belle Montgomery

2nd Lieutenant
Joined
Oct 25, 2017
Location
44022
Relic hunter Mat Lomas shows artifacts he found during a search for historic items Wednesday, Dece. 4, 2019, at a Johns Island property. Brad Nettles/Staff

When Chuck Gainey found a hunk of metal on Morris Island, he went where many people looking for expertise end up: Facebook.
It was brass and circular, about 5 inches across, with the stamp of a star on one side and a shallow rim on the other. A barnacle clung to the inside. A serial number was barely visible.
So the James Islander turned to social media, and the answers he got back ran the gamut: Was it a cookie cutter? An ornate cap to the rods that stabilize earthquake-prone buildings? A lid to a septic tank?
On one point, Gainey was certain. “It’s not a septic tank cap,” he said. “My family’s (run a) plumbing company since 1957.”
He suspected he’d found something older and far more interesting. After consulting with a bevy of people online, he thought he’d come up with an answer: the brass piece was...
Rest of Article with more relics and pics:
 
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Good stuff there. Thanks for linking the article. That was a great read.
 
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