US belt buckle

[RipRoarin77]

My father passed recently and had a US puppy pad style belt buckle that he left behind. I have been trying to do some research to determine its age without much success. I do not see any clear markings and my mom thinks that it was passed down to my dad from his great grandfather at the least. Any thoughts or suggestions on gaining further knowledge would be appreciated. Attached are 4 photos with different lighting and backgrounds which greatly changed the appearance. Thanks!

 

[scooter748driver]

paging @ucvrelics

 

[JOHN42768]

Welcome, enjoy. Appears to be Regulation 1839 Pattern Infantry missing the hook. To narrow down time frame some, good measurements are needed as multi versions that are only a MM or two apart.

 

[UCVRelics]

These came in 2 sizes, a medium which was 47mm x 78mm and a large which was 55mm x 87mm. With the oval puppy paws and with them set back further to the edge I'm going the large size. These were made from 1850 well into the early 1860's.

Medium

Large

 

[RipRoarin77]

How often do you find a makers mark on these? I see a few possible signs of one but not sure.

 

[UCVRelics]

How often do you find a makers mark on these? I see a few possible signs of one but not sure.

There are more without makers marks then with them.

 

[Salterr]

The studs on your plate are considered the puppy paw style by collectors and they predate the war. Even earlier ones have wire hooks. There are small single hook varieties too. The design for these plates originated in 1839. The medium size plates are harder to find and more expensive than the large plates. Mid war there was a change to the arrow hook configuration. When looking for a makers stamp on belt plates some names to look for are J I Pittman, Boyd & Sons, Wilkinson and W H Smith.

 

[RipRoarin77]

Thank you all so much for the help and information. I learned more from your several replies than I did in 6 hours looking around on my own. Appreciate you.

 

[bdtex]

Thank you all so much for the help and information. I learned more from your several replies than I did in 6 hours looking around on my own. Appreciate you.

Welcome to CivilWarTalk. These folks know their stuff.

 

[scooter748driver]

Forgot to welcome you, so....welcome from the Fort Sumter and the Fredericksburg forums.

 

[History hoarder63]

How often do you find a makers mark on these? I see a few possible signs of one but not sure.

Maybe 1 in 100 are maker marked. "W.H. SMITH / BROOKLYN NY" is by far the most common maker mark. "HUNTER" and "J. IDEN / 137 ELM ST N.Y." Are probably the rarest.

In my opinion maker marked plates are undervalued given how hard it is to find some of them. It would take quite a few years of trying to collect all the known maker marks (which is only about 10). A few of them are nearly impossible to find. One of the reasons they do not bring more money is that they are almost always on the back of the plate and you cannot display the front and back at the same time unless you have two of the same design.