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First Civil War Relic For Me


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Thanks!

The thrill for me is being able to identify it, mangled as it is. It is my second two-piece find, I found a Horstmann WW1 jacket button in my back yard on the first day of metal detecting with my Ace 400. Now I need to figure out why I found them here🤔

20200805_185643.jpg

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It's not often you get the letter "D" in that shield!!! Great button. I get "A"'s occasionally, but never a "D" yet. Congrats!

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Pretty neat find.  Wikipedia isn't always right, but keeping that in mind, from the quote below it sounds like there weren't any dragoon regiments after 1861.  That makes my wonder why those buttons would have been made as late as 1865.  I also wonder if they were even used during the Civil War.  I guess if you already had a uniform you didn't worry much if the buttons were no longer 100% up to date.

In 1861 the two existing U.S. Dragoon regiments were re-designated as the 1st and 2nd Cavalry. This reorganization did not affect their role or equipment, although the traditional orange uniform braiding of the dragoons was replaced by the standard yellow of the Cavalry branch. This marked the official end of dragoons in the U.S. Army in name, although certain modern units trace their origins back to the historic dragoon regiments. In practice, all US cavalry assumed a dragoon-like role, frequently utilizing carbines and pistols in addition to their swords.

 

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Great find this time of year, and I know just how brutal the wind has been here in Illinois.

Good luck on your next hunt.

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8 hours ago, GB_Amateur said:

In 1861 the two existing U.S. Dragoon regiments were re-designated as the 1st and 2nd Cavalry...

 

Hey GB,

I read this as well, so I researched "Virginia Dragoons". I found records of units named as such (Light Dragoons, etc.) that existed as late as 1916, a few units close to this area. One article mentioned that after units were reorganized to the 1st and 2nd Cav, soldiers still added their old Dragoon buttons to their uniforms. I wonder if The Confederacy recognized these reorganizations anyway 😀

The top photo is from McGuinn/Bazelon "American Military Button Makers and Dealers; Their Backmarks & Dates". Managed to get a brand new updated hardcover edition (2006) after I found my WW1 button. A guy in Virginia was selling them for $25! Imagine my surprise when I saw the very backmark photo in the book!

It's sad it's so mangled.

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14 minutes ago, F350Platinum said:

One article mentioned that after units were reorganized to the 1st and 2nd Cav, soldiers still added their old Dragoon buttons to their uniforms.

Nice research!  That explains a lot.  I found one and figured it was pre-CW.  Now I'm less sure.  But I guess the soldier who wore it was enlisted prior to the time they changed the designation, so in that sense it may be.  Mine is by a different maker -- Bradbury(?) -- that company in Connecticut.  They made gazillions of buttons, including civilian ones, and were in business well into the 20th Century.  I found one of their catalogs online (.pdf).

Fun stuff!

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