2024 Central Texas Treasure Club Treasure Hunter of the Year Winners!

 2024 Central Texas Treasure Hunter of the Year Awards!

At last Wednesday's CTTC Christmas Party, the winners of the 2024 Treasure Hunter of the Year competition were announced and awarded. They are as follows:

2024 CTTC Treasure Hunter of the Year - Tommy Faught

1st Runner-Up - John Meeks

2nd Runner-Up - Jay Longley

3rd Runner-Up - Caiden Tyler

*** Overall Best Finds of the Year - Tommy Faught

The race for our 2025 Treasure Hunter of the Year has begun! Winners are based on the total number of points each Member has collected from our monthly Finds of the Month Contests. Each Member can participate by bringing your best metal detected finds, for the previous month, to the monthly meetings and entering one of them in the appropriate category. There are 4 categories - Coins, Jewelry & Precious Metals, Relics, and Most Unusual. Then, everyone present gets an opportunity to vote on which finds they think are the best in each category. Votes are then tabulated and the winners of each category are announced. Our next CTTC monthly meeting is Tuesday, January 7th.

So get out there and start competing!

 

CTTC Annual Christmas Party - Wednesday, December 11th!

 Annual Central Texas Treasure Club's Members & Families-Only Christmas Party!

· Jen made arrangements for this year’s Central Texas Treasure Club’s Christmas Party at The Section Hand Steakhouse. It will begin at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, December 11th. We will have the traditional Gift Exchange so everyone needs to bring a wrapped gift valued at between $15 to $20.

 

Metal Detecting Tip That Will Increase Your Good Finds

 1 – When you find a good target like a coin or piece of jewelry, ALWAYS be sure to run your coil back over the hole once you’ve retrieved the target.  Then, work the area in a circular pattern around the original hole for a distance of about 3 feet in every direction.  If you don’t do this already, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how your better finds start to increase.  Many times, when someone loses one coin or valuable, they’ll lose more along with it.  That’s especially true for coins but also applies to jewelry.  A few years ago, that’s how I made one of my most valuable and rare metal detecting finds – a World War II Army Tank Destroyers sterling silver bracelet at a park that used to be a very popular baseball field during the War when Brownwood was home to Camp Bowie – the largest Army training base in Texas during those years.  I was using my Garrett Ace 250 at the park when I got a good signal.  I dug down 4” with my 3-in-1 Digging Knife and out popped a mysterious emblem with a hellcat crunching down on a tank with his jaws.  On it was the motto – “Seek, Strike, Destroy”.  I was baffled at what it could be.  My first thought was it represented a modern video game or something.  As I always do, I detected in a 3-foot circle around the target’s location.  I got another good signal about 2 feet from the original spot.  Again, I dug down about 4” and out came the answer to my question – a complete steling bracelet that fit perfectly onto the top piece!  I still didn’t know what it represented until I got home and searched for “Seek, Strike, Destroy” and quickly learned that it was a bracelet worn by a soldier of the Army Tank Destroyers Battalion.  I’ve searched and searched over the years since and haven’t found another like it.  Apparently, it was worn by a Camp Bowie soldier who was training with the Tank Destroyers.  He probably attended a baseball game at the old field and in the excitement, the bracelet detached from the top piece and fell from his wrist, to be lost for the next 70 or so years until I came along with my Acey and found it!

 

CTTC Monthly Meeting Tonight - Tuesday, December 3rd!

 The Regular Monthly Meeting of our Central Texas Treasure Club will be held tonight, Tuesday, December 3rd, at 6:30 p.m. at the old Early Chamber of Commerce Bldg. at 104 E. Industrial Blvd. in Early, Texas.  Visitors are always invited and encouraged to attend.  Our Club meets on the first Tuesday of every month.

Hope to see you there!

Jay Longley, President, Central Texas Treasure Club