Remembrances

[emike123]

A year ago this week one of Carl & my friends passed away after battling a lot of illnesses for some time.  Here are 3 projectiles from his large collection.  I landed the CS James on the left from him before he passed away, but some other guy beat me to the one on the right :-(

We miss you Paul!

[CarlS]

Yes, Paul will be sorely missed.  He had to battle every day for the last few years but nearly always kept a postiive attitude in spite of the daily doctor visits.  He certainly had a wonderful collection and was a wealth of knowledge and will be missed by his fellow friends and collectors.

[gflower]

I would like to take a moment to remember my dad who passed away the end  of last Febuary. My dad Capt. Robert W. A. Flower was an early relic hunter beginning in the mid 50's (I have the 200lb parrott he found in 55' in my office. Between us we hunted relics all over the lower country and the south and found over 500 cannon balls and artillery shells. We hunted with some of the greats, JW Easton of Savannah and he hunted until his health began to fail a few years ago. He was a hard working hard hunting souther man who took gave no crap and took none. As I prepare myself for the one year date of his death I look around my man room, my office and his home and see the fruits of our labors in the field and think that a father could not have given me a better appreciation for history and iron then he did by taking me into the woods with a metal detector.

[emike123]

Welcome to the forum Gary.  I remember our chat shortly after your father passed and the stories you shared were awesome, and I know there are many, many more.  Someday I hope to see your collection, and by the way, next time you head North near my own folks, drop me a line and I'll hook you up with a guy or two in that area that might be able to share some more stories or even augment your already extensive collection.

As Newton said, "if I have seen further, it is because I stood on the shoulders of giants."  We owe a lot to the pioneers who preceded us and are really only caretakers of the history we hold for a few decades at best before we find others to carry the torch for us.  I am not a pessimist and think there will be those to carry on, but it is the sharing of our knowledge that is required to get them to do so.

[gflower]

Mike,
Thank you for the kind words, I much enjoyed our talk and if I can get my act together I will take some photos of my stuff. I am glad the forum is up and running, I thought I was one of only a few who got all worked up about artillery shells, but it appears that we are in some great company. Thought of you the other day when I was at my old relic hunting buddy and CPA Tom Brooks' office.  If you recall Tom is one of the guys who found that great stash of shells at High Bridge Va. when he was a young man. He is a great guy and a long time relic hunter. I would like to take you up on the offer to get up that way and speak to some of those fella's in North Carloina who look for heavy metal. Do you know when the next show is? Gary

[emike123]

I think the next show in that general direction is the Mike Kent Show in mid June in Columbia, SC.

When:    June 11, 2011    (One Day Show)    
Where:    South Carolina State Fairgrounds
1200 Rosewood Drive
Columbia, SC 29202

Although I have never been able to maker that one, 2-3 other forum members usually go to it.  Look for the artillery and they'll be close by.