Point taken, Alan. Let's just try to remember that Albert Sydney Johnston's 60,000 man Army drew arms from all over the western part of the South - not just the TM.

I'm trying to do my best to keep this thread on topic and not to paint with a broad brush. The point I have been trying to make is that just because some archeologist states something, that doesn't make it a fact. There is virtually no oversight when it comes to dealing with the the archeological community.

Steven, your last post is a classic example. You state,"As for the flintlock in Clemmons field, most evidence points to this being from one of the Missouri State Guard Divisions (Most likely Clark's Third) and not from pre-War usage."

Most evidence? What evidence? Please cite your facts.

You go on to state, "There is no record of the Clemmons field being used for any military purposes prior to Pea Ridge."

Are you stating unequivocally that you've personally read every military record of the area from the Westward Expansion until the battle?

The entire paragraph sends up red flags. I have personally hunted and documented camps in (Big) Sugar Creek valley north of the battlefield. There are camps all over northwest Arkansas situated along main and secondary roads.
When your men have been marching all day carrying 35 pounds of equipment a site doesn't have to have a strategic or military use for you to camp there.

If it weren't for relic hunters, the hunts at Pea Ridge, Little Big Horn, Chickamagua, Stones River, etc. would not have been as successful as they were. These relic hunters paid their own expenses and volunteered their time. Some were given free lunches for their service. On site archeologists made the big bucks on these digs.

Over two hundred books have been authored as to the identification of artifacts from the War for Southern Independence - everything from bullets to uniforms. Two of these have been written by archeologists. The rest were written by relic hunters, collectors and the like.

It's about time that the legitimate relic hunting community be given the recognition they deserve.

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