Mr. Troy Galloway of Dallas Texas, developer of the Troy Shadow Metal Detector Corporation and formerly a native of Louisiana, some years back was testing his machines on an old privately owned Confederate plantation site outside Mansfield, Louisiana near the Mansfield Battlefield, when he discovered a most interesting relic; an extremely old Australian medallion. It turned out the only other items found on the plantation site was American Civil War Confederate relics. For many years the origin of the medallion remained a mystery. Upon making a picture of the medallion available to me in Australia, an investigation was initiated with the Australian War Museum and it turns out his find was one of the very first original Australian badge medallions issued prior to World War I and was made around 1901. It has been speculated that it may have been lost by one of John Fearn Francis's descendants who returned to the old homestead after World War I, or by another family member; but that is only speculation. What is known is that Francis and his family once lived on a plantation in the immediate area of the find and curiously enough, the only other relics ever discovered there were those directly linked to the Confederacy. It still remains a mystery how the Australian medallion ended up on the plantation in Louisiana. Any information or ideas on how the medallion ended up there I am sure would be appreciated.