September 9, 2019
A couple walking on Folly Beach, South Carolina over the weekend happened upon a couple of rare historical treasures exposed in the sand in the wake of Hurricane Dorian. Aaron Lattin and his girlfriend went to the beach hoping they might find some curiosities, and they definitely weren’t disappointed.
“I wanted to get a metal detector and especially after the hurricane and see if there’s anything, any history or artifacts that kind of washed up on the shore,” Lattin explained. “We actually just got lucky with no equipment, just spending a day at the beach.”
The couple found an interesting rock half buried in the sand – or so they thought. The “rock” turned out to be a Civil War era cannonball – and within a short time the couple found a second one close by!
After the couple reported the find, police, fire, and Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) specialists were called in to make sure the cannonballs posed no danger.
This is not the first such find for the area: following Hurricane Matthew in 2016, a total of 16 such cannonballs were round in approximately the same location.
The couple’s find also gives credence to the adage “better lucky than good,” as another more experienced treasure-hunter observed with good-natured chagrin. “After the big hurricane I thought I’d find some nice stuff,” quipped Jerry Tindal. “I’ve been doing this for 20 years and found some junk – maybe some Minié balls, a few pieces of metal. A nice young couple five minutes before us walks across a cannonball. Wish I could find one too.”
(Source: WMBF News, Myrtle Beach, SC)