Found under 6 inches of clay along a long abandoned section of unpaved country road. At first I thought it was just a wedge, but there was a handle at some point. Very heavy. Currently soaking in vinegar.
There are a few ways to see what was around your find back in the day. There is an app that will show you old rail beds. The USGS also has historic topo maps that go back to the late 1800s early 1900s. If you give me a nearby town I may be able to screen shot what was there.
The link below is for logging railroads in West Virginia. There are several for Summers County. Unfortunately unlike PA they are not showing up on the maps.
It’s definitely a rail road spike maul, Hinton was and is a railroad town. The C&O was the line between Richmond and the Ohio River by 1873. Hinton was a major point on this line. Generations of people from the Hinton area were railroad employees, and I’m sure most of those had a few of these lying around.
It's definitely not a spike maul. It has a wedge shape to it. Spike mauls have a flat face on each end. This is a chisel and is meant to be struck with a sledge.
You’re not from around West Virginia area originally correct? Because no self respecting Virginian would use meters or any one raised in America for that matter.🤣
I must say your fluency in using the interweb is impressive for a seasoned centenarian such as yourself. Now if you would please tell us how many stone it weighs we may be able to be more helpful. /s Honestly though I agree with the others that said a splitting maul.
Doesn't need to have been near an old rail to be one.
People often used whatever tools were available and cheap in the area until worn out or broken. So probably old homestead site or someone was out prospecting and broke it and it sat there until you found it.
It’s a railroad hammer head. You can say no as much as you like but literally google antique or vintage railroad hammer. It matches the size profile and wear pattern on the head of a the most common examples.
Hey, don't tell OP what this thing is when he is asking us, "what is it?" because he doesn't know. If he wants to believe it isn't a railroad hammer, then he is entitled to his beliefs.
It is clearly a late 1890's era dildo that was popular at the time in non-coal country WV. The bump in the middle was attached to a perpendicular wooden rod that acted as a "hard stop" to prevent women from experiencing anything over 4 inches in length as not to make the women hysterical.
OP, next time you ask a question, don't dismiss the answers you are given. People don't like that and will start avoiding interactions with you. Instead, say, "oh that seems likely, but what about X, Y, and Z?"
It's not a railroad hammer. The end on the right tapers down to an edge. OP said he thought it was a wedge. Railroad hammers do not have a wedge shape. It is a cold cut chisel used to split nuts on track bolts or cut other metal items. It's a two person operation. One person the handle on the chisel, while the other person hits the chisel with a sledge.
Source: I've been in railroad maintenance of way for 25+ years and used this type of chisel many times.
My old man had one of these. He called it a ‘go-devil.’ Said it was for driving railroad spikes. I think the pointy end was to sink into a tie to be able to shift its position
Kinda reminds me of the window weights I found in the walls of my 1903 house. Mine were smaller but there were a ton of different sizes available back then based on what was needed.
From this angle, that serious looks like unexploded ordnance. Are there holes or indentations on the ends? If so, I'd call your local police department immediately and get really far away.
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u/maymuddler 1d ago
Maybe 2.5 courics