Early Buttons

Tombac/Pewter, Dandy, and Other Flat Buttons

The best way to find old buttons while metal detecting is to look up homesites on historic maps and search near the foundations and outbuildings. Sometimes it’s difficult because there aren’t any foundations or remnants of the buildings left. If these sites are on private property, permission should be obtained before trespassing or detecting these locations.

Pewter/tombac buttons

Many early flat buttons were made of pewter, which is an alloy of tin, antimony (a naturally occurring, silvery-white, brittle metal which is also formed as a by-product of smelting lead and other metals), copper, and lead. Roughly 85-99% of a pewter button is tin, which is also a brittle metal, as shown above. Other metals, generally copper, are added to strengthen the tin for everyday use. Pewter buttons were popular from 1700-1820, but were generally smaller and less ostentatious than dandy buttons (more on these below). Pewter buttons were sometimes referred to as white metal buttons and had a very different look from the copper or copper gilt dandy buttons, but they occasionally also sported decorative designs.

Another alloy was also common at the time, that of copper and zinc, known as tombac. It’s often difficult to distinguish between old pewter and tombac, though when new, the pewter would have been a white or silver metal, while tombac was gold-colored.

Most buttons at the time were imported from England, though occasionally some were cast in homemade molds in America. Because of the American Revolution some manufacturers in New England started producing pewter buttons to replace the limited supply arriving from England.

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A Dandy was a man who valued physical appearance, refinement, and leisurely pursuits and was often found in high society settings. Dandy Buttons are generally gilt copper buttons or large copper/copper alloy flat buttons meant to provide flash and dazzle. These buttons were popular in the late 18^th to early 19^th centuries, particularly among self-made men seeking to emulate the aristocracy.

A few of the fancier dandy buttons I’ve found.

Dandy buttons that are 30 millimeters in diameter are generally from 1770-1795, but were also commonly used until 1815. Buttons between 19-30 mm were typically in use from 1795-1805. Smaller gilt buttons became the most common after that date range and are often simply called flat buttons since the gilt finish rarely survives for centuries in the ground.

Most dandy buttons have intricate designs, but occasionally the designs are not deeply inscribed and wear off over time in the dirt.

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Gilded flat buttons date from 1810-1840. The English discovered a process for gilding buttons in the late 18^th century by adding five grains (.325 grams) of gold to a mixture of mercury and brushing the it on buttons, and then firing them in a furnace. This would cover twelve dozen (one gross) of buttons. This possibly explains why a lot of my gilded button finds have the word “London” embossed on the back. In 1810, after stealing the formula for gilding from the British, Americans began making gilt buttons. Britain’s Parliament passed laws to keep unethical manufacturers from using too little gold in the process. The Scovill Button Company, established in 1802, was an early American manufacturer of gilded flat and massed-produced buttons. The button below is stamped “DOUBLE GILT” meaning that twice the legally required amount of gold was used in the gilding process, which assured purchasers of the quality of these buttons.

Example of a Scovill Button

After 1830, the two-piece button became popular and remained in common use into the 20^th century. Stay tuned for an upcoming post for more information and photos of my two-piece button collection.