Richard Clem, John Davidson on relic hunting

The Antietam and Beyond Podcast

In Episode 4 of "The Antietam and Beyond Podcast," former relic hunter Richard Clem — “The Babe Ruth Of Storytellers” — and avid relic hunter John Davidson discuss the hobby with co-hosts Tom McMillan and John Banks. Clem, 83, who hung up his metal detector several years ago, recalls the day he "eyeballed" bullets behind the Dunker Church on the Antietam battlefield — it was private property then — and talks about his unearthing of four Civil War soldier ID discs and much more. Davidson hunts campsites and elsewhere throughout Washington County (Md.), where he and Clem live. He talks about his favorite finds, "the hunt after the hunt" and the ethics of a polarizing hobby. (Full disclosure: Neither McMillan nor Banks are relic hunters.)

WARNING: Relic hunting is ILLEGAL on National Park Service property. Public property, both state and federal, is generally not open to metal detecting and removal of artifacts. Consult your local laws. You must have permission to relic hunt on private property.

FOLLOW DAVIDSON and his relic hunting on Facebook | Instagram | READ MORE about Clem and his finds on John Banks' Civil War blog.

The podcast is sponsored by Civil War Trails, which since 1994 has connected visitors with small towns and big stories across a network that now spans six states.

Join McMillan and Banks for regular podcasts about Antietam, the Maryland Campaign and the Civil War — the most compelling period in American history.

McMillan is author of the recently released Our Flag Was Still There. Banks is author of the recently released A Civil War Road Trip Of A Lifetime. Find them on Facebook at Author Tom McMillan and John Banks' Civil War Blog. Banks' popular Civil War blog is here.