ID Request: Buckle

[cwbullet]

This a buckle pic that was mailed to me. Anyone who has an exact ID, Please post so I can tell the owner.

[MosbyRanger]

That would be a two piece Louisiana sword belt plate. State seal it looks like. Very rare item!!!!!!

[spector551]

Yes, that is exactly correct. That is one hell of a specimen. Is it for real?

[Memphislady]

Could you please tell me more about this buckle. I also have two clips and some sort of other piece, maybe for a belt, that seem to be from the same material. I know that he enlisted in the Army of Tennessee at 16 and spent 4 years in a "Yankee prison." I know this because my aunt has his diary by that name. My brother got the sword which was first used at the Alamo by his father or Grandfather, who was the surgeon general of the Navy of Texas. My grandfather then carried it in WW I and my dad in WW II. All their names and the dates are engraved on the sword.
This plate, and the pieces that went with it have been in a jar that used to be on my grandfather's chest of drawers, then was in the closet at my dad's after grandpa died. No one ever mentioned what this was. I have had it since dad died, in the same jar, and that was in 1988. I went to Shiloh a few weeks ago and saw some similar buckles in the museum and went, "Oh, My God. That looks like the one in dad's jar." Then I went looking for this site.
I also have been told that his wife was the last survivor in the Confederate Soldier's home in Mississippi before it was made into a museum. If this is really his sword buckle, I may have to find out all the details from my aunt who is well into her eighties now. Any thing I should look for? I could have sworn there was also some grape shot or something, but I can't find it any more.
I uploaded photos of the other three pieces from the jar but they don't seem to be posted. I know that my GG Grandfather is buried in the tomb of the Confederate Soldier in New Orleans and my aunt has done the work to be a member of the Daughters of the Confederacy. But no one knew this might be his sword buckle unless my grandfather did. He didn't tell any one if he knew. It couldn't have been used; it is so clean except for a few tiny spots .
What do you know about it and is it valuable? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you, Memphislady.

[emike123]

It is potentially very valuable. Contact this guy:

http://www.confederatebeltbuckles.com

...and tell him you have Plate #276 from his book. He is THE CS buckle expert and can appraise it for you.

Not sure how your ancestor kept it if he got captured (nor for that matter how another one kept his sword from the Alamo). He must have come into this buckle after he was freed because he would have been "relieved" of it while imprisoned.

[Memphislady]

Thank you for the lead. I will contact him and see what he says.
You have two very good points. I know the Alamo guy was legit, there is a VFW post named for him in Alamogordo, Texas...so he couldn't have been a total coward and run off with his sword still shiny and engraved??? The Civil war man must have been pretty strange wanting to be buried with the Confederates rather than the family, and I could never figure out why the old lady wanted to be in the Confederate nursing home instead of the family home which was still owned when I was a child. There was a lot of inbreeding. The whole family is pretty goofy.

[NC Reb]

Memphislady,
Ma'am, You have a very interesting account. I would encourage you to visit your Aunt and find out anything she knows about the family members associated with these items. I would take a notepad or recorder and make a record of anything she might be able to share. Don't ignore the things of which she may uncertain and take in all, even the things that seem unrelated. It may be that through some information she imparts that you may secure documentation that will support the family history concerning these items. I can tell you as a genealogist that it will require some effort and time and can be very tedious. But in your situation it can only add to the value of these family heirlooms and perhaps significantly so. An item that has good documented provenance might double (or more) in value. Should the items remain in the family, generations to come will bless your name for securing the information.

Regards,
Ernie

[Memphislady]

I followed up on your idea and spent several hours on the phone with my Aunt. I found out that the soldier's name, my great grandfather, was Lewis Fisher Levy. He joined Yerger's Regiment, Mississippi Cavalry and, in his first battle, near Yazoo city in 1863, his horse was shot from beneath him and he was captured. He was sent , first, to a prison in Ohio, probably Camp Chase, and was then transferred to the dreaded Camp Delaware, where he remained until the end to the war. I have sent for a copy of the paper which he signed stating that he would never rise up against the Union again. He was released to Virginia and then returned to New Orleans.
He applied for and was accepted into the Army of Tennessee, a Confederate Veterans group and is buried in their tomb in Metarie Cemetery, New Orleans. The buckle, as someone suggested, must have been purchased after her returned to New Orleans. He never carried his father's sword....And the reason that Albert Levy still had the sword after the Alamo was because he went off to join the Navy of Texas right before the Alamo. He served on the battleship Independence until Texas was liberated.
I have contacted Mr. Mulllinex about the buckle and will be sending him the pictures, etc. for identification. Thank you all so much for helping me. Now I am really fascinated by all this. And to think, it was there in that jar, forgotten all these years. Without you who helped, and this site, I might have ended up tossing it out in one of my spring cleanings. I had no idea it might have so much information attached.
Thank you again. I will post whatever information I get from Mr. Mullinex.

[MosbyRanger]

Glad to hear you have gotten some information on that buckle MemphisLady. It is a very nice piece and any and all info you can get will help improve its value both sentimentally and monetary. Can't Wait to hear more about it.
Respectfully,
MosbyRanger

[NC Reb]

Memphislady,
Ma'am, I'm delighted your aunt was so helpful in providing correct information concerning your family history about the sword and buckle. A quick search on the Internet revealed your great grandfather belonged to Company F of Yeager's Reg't and held the rank of Private throughout the War. It is very possible you might find other information pertaining to this Reg't on line. Also, he may have applied for a pension if he were still alive when the Gov't made them available to veterans. I'm not sure when this happened in LA but it was after 1900 in NC. My great grandfather applied in 1901. The point being in the application he would have given a summary of his service.

There are a number of possibilities as to why he acquired the buckle, perhaps he purchased it as a keepsake from the War, perhaps some veteran or widow needed a little money and sold it to him, it might have even been a gift. My guess would be he bought it to wear during veteran events as you mentioned he belonged to a veteran's organization and you also have found what sounds like the hanger, clips, etc. that he would have used in wearing it. Even though he did not carry it in the War, a genuine LA buckle is still a valuable item and a true treasure. Thank goodness it didn't get thrown out during a Spring cleaning!

It sounds as if Albert Levy and his military service would make for an interesting research project also.

Regards,
Ernie