Collector Spotlight- Dave Penny

September 2025

Hi everyone. My name is Dave Penney. I’m about to turn 60 in a few months. I have enjoyed being a member of this forum and I’m still amazed with the amount of knowledge and experience the members have. I am honored to be selected member of the month.

I was born in Bad Godesburg, (West) Germany of American military parents. Being an army brat, I grew up all over. I lived in Maryland and again in Germany before settling in the St Louis area in 1979.

Both of my parents were well traveled and instilled the importance of travel in me. As a child, I traveled through much of Europe and a large portion of the United States. I served in the Army Reserve for 11 years, deploying to Bosnia and to Panama multiple times. I also got to see many Eastern European countries during my time in the military.

In 1998, I moved across the Mississippi River to the Illinois side to become a police officer in Alton, Illinois. I retired from my career as a police officer in 2018 to take care of my mother who had dementia until her passing in 2021.

I’m a proud father and grandfather. Those are my greatest accomplishments in life.

I became interested in early American culture during my many hikes around Cahokia Mounds, a half hour drive from where I live. I would visit the museum and gaze at the artifacts in wonder. I was and still am amazed at the innovation and craftsmanship that went into stone tools. I began doing research and learning about the types of tools and the processes used to make them.

I started looking for artifacts on every property that I had access to. I spent my first 3 months finding nothing except a few flakes and a core. I discovered this forum and I received tons of encouragement from people to keep trying. I found my first point and was thrilled. I still recall the feeling of picking it up and realizing that I was the first person to touch this artifact since the last person who used it. To this day, it is the only point I have found in illinois.

I began doing research online about the various cultures that were in my area and refining where I would look for artifacts. I actually started finding things. I was finding things where I had been hundreds of times, but never actually looked before. I have always been active outdoors and this hobby has given me an excuse to continue that. I love nature photography and just being away from civilization.

I have now amassed a collection of about 150 points and two celts that I have found. I still get the same thrill every time I find an artifact, whether it’s complete or just a tip or base. I have a bucket list of points that I would like to find and if I ever find them all, I will just add more on to that list. I would love to find a Graham Cave point and a Folsom point. I still haven’t found any pottery sherds, but they are on my list too.

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