I have my wallet address, but I can't remember my wallet I used...

[Txfire06]

I have a wallet that I set up so time ago and I have the address but I don't remember which wallet service I used to set up the account with. Can anyone help me out or how I can locate it? I thought it was with blockchain, but no dice... hoping it wasn't with Gox... Lol

[OmegaStarScream]

Do you remember which year it was and whether you were given access to your seed/private keys or not? You could also try and use Walletexplorer.com to see if your address belongs to a certain exchange.

[jackg]

Do you have any idea what year it was? Any clue on whether you have any files from that time or how you got the funds (maybe you bought them and left them on that exchange and have the bank transfers from it?)

[Txfire06]

It was late 2011 and I have my private key to it, just cant remember what or who I set it up with. I will try the explore and see if it can point me in the right direction. Thanks Guys/Girls

[hosseinimr93]

It was late 2011 and I have my private key to it, just cant remember what or who I set it up with. I will try the explore and see if it can point me in the right direction. Thanks Guys/Girls

If you have the private key, it doesn't matter which wallet has generated the address.
You can import your private key into any wallet which supports importing private key and access the fund.
Some wallets also allow you to sweep the private key. With sweeping, the fund is sent to a new address generated by your wallet.
Before importing the private key into any wallet, make sure your device is secure and the wallet you use is trustworthy. A good choice is electrum.

Warning:
Download electrum only from its official website and do not forget to verify your download.

[Cookdata]

I thought it was with blockchain, but no dice...

Hello user! If you have the private key, all you have to do now is import it into Electrum, and you'll be able to spend from the address.
I'm not sure if you're talking about a blockchain wallet or not. If that's the wallet you're referring to, you'll need the recovery phrase you were given during the backed-up process. Without your recovery phrase, it may be difficult to recover your wallet/private key. If you have access to your email and password, you can recover your wallet recovery keys, which contain your private keys.

[Charles-Tim]

....

No need of going through long process which may not even be recoverable as it was in 2011, there should have been a lot of changes, but private key importation never changed, you can still use private key to recover it on wallets like Electrum as hosseinimr93 pointed out. For ease, I will also recommend the user to make use of Electrum for the recovery.

@Txfire06, if you have downloaded Electrum according to what hosseinimr93 posted, click on the wallet to open, name your wallet if you desire to and click on next -> import bitcoin addresses or private keys. Your address should be legacy address, which means you can just paste your private key directly or use this format:

Code:

p2pkh:KxEkaCCw1yhYteYHbHXsNPtkUT7kYDUdoSrn9tsgtWmweU7CZcr7 - legacy, address that start from 1

In case for other bitcoin addresses:

Code:

p2wpkh-p2sh:KxEkaCCw1yhYteYHbHXsNPtkUT7kYDUdoSrn9tsgtWmweU7CZcr7 - for nested segwit, address that start from 3
p2wpkh:KxEkaCCw1yhYteYHbHXsNPtkUT7kYDUdoSrn9tsgtWmweU7CZcr7 - native segwit, address that starts from bc1

Note: never reveal your private key to anyone for your coin not to be stolen.

[Cookdata]

It was late 2011 and I have my private key to it, just cant remember what or who I set it up with. I will try the explore and see if it can point me in the right direction. Thanks Guys/Girls

I just saw this, the reply came in while I was typing, and wasn't aware he had the private key. Follow the above procedure, very easy and simple. Thanks, Charles-Tim

[pooya87]

If you had an account with some website (whether a custodial or non-custodial wallet) then you can go to each of these sites (blockchain.com, coinbase, bitstamp, bitfinex) and use their recovery option (something along the lines of "I forgot my password" and enter your email address you used to use (or other information they ask) that  and see if any of them recognizes it and lets you recover.

[Txfire06]

....

No need of going through long process which may not even be recoverable as it was in 2011, there should have been a lot of changes, but private key importation never changed, you can still use private key to recover it on wallets like Electrum as hosseinimr93 pointed out. For ease, I will also recommend the user to make use of Electrum for the recovery.

@Txfire06, if you have downloaded Electrum according to what hosseinimr93 posted, click on the wallet to open, name your wallet if you desire to and click on next -> import bitcoin addresses or private keys. Your address should be legacy address, which means you can just paste your private key directly or use this format:

Code:

p2pkh:KxEkaCCw1yhYteYHbHXsNPtkUT7kYDUdoSrn9tsgtWmweU7CZcr7 - legacy, address that start from 1

In case for other bitcoin addresses:

Code:

p2wpkh-p2sh:KxEkaCCw1yhYteYHbHXsNPtkUT7kYDUdoSrn9tsgtWmweU7CZcr7 - for nested segwit, address that start from 3
p2wpkh:KxEkaCCw1yhYteYHbHXsNPtkUT7kYDUdoSrn9tsgtWmweU7CZcr7 - native segwit, address that starts from bc1

Note: never reveal your private key to anyone for your coin not to be stolen.

So do I need to enter the p2pkh:? I have been trying but every time I enter my key, my address/wallet will be in full form and then change to "watching only" I have done both address and Private, it switches to watch only with private key too...? I tried transferring some to CoinBase and it looked like it started and then came back with unpaid...

[hosseinimr93]

So do I need to enter the p2pkh:?

Given that you said the address has been created in 2011, it should be legacy and it doesn't matter if you don't enter the prefix.
Whether you use that prefix or enter the private key without a prefix, electrum should generate a same address.

I have been trying but every time I enter my key, my address/wallet will be in full form and then change to "watching only" I have done both address and Private, it switches to watch only with private key too...?

If you enter a private key, the wallet shouldn't be watch-only.

Note that your private key should start with K, L or 5 and should have 51 or 52 characters. *
If it has a different format, it's not a private key at all.

*There are other formats for a private key, but they are not common.

[Charles-Tim]

So do I need to enter the p2pkh:? I have been trying but every time I enter my key, my address/wallet will be in full form and then change to "watching only" I have done both address and Private, it switches to watch only with private key too...? I tried transferring some to CoinBase and it looked like it started and then came back with unpaid...

As hosseinimr93 stated already, wallet import format (WIF) private keys start from 5 (51 characters), K or L (52 characters).

Your bitcoin address starts from 1 if you have generated it from 2011, but bitcoin address can also starts from 3 or bc1.

If you click on 'import bitcoin addresses or private keys' on Electrum, that means you can import either private key(s) or address(es). But private key is required to provide digital signature which is necessary for making transaction, without it, you can not sign a transaction, which means you can not spend. So, by importing address, that means you can not spend from the wallet, you can only use it to track transactions that the address is involved in.

So, import your private key if you want to be able to spend on the wallet. Again, WIF private key starts from 5, K or L.

[BlackHatCoiner]

So do I need to enter the p2pkh:? I have been trying but every time I enter my key, my address/wallet will be in full form and then change to "watching only" I have done both address and Private, it switches to watch only with private key too...?

You only enter the private key. The address is automatically calculated from the Electrum client. You can either enter p2pkh: plus the private key that starts with 5 or the private key alone. It couldn't be a type other than pay-to-public-key-hash starting with 5 either.

I tried transferring some to CoinBase and it looked like it started and then came back with unpaid...

You can't send money if you're having a watch-only wallet. The phrase says it itself; watch-only.

[BitMaxz]

So do I need to enter the p2pkh:? I have been trying but every time I enter my key, my address/wallet will be in full form and then change to "watching only" I have done both address and Private, it switches to watch only with private key too...? I tried transferring some to CoinBase and it looked like it started and then came back with unpaid...

If you put on the address to import the wallet with Electrum it will turn to the watch-only wallet but it's weird if you imported the private key but the wallet says it's a watch-only wallet.

Can you check the reference/difference of the private key you have here https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/List_of_address_prefixes
Which one of these prefixes is the same as your private key?

Please don't reply to newbies who trying to PM you and ask about your private key they are most likely a scam it should be private and only you should have access to it.