A Sluice Is a Wonderful Thing to Watch

See https://youtu.be/YqS8U5OagRw

for more info on the sluice.

Lost Mormon Gold Somewhere in the Uinta Mountains Is Still Dreamed of by Adventurers

                                                                                          Brigham Young, 1837 - 1867

Brigham Young, the leader of the Mormon Church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) is the main character in a gold treasure story. He is the fellow for whom the university (Brigham Young University) was named. He led his people from their home base in Illinois (Navarro) to Utah in 1846 to Utah. In the Salt Lake Valley they escaped religious persecution. To what extent they were persecuted is up to historians, but certainly they sought religious freedom.  

A few years later, when gold was discovered in California (1849), Brigham Young and the Mormons decided not to prospect for gold. It was something folks all over the United States were rushing to find.

Their religious beliefs forbade them from lusting after gold and riches. However, elders decided that seeking gold and riches was not a sin if it was used to help the religious community thrive. How religious beliefs become doctrine is another question all together.

The Mormon Church acquired as many as forty goldmines in Utah’s Uinta Mountains. Fearing persecution, Brigham Young decided that his flock would keep all the gold they found in a vault hidden in the Bloomington Cave. The yield from the forty goldmines would be stored in this cave, one of Utah’s largest cave systems.

There has not been acknowledgement of finding the cave with the gold. Bloomington Cave is located outside St. George, Utah. 

Although gold is fascinating, the history of Brigham Young and the Mormons is also fascinating. See

Brigham Young ‑ Biography, Facts, Conflicts

Nuggets of Gold, Cristalline Gold in California!

 What a great video! In Plymouth California, this interviewer finds a longtime metal detectorist who has found over $3,000,000 worth of gold - and without power tools.

https://youtu.be/cEj3RGOgWtA

Courtesy Dreamstime.com

A Millionaire Who Couldn't Get Enough Gold in 1933 - Leon Trabuco

A Mexican millionaire and government official during the Great Depression of the 1930's, Leon Trabuco imagined himself going down in history as one of the richest men in the world. To make more money than he already had, he decided to buy up tons of gold and cashing in when the price went up. He ended up with 16 tons - gold bars, coins and jewelry that he kept at his foundry in Mexico.

Since gold was more valuable in the U.S., he wanted a place there where he could transport the gold. He would hide it in the United States with hopes of recovering it later as the price approached his desired level. In 1933 Trabuco had Red Mosier, a pilot fly to Farmington, New Mexico. Mosier ended up making 16 flights to Farmington with the gold.

From Farmington, Trabuco planned to ship all the gold by truck to his secret spot. Supposedly, the burial spot was near the Ute and Navajo Indian Reservations in New Mexico. Unfortunately, the Gold Reserve Act of 1934 was enacted. Possession of gold was then illegal thanks to Franklin D. Roosevelt. Talk about a backfire! At this point all of the gold flown in and buried in the desert had no value.

Eventually, Trabuco and his partners all died taking the secret burial spot to their graves. Later a man by the name of Ed Foster is said to have searched for Trabuco’s lost gold for 35 years. Mr. Foster claimed that he found the landing strip that Red Mosier had used to land his airplane with gold shipments on. He also claims he found a Mexican-style home twenty miles west of Mesa Verde.

Foster also claims he found an outcropping of rocks with the words 1933 and "sixteen tons carved into it." I think 1933 may be carved at a number of old Arizona mine sites due to the mining venture was useless at that point. I have seen a different one myself. The outcropping above he called Shrine Rock. He believes that somewhere in between outcropping, landing strip, and Mesa Verde the treasure is buried or maybe possibly hidden in a cave. Anyone who finds it may be very surprised at the value of the hoard. 

Here is a super video on the Trabuco treasure (redirect works) -

https://youtu.be/X6tO878DO9o

Wood Fire 09/04/2024 Near Superior, Arizona and 5 Miles South

Peril in the Silver Veins: Tales of 1869 Arizona Miners- Harshaw, Arizona

 Here is my latest addition to an 1869 short fiction adventure in Arizona. Forgive me if it doesn't match something about gold prospecting. But this story is about 1869 Hashaw, Az. This area produced a lot of silver! My story incorporates history of the period. I have written 3 episodes, and you can read all of them, for free. My investigations into gold discoveries will continue. Thanks for your patronage. :)

An Old Time Arizona Silver Mining Pioneer Adventure - HubPages

Jack and Nell start a new life away from the old Eastern extremes and pray for a good life of peace. 

For factual information about silver and silver treasure, see Golden Legends: Tales of Buried Treasure: United States Silver Facts: What Do You Know? The Poor Man's Gold! (goldlegendstalesofburiedtreasure.blogspot.com)

Golden Legends: Tales of Buried Treasure: The Arizona Lost Opata Silver Mine and the Princess That Was Sacrificed Inside (goldlegendstalesofburiedtreasure.blogspot.com)

Burying Their Stagecoach Thievery: Jesse and Frank James Hiding $32000 in Arkansas

Robbing many banks, stagecoaches, and trains are what Jesse and Frank James are well known for in the Wild West. The stories alone have allowed people to let their imaginations run wild and ruminate about possible buried treasure.

On January 15, 1874, the gang held up a stagecoach at the intersection of old Malvern Road and Gulpha creek south of Hot Springs, Arkansas. According to reports, the James gang made off with $32,000 in cash and jewelry from the passengers. That was worth $881,920 in today's money.

They buried the stolen goods and found a sandstone rock in which they carved their names and the amount of money that was to be buried. They also carved 3 figures of a cross, a bowie knife, and a 3-pronged fork. 

Frank said later that they never did return to find the stolen loot.

Jesse and Frank James.

For more about Jesse James, see Golden Legends: Tales of Buried Treasure: A Riveting Story of Jesse James and Buried Treasure in Ohio (goldlegendstalesofburiedtreasure.blogspot.com)

The 10 Best Treasure Seeking Books to Read

 I want to let you in on the best treasure hunting story book out there. 

25 Real-:Life Treasure Hunts That Turned Up Millions in Loot

The Treasure of San Jose Lay Undiscovered for Hundreds of Years (And It's Worth Billions)

Lake Toplitz In Austrie Is Believed to Hold the Lost Treasure from World War II

When the Nuestra Senora De Las Mercedes Sank, It sank with A hoard of Gold and Silver

The SS Gairsoppa Was Carrying Thousands of Silver Bars And Made One Salvage Team Very Rich

The Belitung Shipwreck Contained the Singler Largest Amount of tang Dynasty Artifacts Every Found.

A Couple Found A Box of Gems in The Backyard of Their Home -- and They Returned It to The Rightful Owners

Divers Found More Than 20000 Gold Coins off The Coas of Caesarcea 

The Ayocha Was Carrying An Impressive Collection Before It Was 'Sunk by A Hurricane.

Valuables Were Found When The Royal Hanuman Dhoka Palace Was Being Renovated

For 25 Stories, see 

https://rtbookreviews.com/best-treasure-hunting-books/

Sulphur Springs, Arkansas Spanish Treasure Site - A Few Pieces of Plundered Gold Found

Text and image taken from Wikipedia: 

1.  Roesler, F.E. (April 1908). "The Spanish Treasure Cave Near Sulphur Springs, Ark". KCS Current Events: An Industrial and Agricultural Magazine. 7 (2): 148–153. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
2. Old Spanish Treasure Cave - Wikipedia
3. Allsopp, Fred W. (1931). "Legends of Lost Mines and Hidden Treasures". Folklore of Romantic Arkansas, Vol. I. USA: The Grolier Society. pp. 282–298. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
4. Skalicky, Michele (17 December 2018). "Along the Missouri-Arkansas Line, a Tale of Buried Spanish Treasure". KSMU Public Radio from Missouri State University. Archived from the original on 4 December 2023. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
5.  Harrison, David L. (1970). The World of American Caves. USA: Reilly & Lee Books. pp. 68–70. Retrieved 26 April 2024
6. "Field Trip: Old Spanish Treasure Cave". PBS Learning Media for Teachers. Houston PBS. Retrieved 26 April 2024.

The Old Spanish Treasure Cave is located on Hwy 59 between Sulphur Springs and Gravette, Arkansas in the northwest corner of the state. It has been a popular tourist attraction since at least 1908. It is still open to the public, with guided tours and other activities such as panning for treasure and finding fossils.

Cave formation

The cave formation is known as a Karst cave This formation is still a topic of geological research. Basically, it is formed from water containing carbon dioxide (CO₂) dissolving limestone.

The Old Spanish Treasure Cave is different than most tour caves. It is what is called a maze cavern. There is a passageway all throughout the cavern leading into different rooms and even more tunnels.

Legend

Many of the caves in Arkansas and the Ozark region have legends and fables about hidden gold and silver, often attributed to Hernando de Soto's vicious search for gold. Their origins go back as far as the early 1700s, when the French explored the area, and some might have come from even earlier Spanish legends.

Legend details, 1908

In the early 1700s, Don Carlos Lavilla was one of the Spaniards looking for El Dorado, the lost city of gold. He was in the Ozarks, prospecting near Sulfur Springs for gold and silver because the area has lead and zinc outcroppings, which sometimes means other valuable metals are nearby.

Lavilla saw the tracks of a black bear, and he followed the tracks to the mouth of the cave. He fought the bear, drew a map of the cave's tunnels on sheepskin with directions for finding the cave again, and returned to Spain.

Many years later, his heirs returned to the cave and worked a vein of ore. They smelted the ore and hid bullion worth $3 million (about $102 million in 2024) in the cave instead of taking it back to Spain.

In 1900, another of Lavilla's descendants returned, with the map, to take the hidden bullion. He discovered that some citizens of Benton county were digging around, looking for the bullion for themselves. Lavilla's map of the cave was found to be accurate, but the bullion had been moved.

Legend details, 1931

This cave used to be called the Black Cave, named after the black bear mentioned in the 1908 legend details.

De Soto's followers were looking for gold in the Ozarks when they came across the Black Cave next to a creek in the Touch-me-not Hollow (valley). They mined the cave and carved a map of the mine into the trunk of an old oak tree that was nearby.

In 1900, a Spaniard came to the area pretending to know secrets about the cave. He convinced capitalists in Kansas City to excavate the cave, and they spent months and thousands of dollars excavating as far as a mile into the mountain. They discovered that the map left on the old oak tree was accurate but did not find the gold.

Legend details, 1970

In about 1720, bandits robbed churches in Mexico of their gold statues, bars of gold bullion, and gold coins. Looking to hide with their loot, they made their way to the Ozark region of Arkansas. A blizzard forced them to find shelter in the cave, and they hid the gold in the back of the cave. Native Americans discovered that the outlaws were camping in the cave and killed them in a battle. However, they didn't find the gold and its location remains a secret.

In about 1900, George Dunbar and an unnamed Spaniard came to Arkansas. The Spaniard had maps showing the location of the cave and its hidden treasure. Dunbar and other workers explored the cavern and installed a railway to remove dirt as they dug, and although Dunbar searched until he died, they didn't find the gold.

Later W.W. Knight hired another crew of workers and also dug in the cave, in search of the gold, finally giving up in 1918.

Legend details, 2018

Council Room in cave interior

In the days when Spain ruled Arkansas, conquistadors had been raiding the Aztecs and Mayans in Mexico and South America and were travelling through the Ozarks when a blizzard forced them to take shelter in the cave. They hid the gold and camped in a cavern called the Council Room, which has a natural chimney in the formation.

While in the Ozarks, they destroyed a Native American village and only a few villagers survived. The survivors found the conquistadors from their campfire smoke and killed them all in revenge. Before the last conquistador died, he made two maps: one on parchment paper, and another carved in a limestone rock outside the cave that has eroded some over time.

In 1885, a man in Madrid found a map in a family Bible, which also led him to the map etched in limestone. He found the cave, but not the hidden gold. He did not stay long, due to ill health.

Then in the 1900s, George Dunbar looked for the gold while pretending to run a mining company. He found a few pieces of the plundered gold.

During a recent drought, a new clue was found on a wall that's usually not accessible because of spring waters, a series of symbols were found that pointed to a hidden room with a large pool. Unfortunately, as they started exploring that room the rains returned and flooded the room again. 

The treasure has been estimated today at well over $40 million dollars and has not been found yet. There have been artifacts found in the cavern, such as helmets, pieces of armor and weapons dating back to the time of the conquistadors. A few gold coins have also been reportedly found. The hunt still goes on today. The cave has never been fully explored, and new territories are charted every year.

For more about Spanish treasure, see Golden Legends: Tales of Buried Treasure: Montezuma May Have Left His Treasure to Utah Treasure Hunt (goldlegendstalesofburiedtreasure.blogspot.com)

One of the Largest Roman Coin Hoards Found in England Makes Others Insignificant

 

                                                                                                     Caraucius

The Frome Hoard is a hoard of 52,503 Roman coins found by metal detectorist Dave Crisp near Frome, England. The coins, contained in a ceramic pot 45cm in diameter, were/are dated from AD 253 to AD 305. The coins are made of debased silver or bronze. It is one of the largest hoards ever found in Britain. It is important because it contains the biggest group issued during the cesarean reign of Carausius. Carausius ruled Britain from 286 to 293 and was the first emperor to mint coins in Britain. The hoard is housed at the Museum of Somerset in Taunton, made possible by a grant from the National Heritage Memorial Fund. The value of said was 320,250 pounds in 2011.

The hoard was discovered on 11 April 2010 while Crisp was metal detecting in a field near Frome, a place he had previously found late Roman silver coins. The late Roman coins, eventually adding up to 62, were probably the remnants of a scattered hoard, 111 of which had been found on the same farm in 1867. He got a strange signal and dug down abut 35cm (14in) and found a small radiate coin. He also noticed a small ring of a pot top. Realizing that this must be an intact coin hoard he stopped digging and filled in the hole he had made. In 22 years of detecting, Crisp had never made such a significant find.

On 15 April, Crisp notified Katie Hinds, the Portable Antiquities Scheme Finds Liaison Officer for Wiltshire, that he had found the hoard of coins. On 22 April Hinds, together with Anna Booth (Finds Liaison Officer for Somerset) and Alan Graham—an independent archaeologist contracted by Somerset County Council—visited the site to carry out emergency excavation.

The excavation, led by Graham and assisted by Hinds, Booth, Crisp and members of the landowner's family, was performed over three days, from 23 to 25 April. Graham initially excavated 1.5 meters (4.9ft) trench around the small hole that Crisp had dug and identified the pit in which the pot had been deposited. A small, black-burnished bowl had been inverted over the mouth of the larger pot, to form a lid. First, he excavated the pit fill around the exterior of the pot, identifying organic matter which might represent packing material to protect it, and determined that the pot had been broken insitu long before its discovery in 2010. He then excavated the pot itself. Due to the weight of the contents, the need for speedy excavation due to security concerns and the difficulty in lifting the broken pot with the contents still inside—which would be the preferred archaeological method, so that the contents could be excavated in controlled, laboratory conditions—the decision was taken to excavate the coins in the field.  -Wikipedia

Conserving the Massive Hoard

On 26 April, Sam Moorhead, Finds Advisor for Iron Age and Roman coins at the British Museum, and Roger Bland, Head of the Department of Portable Antiquities and Treasure at the British Museum traveled to Frome to collect the coin excavation, driving them back to the British Museum in London. Over the ensuing six weeks, Metals Conservator Pippa Pearce washed and dried all the coins in order to stabilize them, but did not perform a full conservation, which would have cost an additional £35,000.

The coins comprise 67 separate types, and date from the period 253 to 305. The vast majority of coins are made from bronze, but five are made from solid silver.

Of the 52,503 coins found, 44,245 have been identified, while the remainder are classified provisionally as "illegible" until cleaning and conservation has been completed. Of the identifiable coins, 14,788 were minted under the central Roman Empire, 28,377 were struck under the breakaway Gallic Empire, and 766 were minted under the Britannic Empire of Carausius. About 5% of the coins identified so far are from Carausius' period, ruling Britain from 286 to 293. The hoard includes five silver denarii issued by Carausius, which were the only type of silver coin to be struck anywhere in the Roman Empire at that time.

For a fascinating journey, visit the British Museum website. https://www.britishmuseum.org/

ALSO

https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryMagazine/DestinationsUK/RomanSites/

Uncleaned

Cleaned

For more on Roman treasure, see Golden Legends: Tales of Buried Treasure: Bags of Welsh Silver Treasure Found at New Site (goldlegendstalesofburiedtreasure.blogspot.com)