Subletts Lost Mine, Culberson County, Texas

[Rawhide]

Sounds like a fun trip. Anyone going any time soon?

 

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[fredschwartz]

Curly is more on track than the rest of you guys. Ben Sublett was my GG-Grandpa. He was a veteran of the "war of northern aggression".

My Grandma remembered him, but he died when she was a small girl. She told me what she could recall in about 1950. He had a mine (not the fruits of a "heist"). He commonly brought 1/2 - 2 oz. nuggets, and a couple of times nuggets the size of chicken eggs. The stories of having been shown the location by Apaches is generally accepted by the family. There were also rumors that the cave also contained Mayan gold artifacts and conquistador helmets & weapons. Some of the tales alleged alien remains.

Some of the family is convinced that the mine lies within the white Sands missile range ... in the very secure and off-limits area of course.

Grandma said that there was an attempted bushwhacking by men who believed he was coming from the mine ... he was not. His family was with him, and the shots barely missed his wife Jennie. Ben declared that the gold was a curse - and never returned to the mine.
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'ol Curly back from grave...back in the saddle after being off this treasure site for 8 years.

Sorry, but all you guys are wrong on the Sublett Gold Mine, except Mamothman. Buddy, if you are serious about finding this mine, message me my friend because the Russel Hills are part of the clue. But I have the rest.....its not there but the trail starts there.

Lets get some history right: First of all Sublett did NOT get his gold from chests of nuggets abandoned by California Gold Miners or abandoned miners. Completely untrue. The Butterfield Stage line that wound around the Guadalupe Mts in 1859 and stationed horses for the stage line only lasted 18 months or so. Thats it! After that it was abandoned! By 1861, it was shut down for the civil war. When the feds reinstated a new stage line throught Texas to California the lines trails and forts they created for it went farther south through the Davis Mountains, and the northerrn Culberson County Guadalupe line completely abandoned and never saw gold or travellors from California with Gold ever again. It died fast so these wild tales of huge stashes of '49 gold is 99% bunk. There have been stories of 1 actual chest being found near the old station at pine Springs, but Sublett didnt dig up stage coach gold, I promise, you. Thats a wild ghost chase. He had a REAL gold mine he was using in the 1890's, and from evidence I have, it was Apache Nana's Snotahay Mescalero mine. Its a real gold play.....but very well hidden in the desert. Sublett put the clues together and found it.

Sublett told people himself, he got the evidence of the mine from the Mescalero Apache themselves, though it was not allowed. Several other pioneers also got the same directions from the Indians but never found it. Its hidden in a tiny crevace in a vast gigantic desert in the shadowy hills east of the Mts. I have the clues I got from old articles 100 years ago. Other men even with the clues Sublett had from the Indians spent fortunes digging around for it and never found it. Thats how damn hard it is to find.

Ill share one "nugget" of info. Like Mamothman mentioned, Sublett would stop at a certain spring on his way to the mine. The reason that spring is so important is not that it has gold, but it was the last stage of his travel to the mine. A family lived there and met Sublett so it proves the tale is real, and the fact Mamothman mentioned the same family, proves what I have that it was a historical fact....Sublett was a real man and found a gold mine! He knew that family in the Russel Hills and stopped on his way to the Guadalupe Mts. I would like to meet the descendents of this family as that is a true fact, and talk to them. According to the history I have, Submett would eat frijoles with them on their ranch then get in his wagon and head towards the Mountains. He would return after a period of time to the same ranch with the gold. And then back to Odessa east. The gold wasnt at the ranch or the spring. It was a stopping point on his way to the mine.

The question is, where he went from that location? I think I know. Thats where the Indian clues come in. I would like to meet someone that has access to the Guadalupe Mts park and the ranchers out there as I think I have enough clues to place the gold mine. The Indians located it by specific hills and peaks, certain landmarks, miles from certain places, then the hole. The way the Indians described it, its down in a crevace you climb down into. Its in the middle of nowhere in a vast desert near the Mts. Without the clues, its extremely hard to find. Many men prior to 1912 had the clues and couldnt find it! But once you find the crevace, you climb down into it and there is water flowing through a cave and volcanic black sands at the bottom. Its a sinkhole. In the sands you can rake up small nuggets. Its there still today......the ghost mine of the west, a fortune guarded by the ghosts of the Mescaleros that vowed no man would find it. Sublett did but like the Indians he trusted, took it to his grave. The Indians likely convinced him to keep the secret hidden. Because he didnt even share it with his son Rolth. This is also the Lost Apache Mine, Im convinced. Why its such an important find...

 

[austin]

Nice post about a subject that will be debated forever. Family stories are usually based in truth. I have no doubt that there was a mine or source of some kind. I am a retired college history prof, not a treasure hunter of old mines. Honor your ancestor and if you have the time, follow in his footsteps. Good luck...

 

[Tod Ringam]

KAM 1; the key to the mine is the volcano, "Ash Mountain" by the Spaniards, Six Teats by the Indians, and I think on
the topo. map it's called the "chimneys". It is kind of a longish volcano rather the more common round type. The best I
could figure out the mine is about 1 1/4 mile north west of the volcano, (Chimneys). All ranch land lots of locked gates.
Tod R. As I remember the all important spring is called Delaware Spring I think.

 

[Tod Ringam]

KAM 1, follow up."The Chimneys", is a long volcano with a row of stone fingers sticking up, hence the name Chimneys, by the whites. The gold
must be in clay, (volcanic ash), from a vent associated with the volcano. Sublett used water from Delaware Spring to wash out the gold. You have to come in from the South. It's all closed off from the North. Every where else is wall to wall limestone, the volcano hast to be the source of the gold. Tod R.

 

[curly]

Curly Here......Tod you are right on. Thats some new clues you have but are close to mine.

As Tod mentioned, the Indians looked for the gold mine using landmarks. The main one was some cone shaped, or "teat" shaped peaks. The Rustler Hills are a major source of sulphur mining so this whole area has a volcanic origin that proves its gold country! I cant say where to look, at White Sands, Guadalupe Mountains or Rustler Hills, but if you have the Mescalero Indian clues, which Ben got, as did others, you can get close to the mine.

I will say this....Ben stopped at ranches around Rustler Hills prior to going to the mine. I know the spring and I have a location where the mine is. I cant divulge more but its on a mesa and its a sink hole in the middle of nowhere. Its so hard to find, as his son Rolth said, you could be standing near it and still not see it! So we are talking about a tiny 50 foot or so crack in the earth, in the desert where you climb down and there are the black sands and an underground stream 50 foot down with the nuggets in it. Again, to find it you need some clues, landmarks, and mile markers. I know the area, I just need some partners and help, as its on private property. And it will require some treks across the mesa to find it.

You guys message me if you want to hunt for this Gold Mine..... - Curly

 

[Tod Ringam]

Curly, I'm guessing at everything------------so can't be completely sure that I'm right. And if you're right I must be wrong! Good luck to you.
I;m too far away to be of any help. Tod, PS Let us know when you find it.

 

[Tod Ringam]

Curly, think we might have the same mag.; the sight that you describe may be wrong info. at least it doesn't seem exist any where in the Russell Hills.
The buffalo hunter searched the Russell Hills off and on for three and 1/2 years as did Ross Sublett and meany others. I suggest that Ben S. did stop
at a spring in the Russell Hills but only because it was on his way from Eddy N.M. to the volcano, (The Chimneys). Ross said he knew the mine was about six miles from a spring. I think that spring must be Delaware Spring, which is on south of the Russell Hills, and is seven miles north of the volcano. 1 1/4 miles to the north of it is a spring called Burro Spring. This could be the so called 'Seep' spring. If so; the mine was 6 miles from Delaware Spring and about 1 3/4 mile from the seep spring this puts Sublett's mine 1 1/4 mile north West of the "The Chimneys". Tod R. PS, will add the name of the seep spring later. Also the Indians called the volcano, "Smoky" Mountain.

 

[lastleg]

"Indians called a volcano Smoky Mountian? That doesn't sound like Indian lingo. The "same mag"? You
got all this out of a magazine?

 

[Tod Ringam]

Lastleg, I typed out a long reply to your question but was told I didn't have permission to post it. I don't know why---------------- Guess they don't want me around, so long and take care, it's been fun. Tod Ringam

 

[lastleg]

I cannot imagine why your reply was censored, unless it included inflamatory words against TNet policy.
I do hope what I said did not cause a reaction like that. I have read lots of treasure legends of Ben and
his gold, mostly in treasure magazines and some by men who actually hunt for it. The authors of Sublett
lore seldom even know the topography of west Texas and eastern New Mexico. Some just copy, with
somewhat different language, the versions written by earlier legend authors.


I am sorry for your distress.

 

[dr.lamb]

I live in Odessa, Tx. Ben Sublett is buried in the Odessa City Cementary. From what I have been able to gather (by no means a complete set of facts) Old Ben would leave Odessa heading west. He would cross the Pecos at some point (unknowen to me) and procede to his mine. After two or three days he would return to Odessa with his pockets full of nuggets. Knowing this country I would estimate that Old Ben could travel about 20 to 40 miles per day. If my distance calculations are correct his mine would have to be just east of the Guadalupe National Park. The desert terrain just west of the Pecos River elevates slightly as one travels towards the park. I will be checking out the area sometime in late April 2013. At this time I am in the process of obtaining landowner permission. Wish me luck.

 

[lastleg]

dr.Lamb, good luck on your trip. One thing occurs to me. The landowner may have a gold mine on his property and not
know it?

 

[dr.lamb]

lastleg:
The land that I will be investigating is owned by Wise Assets
. They Own the (now non-operational) Duval Sulpher plant. An earlier post suggested that the mine is located in a cave about two miles west of a Highway. Orla, Tx perhaps. A caution I would provide is that the area (caves etc) are prone to the productiuon of H2S which is deadly. If you enter any cave in that area I would have a monitor with me. UT Austin has identified several native american habitats in that area. The artifacts are plentaful but belong to the land owners. I am traveling to Orla, Tx next week. Part of my search is academic in that I am doing research for a book about the Monso Suma people that lived in the caves near Rustler Springs. If you go there take plenty of fresh drinking water as the water in the spring is not potable. The natives drank from the spring and the water caused diarehea as evidenced by the human corporalites. Lots of luck in your hunting attempts.

 

[westtexasguyy]

Any new developments? I live in culberson county. I work in the apache mtns. Also have a friend with land bordering the guadalupes, but apparently he is on the wrong side of the mountains, in salt flat.

 

[lastleg]

There was a recent mention of the Guadalupe Mts on the Lost Adams Diggings forum on TNet you might
want to check out. It might give a little credence to Ben's gold.

 

[BIGSCOTT]

I was in Culberson county on fathers day, drove right by delaware spring but didnt know it was there at the time, had never heard of these landmarks and was wondering where they came from (deleware spring, the chimneys, Burro spring) read about them here, and found them on google earth, i went down the county road that turns west when you get to delaware spring there are houses there and the growth is lush so i knew there was some source of water nearby, going west from delaware spring you cross the delaware river afew miles down, the road that goes straight is called university rd, i wonder if this is where they found those old indian caves, university rd follows a creek cosely, in my mind this is delaware creek, and aslo runs right by the chimneys and Burro spring, were these land marks from jameson, am going to get the book the treasure hunter maybe it is in there, any other help would be appreciated, i have tons of old treasure research material, just dont remember which ones might pertain to bens cave

 

[BIGSCOTT]

I will be in there next week, going to put the treasure net app on my phone should be able to post lots of pic's , i was wondering what dr.Lamb found, i drove right up to that old sulpher mine but didnt know what it was, thought maybe salt or potasium mine, going out there to look for work on the rigs, they are moving into culberson county pretty hard and heavy, all through the rustler hills, wish me luck
BIG SCOTT

 

[Desert Rat]

Wondering if Big Scott or Dr. Lamb had any success with their trips to the hills.

After reading several of the threads does anyone know if the location is just a hole in the ground, a cave in the south/southeast facing slope or a crater of sorts that lowered down to the cave entrance? There seems to be multiple descriptions about the entrance. I have also read that it is located on mesa and then others have said the opposite that it was located in the middle of the desert floor.

 

[BIGSCOTT]

I never got back down there i was going for work, the rigs are really moving into the rustler hills, but the job fell through, am working in houston instead what fun. maybe later i love working in desolate places like that.
but yeah many different discriptions, and theorys, some say he found outlaw loot in a cave in the guadalupes, there are a whole lot of people that think that he found the lost wagon train of the monahans sand hills
many people have stumbled upon this old massacre sight over the years, and then it gets reclaimed by the dunes. it is somewhere near the monahans sand dunes state park, right on or within a mile of the park boundrys
there is a historical marker on the hiway between monahans and kermit, some artifacts from the ill fated wagon train used to be in a museum in monahans, but it fell into disrepair after the judge that owned it died and the artifacts were moved to museums in austin and in alpine texas, some of the stories claim the wagon train was headed east on it's return from the california goldfields with over nine thousand pounds of gold. I would like to think there is a lost mine out there but i just dont know, i have studied this quite a bit over the years, but had never heard of those landmarks until this thread, ''the chimney's'' '' Burro spring'' ''Delaware spring'' like i said i drove right by delaware spring on fathers day but didnt know it was there and had never heard it linked to this story,rustler spring is in many stories i heard but the water there is poisinous, just more things to ponder.