Knights' Gold . . . 5,000 Gold Coins . . . Largest KGC Treasure Ever Discovered

[ECS]

ECS, no doubt this is what happened to a small amount of the money. But 39 kegs of wrapped silver coins largely stayed in Danville. It weighed 9,000 pounds and was slowing down the train, causing a real risk of Union capture. Franklin is right in that the vast bulk of this treasure remained in Danville. The question is, did someone come back later to retrieve it, or is it still there?...

Davis, Wood, Breckinridge, and Benjamin were staying at the Marshall family's WHITEHALL PLANTATION in Abbeville, South Carolina were they planed their final escape from the Union. The Marshall family also had a plantation on the Oklawaha River, east of Ocala that was supplied the Confederacy with goods and was raided and looted along with Holley's Farm and Gristmill across the river by the 3rd Union Colored Infantry, March 10, 1865. They were persured by Florida CSA Capt J J Dickson who recovered most of the looted goods.
The Union recovered $35,000 of gold coins from Davis's baggage train at David Levy Yulee's COTTONWOOD PLANTATION in Archer , Florida. Yulee's son and a Florida CSA Lt buried two of Davis's trunks at the plantation that have never been found.
Yulee was Benjamin's cousin, and he had two other cousins that lived in the Tuscawilla section of Ocala, Florida, at which he stayed.
Breckinridge and Wood stayed at the Ocala home of CSA Brig Gen Bullock before their sailing flight south on the St Johns River.
Benjanin escaped from the GAMBLE PLANTATION at Ellenton on the Gulf coast to the Bahamas.
All three carried sufficient amounts of gold coins to buy passage to England and to establish themselves .

 

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[senior deacon]

ECS and others it is common belief among the Civil War local historians that the Confederate Treasury was a one point in time headed for the Marshall/Shreveport area. The conditions deteriorated so quickly that they had to run south to Florida to escape to Cuba and then to Europe. I think they first took off to the Bahamas then to Cuba if I have the story right.

I have to agree with ECS the Confederate Treasury most likely ended up in Florida. No record or story of it ever arriving in the State of Texas. The Confederate post office did send the stamps to Marshall and some how they disappeared. Piecing together what I know about that cache I believe it to be hid in or around the Scottsville, Texas area. The mouldy old stamp are most likely ruined by now. Moved on the Swanson landing Marshall railway into the middle of the woods and buried by a giant oak that has since fallen. That is my guess of what became of them.

It is my belief that like the Baltimore castle the Marshall castle has it's own pot of coins. It well could be buried under one of the many old stately homes around Marshall. I am of the opinion that they took it out east of Marshall as far as Caddo Lake. The Scottsville cemetery being one of the markers to the treasure. We have had a couple of discussion about this in the past. The woods are so dense and there were enough faithful brothers to watch over it out there. Not many big names out here in the wilds of Texas but very rich cotton planters and shipping merchants, Confederate Generals and government officials it makes for interesting research. And now for the first cup of the day. Enjoy

Senior Deacon

 

[franklin]

ECS and senior deacon, I go along with a lot of what you are saying but I have a few thoughts of my own.

First, there must be a lot of Whitehall Plantations. There was one on the first stop out of Charlotte, N.C. where Secretary of the Treasury resigned. I believe he actually stayed behind and delivered what was left of the CSA Treasury by railroad. The bridge was out across the Catawba and Trenholm had it ferried across and placed on a train to Chester, S.C. from there he took it by wagons and the railroad towards Abbeville, S.C. About all of the gold Trenholm carried was from the $2 Million Virginia State Gold. A lot was distributed to Cabinet Members after leaving Greensboro and Charlotte. Some was paid to General Johnston's troop under General Diebrel's command at Greensboro, N.C. as they surrounded the CSA Government and was not going to let them leave with back pay. Over 3,500 signed on to deliver the gold towards Texas to General Kirby Smith. About four years after the war over $1 Million dollars of this gold was captured trying to leave the US through Mobile, Ala. and was captured by the Yankees. So there goes all of the Virginia State Gold.

Now the Virginia Bank Gold is an entirely different story. Everyone gets all of these gold stories mixed together and then they believe that they are still buried somewhere when in fact most of what was traveling South during the end of the war was captured by the US. The Virginia Banks sent their assets South about six weeks before Richmond fell. I know they say 8 of the Virginia Banks shipped their gold in the second boxcar directly behind the boxcar containing the CSA Treasury. All of this is not entirely the truth. Yes there was CSA Gold in the first boxcar but it was only $186,000 in US Gold coins and the rest was $200,000 in Mexican Silver dollars then there was $108,000 in US Silver Coins and then there was between $27,000 to $50,000 in a mileage of foreign coins. If we are to believe the figure of $523,000 in CSA Assets leaving Richmond, then there would have only been $27,000 in foreign coins. J. Frank Carroll's book, "Confederate Treasure in Danville," says there was $50,000 in foreign coins which would have made $546,000. There was several blocks and sweeps of gold and silver from the Charlotte Mint. Major White when he paid the troops at the David Moss home exchanged silver bars for the $108,000 in US Coins belonging to the Virginia Banks. The troops could not have been paid out of these silver coins otherwise because they did not belong to the CSA Government.

All of these monies were dispersed out by Micajah Clark along the way going South with President Jefferson Davis. At Park's Ferry about $100,000 in gold sovereigns were buried by Micajah Clark while President Jefferson Davis and his wife, Varina stayed at the Park's Home across the river. Micajah Clark broke up his escort at that time, the men were paid and each was given a mule to ride back to their homes in Tennessee and Southern Indiana. Micajah Clark and a hand full of others continued on to the Yulee Plantation in Waldo, Florida. There they divided the remaining $25,000. Watson Bethuesylan (Spelling not correct) as I am doing this from memory not from notes. Watson took about $6,900. as he said he was going to give a large portion to the family of President Jefferson Davis while Davis was in prison. He said the family would need it. Some of the money was buried along the railroad tracks by the party. I know Micajah Clark came back and got his share but the others I do not know. They did take some of the money with them to return home. All went North and turned themselves in to the Yankees to get a pass to go home.

The trunks buried in the barn containing President Jefferson Davis personal effects were captured by the black Union soldiers. I have an inventory of the contents of those two trunks. Now there was another trunk buried that night which I gave ECS directions to and it has never been found. It contains most likely $26,000 in gold coins which was the sum of President Jefferson Davis' furniture and belongings he sold at auction in Richmond, Va. late March when his wife Varina Davis left for Charlotte, N.C. Walter Philbrook the same treasury clerk that did the inventory of the CSA Treasury before it left Richmond went to the banks in Richmond and was unable to cash President Jefferson Davis check. President Davis carried it to Danville where he eventually got it cashed. When the treasure train left Danville on April 6, 1865 that is the reason that Walter Philbrook was replaced as in charge of the assets of the CSA Treasury. Micajah Clark replaced Walter Philbrook when the CSA Treasury left Danville, Va. Micajah Clark later became the last Secretary of the CSA Treasury. The last official act performed by President Jefferson Davis before his surrender to the Union Army at Irwinville, Georgia. Got to run.

 

[ECS]

Jefferson Davis's Baggage train , consisting of a sturdily built ambulance and two heavy wagons departed from Washington, Georgia , May 4, 1865 with David Levy Yulee's COTTONWOOD PLANTATION n Archer, Florida as the destination.
Heading this operation was Jefferson Davis's brother-in-laws, CSA Capt Watson Van Benthuysen, and his brothers, J D & W S, Tench F Tilghman, M H Clark, W E Dickerson, J W Scott, and Fred Emory.
They passed though Olustee (Ocean Pond) May 15 ( The Union suffered major loses to a smaller Florida Confederate force who won a complete victory. , February 20, 1864. The surviving Union troops dumped 130,000 rounds of small arms ammunition into Lake Baldwin on their flight back to Jacksonville).
The Baggage train reached Irwin Plantation and reached Yulee,s Cottonwood Plantation May 22.
While there , 15 yo C Wickiliffe Yulee and CSA Lt John S Purviance, Co G, 10th Florida Regiment, buried the three trunks.
It has been claimed that other cache's were buried at the nearby Haile and Chestnut Plantations on May 23.
Nannie Yulee then sent the trucks with Confederate papers to the RR station master at Waldo, Florida, then departed with her son to stay with Yulee's Benjamin cousins in Ocala.
The Confederate baggage train guards then departed going off in different directions, the Van Benthuysen brothers burying another cache at Earle Plantation on the Sante Fe Lake, near Hawthorne , Florida.
The Union occupying force at Gainesville recovered $35,000 of gold specie and bundles of Confederate bills from Cottonwood, and the CSA papers from Waldo.

 

[senior deacon]

ECS and Franklin your accounts have helped me tremendously. I now know I am looking for a far smaller cache that what I thought. Instead of a chest it will be a pot size or smaller. One of the things I am beginning to wonder about is if the cache will be in gold or silver Mexican pesos. Might be that since they were at war with the United States they might have used Mexican money as coin of the realm. Once the war was not going their way I feel that the Confederate script might have been considered worthless. Believe that barter would have been away of life also. Still rich people always have money.

Anyone want to give me a opinion?

Senior Deacon

 

[franklin]

ECS and Franklin your accounts have helped me tremendously. I now know I am looking for a far smaller cache that what I thought. Instead of a chest it will be a pot size or smaller. One of the things I am beginning to wonder about is if the cache will be in gold or silver Mexican pesos. Might be that since they were at war with the United States they might have used Mexican money as coin of the realm. Once the war was not going their way I feel that the Confederate script might have been considered worthless. Believe that barter would have been away of life also. Still rich people always have money.

Anyone want to give me a opinion?

Senior Deacon

There was a lot of other foreign gold and silver coins excepted by both sides---------British Gold Sovereigns, German, Australian, Swiss and French. Most likely it would be British Sovereigns or Mexican Pesos. If it was down towards the border of Texas going towards Matamoras then most likely it would be Mexican Pesos.

You still could be looking for a large trunk or two. They did not deal in small deals usually $200,000 up.

 

[senior deacon]

Well there were three of the largest cotton plantation in Deep East Texas in and around Marshall. The cotton was shipped out of Jefferson 20 miles north as was most of the war goods shipping was a big business. You might be right. Think that it may well be in Mexican and British coin foreign at any rate. Possibly French because of New Orleans. I always assumed that it was in U.S.coinage. you know what you do when you assume something. My hair may be gray guess lately it may be blonde duh.

Senior Deacon

 

[ECS]

There was a lot of other foreign gold and silver coins excepted by both sides---------British Gold Sovereigns, German, Australian, Swiss and French. Most likely it would be British Sovereigns or Mexican Pesos. If it was down towards the border of Texas going towards Matamoras then most likely it would be Mexican Pesos.

You still could be looking for a large trunk or two. They did not deal in small deals usually $200,000 up.

In southwest Florida the CSA "Cow Calvary" at Fort Meade received payment in Spanish and Cuban gold coins.

 

[ECS]

ECS and Franklin your accounts have helped me tremendously. I now know I am looking for a far smaller cache that what I thought. Instead of a chest it will be a pot size or smaller. One of the things I am beginning to wonder about is if the cache will be in gold or silver Mexican pesos. Might be that since they were at war with the United States they might have used Mexican money as coin of the realm. Once the war was not going their way I feel that the Confederate script might have been considered worthless. Believe that barter would have been away of life also. Still rich people always have money.

Anyone want to give me a opinion?

Senior Deacon

Are you familiar with the Lykes family? Their wealth began after the family patriarch married the daughter of a CSA officer of the CSA "Cow Cavalry", one that aided CSA Sec of State Judah P Benjamin at Gamble Plantation in his escape from Florida to the Bahamas.

 

[Rebel - KGC]

ECS and Franklin your accounts have helped me tremendously. I now know I am looking for a far smaller cache that what I thought. Instead of a chest it will be a pot size or smaller. One of the things I am beginning to wonder about is if the cache will be in gold or silver Mexican pesos. Might be that since they were at war with the United States they might have used Mexican money as coin of the realm. Once the war was not going their way I feel that the Confederate script might have been considered worthless. Believe that barter would have been away of life also. Still rich people always have money.

Anyone want to give me a opinion?

Senior Deacon

Well Bro, MHO is that MANY Rebels & their families became CONFEDERADOS, moving to Brazil at the invitation of the governor there to begin plantations, etc. (after the CW). SOME came back to Texas, & other SW states,... near MEXICO & became MAD/PO'ed REBEL/OUTLAWS DESPERADOS like Johnny Yuma. Using Spanish-related GOLD coins, etc. as "currency"; BARTERING was also possible, as CSA "currency" WAS worthless.

 

[Rebel - KGC]

I will now reveal the KGC/Beall/Beale "connection" from BALTIMORE... KGC CASTLE with MANY members... including JWB; a PERSONAL friend of Lt. John Yates Beall/Beale, CSA. JYB was raising "CAIN" in the Great Lakes against the Yanks during the Confederate War; captured several times, & FINALLY hung at Governors Island, NY, as a spy & saboteur. JWB appealed PERSONALLY to "ABE" to stop the hanging... "to no avail". A very PO'ed JWB & KGC/COPPERHEADS planned a kidnapping of "ABE", then JWB as actor at Ford Theater was tipped off by a KGC "Insider Actor" that ABE was gonna be at the FT; what JWB screamed as he fell off the balcony is now the state of Virginia "motto"... the REST is HISTORY.

 

[Honest Samuel]

5,000 coins are a lot of coins. Did the parents take the coins and sell them? If yes, did the boys get any spending money? Great story. Good hunting and good luck.

 

[PhillyJack]

The Boys Win the Gold



Owning gold was against the law in 1934. This was because of Roosevelt's Gold Act. The boys had to hand the coins into the police. There was a trial. The boys won (against the owners of the house), but the coins had to be auctioned off to collectors. The money was put into an account for the boys until they reached age 21.

 

[PhillyJack]

The Boys Didin't hand in All the Coins

They only handed in 3,558 coins. The kept as many as 2,000 more. The boys' families were very poor. Theodore, the taller of the two boys, lived in a rented room at the treasure house that went for $8 per month. By 1934 the old house was really a dump. Anyway, the families starting selling coins to local coin collectors, usually at face value. Soon they had a new 1935 Plymouth, new washing machine, icebox, radio, etc. Neighbors knew something was up. Theodore went out one night with his mom and stepdad to look at new houses. Someone was watching the place and broke in while they were out. They stole a safe with $500 in cash and another $2500 in gold coins. The stepfather said it was savings for retirement, but they later came clean. The boys tried to say they made a second find in the basement, which was ludicrous since police and detectives had dug it all up and found nothing. A local coin collector was sued by the house's owners for receiving coins from the family and settled out of court. The 5,000 round number I give is conservative. It could have been even 6,000 coins or more.

 

[PhillyJack]

Knights' Gold is now available in paperback on Amazon.

 

[ECS]

I will now reveal the KGC/Beall/Beale "connection" from BALTIMORE... KGC CASTLE with MANY members... including JWB; a PERSONAL friend of Lt. John Yates Beall/Beale, CSA. JYB was raising "CAIN" in the Great Lakes against the Yanks during the Confederate War; captured several times, & FINALLY hung at Governors Island, NY, as a spy & saboteur. JWB appealed PERSONALLY to "ABE" to stop the hanging... "to no avail". A very PO'ed JWB & KGC/COPPERHEADS planned a kidnapping of "ABE", then JWB as actor at Ford Theater was tipped off by a KGC "Insider Actor" that ABE was gonna be at the FT; what JWB screamed as he fell off the balcony is now the state of Virginia "motto"... the REST is HISTORY.

...and it was CSA Col Richard L T Beale that brought the Dahlgren Papers to CSA President Jefferson Davis concerning the Union plot to assassinate Davis and his cabinet. This was the final straw that motivated John Wilkes Booth.
COME RETRIBUTION SIC SEMPER TYRANNIS

 

[PhillyJack]

Rebel . . . did not know that Beale brought the Dahlgren papers to Davis. The rest I knew, but not that. Have heard Beale and Booth were friends since college, and also that they met in Charles Town for John Brown's hanging. One of my main subjects, Colonel George Kane, was IMO, waiting in Shenandoah for Booth to bring him the kidnapped Lincoln in mid-March, 1865. But when Lee surrendered and Richmond fell, the Confederate Secret Service called off the kidnap plot (which had been funded and hatched in Montreal). Booth, for the reasons you stated and more, then went rogue and killed Lincoln without CSA authorization. Kane had already left Shenandoah to provide security for Jeff Davis and his cabinet in Danville, VA. It's all there and more in Knights' Gold. I believe Kane became the sentinel for the 9,000 pounds of Confederate silver that was temporarily buried in Danville. He later returned home circa 1868 or 1869 and became Mayor of Baltimore.

 

[Rebel - KGC]

GOTTA get yer book, now; for X-mas... wife is bugging me for "gift" ideas. I LOVE to read... wife is NOT amused.

 

[PhillyJack]

LOL, Rebel. Tell your wife the book is educational and describes Baltimore's role in the Civil War. It also links the 5,000 gold coins buried in that old basement to the top secessionists in the city, and those same secessionists to J.W. Booth and the plots against Lincoln.

If that doesn't work please appeal to her charity as this will help a struggling writer to get a new book launched! The Mrs. can preview the first few chapters on Amazon to tell it is a worthwhile book.

 

[Rebel - KGC]

OK, will do...