Hunting Oldtown and Some State Parks

[SoreKneesDayton]

I asked permission to hunt the area about ten years ago offering to turn over all finds the owner just for the chance to hunt a historic area. Noooo...the area is reserved for the ladies children.

I hunted way back in John Bryant State park three weeks ago--during the week--and no one said a word to me. It's winter-off season now. I stayed out of the main areas and hunted into the tree line around picnic areas. A lot of trash signals. I need to get a 4x6 DD coil, I guess.

My buddy and I stopped at the Pickuwee (Piqua) battle site next to George Rogers State Park and ask permission to dig. Absolutely not, this is a historic site. Just looks like a big flat field to me.

"See that old flintlock in the corner?"

"Yes um."
"It still works and we don't call 911."

"Bye. Jeff, was her name Oakely?"

We also hunted the beach and grass areas at Caesar's Creek. Several park trucks waved and went on. Very noisy ground. Found a few quarters after a lot of hunting.

Terry
Whites M-6 User

 

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[bedpanmoneyman]

Terry...I already got most of the coins at Caesar's Creek

 

[six]

Just a little heads up as you probably already know . In Ohio State parks the only places you are allowed to detect is the sandy places at the beach swimming areas. any where else you have to get special written permission! I have talked to people who have been caught be the rangers and they don't mess around. one guy even told me that he didn't know/ think anyone would care if he detected around the camp grounds. Was new to our hobby. When the Rangers found him they didn't want to even discuss it with him. Made him and his family pack up all their camping gear and leave the park. I haven't found anyone that has been able to get written permission except to find lost items like a ring or keys.

six

 

[Kas]

I get a permit for several state parks every year. They are free, and the permit is called a special use permit. They are very easy to get.

You are not allowed to hunt the campground, i.e. where people camp. With the permit you may hunt the other areas.

I have seen people have their equipment taken for not having a permit while I've been hunting. They will check for a permit everytime they see you detecting.

Go to the ranger's station and they will help you fill out the paperwork right there. You can be hunting in ten minutes.

Ken

 

[pickaway]

I've hunted a state campground and a ranger drove by and waved and went on not a word however camp was closed for the season.I've also hunted picnic area,playground and baitstore area which i bet i found a 100+ coins not a word.That would be A&W marion state park aka Hargus lake.

 

[SoreKneesDayton]

I've hunted a state campground and a ranger drove by and waved and went on not a word however camp was closed for the season.I've also hunted picnic area,playground and baitstore area which i bet i found a 100+ coins not a word.That would be A&W marion state park aka Hargus lake.

Thanks for the tip Pickaway.

Some one suggested getting a salvage permit then it might be OK. For lake.

 

[flyinpig]

not to be a conspiracy theroist but.....what are they hidein'? Ever notice, as others have said, that typically and conviently govt' land is where big treasure is? I find it very odd that the Wayne Natl Forest is so fragmented, Zaleski State Forest, Lake Hope State Park, The Hocking hills region....

Adam

 

[ohiotech]

I called the Ranger for John Bryan last week (I knew my detector was on the way, so I wanted to find out about hunting one of the closer parks) and he said that all you need to do is come in and tell them your intentions. They just want to know that you're there. No permit needed for that property (please note that not all properties will treat you the same).

He also stated that you can search the beaches and picnic areas. The only thing that they ask is that you don't hunt pn areas where people are at, and don't hunt the beach when they're crowded. Also, even though you can camp overnight, they didn't want anyone out and about the park at night.

When I asked what crowded meant, and if that meant populated, he stated that they were not the same. They can be populated, but if you were there on July 4th, and they're packed, they don't want you there. Personally, I would sit there during parts of the day, take some notes, and head there as the crowds died down.

He said to use discretion and common sense. Don't walk over people and get in their way, and keep it enjoyable for everyone.

That said, and being somewhat close to JB park, I expect to be there once and a while detecting.

 

[SoreKneesDayton]

I called the Ranger for John Bryan last week (I knew my detector was on the way, so I wanted to find out about hunting one of the closer parks) and he said that all you need to do is come in and tell them your intentions. They just want to know that you're there. No permit needed for that property (please note that not all properties will treat you the same).

He also stated that you can search the beaches and picnic areas. The only thing that they ask is that you don't hunt pn areas where people are at, and don't hunt the beach when they're crowded. Also, even though you can camp overnight, they didn't want anyone out and about the park at night.

When I asked what crowded meant, and if that meant populated, he stated that they were not the same. They can be populated, but if you were there on July 4th, and they're packed, they don't want you there. Personally, I would sit there during parts of the day, take some notes, and head there as the crowds died down.

He said to use discretion and common sense. Don't walk over people and get in their way, and keep it enjoyable for everyone.

That said, and being somewhat close to JB park, I expect to be there once and a while detecting.

Thanks for the great info OhioTech. Good hunting. Let us know what you find.
SKD

 

[ohiotech]

SKD,

I called Buck Creek, and they made a change to what was told to me previously, and provided a bit more clarity overall.

It would appear that no permit is needed for any of the beaches and water, but if you're going to somewhere like JB where you want to hunt the picnic grounds, you do need a permit. It is good for the calender year of issue. No need to check in when you go to detect after you actually get the permit.

So, from one ranger to another, there seems to be a discrepancy. Nonetheless, I'm working on my list to make sure that they're all in sync.

The Ranger I spoke to at BC was Dave.

 

[nicademusx]

It would appear that no permit is needed for any of the beaches and water

ohiotech, does this also pertain to bodies of water and rivers anywhere in ohio or is it just state parks?

 

[Monk]

State Parks in Ohio = From beach to buoy permission has already been given by the head of parks in Columbus and the Governor of State. But to use M/L anywhere else in park will need permission of park manager!
Be sure to stay on sand at beach and don't dig the grass. Some beaches you must stay off of during active times of day. and some of the bigger ones you may work at any time.

 

[m_sibole]

I used to work in the Old Town Area. I would think there would be alot of good areas to hunt near there. Just north of Old Town is where Tecumsa's would be wife "Rebeca" lived. There just west of Old Town there is supposed to be an Indian Silver treasure burried in a swamp. A guy I used to work with lost a boot in the same swamp supposively.

Matt

 

[Ohionewbie]

Hey Matt, how's it going? I've read quite a few articles on Chillicothe (Old Town) and its residents. Native American history in this part of Ohio has always fascinated me and I try to stay current on news and information concerning them. The Rebecca that you talk of is Rebecca Galloway, daughter of James Galloway, one of the first settlers in the area and who claimed the land that the village of Chillicothe stood on (I believe he arrived in the Greene County area around 1793, he had first fallen in love with the area while on an expedition with George Rogers Clark in 1782 and vowed he would come back with his family to settle). The sad thing about the love between Rebecca and Tecumseh is that it never happened. The story came from Rebecca herself much later in her life while being interviewed for a book called Old Chillicothe by William Galloway, Rebecca's grandson (unfortunately this book has many truths and many more inaccuracies and ill conceived tales of the romantic to it). As for the silver in the fields of the farm that is now there, we will never know if it is there or not as is told by someone else in an earlier comment on this post (the current owner is saving all historical artifacts and possible treasure safe in the ground for her grandchildren to find). Regardless it keeps us treasure hunters with something to possibly look forward to in the future, hopefully.


I forgot to add this the last time I replied to this post.

The area that you are referring to as the swamp, Matt, was located next to Massie's Creek and the Little Miami River with the actual village lying just beyond it. This area has since been drained for agricultural purposes and, as far as I know, only small marsh like areas still exist. The silver that was dumped in the marsh fell into a water-filled pit around 15 feet deep. This was done at the direction of Chief Catahecessa or, as he was more familiarly known, Black Hoof, as the army of General George Rogers Clark was fast approaching the village. This was the last time the Shawnee as a tribe inhabited this area for right after this event they fled to Piqua Town never being able to return again due to white enroachment(just an interesting side note: there is still a Shawnee grave yard in this area that holds their revered chiefs and warriors). Not only was almost a ton of silver dumped here, but also anything they could not carry or justify in taking such as broken rifles, properly sealed furs and edibles, extra cookware, farming implements, hand carved figurines, and many other things as well. The Shawnee were well known for the abundance of silver they owned. So much in fact that the name Shawnee and silver went hand in hand. There was a trader by the name of John Kinzie who was also a great silversmith. The name that the Pottawatomie tribe that he befriended gave him was Shawneeawkee for his well known talent. Where this silver came from has been somewhat of a mystery but it is believed that the Shawnee mined it from the Clifton Gorge area as well as around Ceaser's Creek. There were mine shafts found in these areas by the first white inhabitants that predated their arrival. Here are a few paragraphs I found on the internet that summarizes it better than I can with much more information:

The source of the Shawnee silver, of which there was a considerable abundance, has always been a matter of mystery and intrigue. There is no doubt whatever that the Shawnee did have access to a large and continuing supply of raw silver and there is no evidence of such ore ever having been transported into the Shawnee territory from elsewhere. There is much romantic folklore about the so-called lost Shawnee silver mines, but enough truth exists in the record as to be intriguing.

Such mines, if they existed, are believed to have been located in present Warren and Green counties in Ohio, such reports based on the accounts of various white men who had been held captive at Chalahgawtha and were forced to carry ore to the village for smelting and working. These prisoners were marched, always blindfolded, for what seemed to them a few hours ( but which was probably less ) upstream along the course of Massies Creek to some location in the Clifton Gorge area, from just behind present Wilberforce University to "The Glenn" in the present village of Yellow Springs. At a certain point the prisoners were ordered to sit and wait under guard until they were laden with heavy sacks of what they believed to be silver-bearing ore, which they were compelled to carry back to Chalahgawtha. Some attempts to slip the blindfolds were, to a limited extent, successful.

With a map or two of "mine locations," this general area is well described by Dr. Roy S. King, University of Arizona, in an interesting paper entitled "Silver Mines of the Ohio Indians," in the Ohio Archaeological and Historical Quarterly, XXVI (1917), 114-116. For many years after their removal to the Auglaize Reservation, small parties of Shawnees returned every summer to Greene Co. and stopped for a few days of camping in "The Glen" at Yellow Springs, now a part of the campus of Antioch University. They then passed onward to the location given in Professor King's paper and from there to well-marked locations in Warren Co. along Caesar Creek near present Harveysburg, where excavations ( made before the advent of white pioneers) were discovered by the earliest arriving settlers.

Virtually all of this area has now been covered over by the U.S. Corps of Engineers impoundment called Caesar Creek Lake. Early excavations of two similar excavations found in the glen at Yellow Springs showed vertical shafts with evidence of timbering in one of them. Excavation evidence at one site is still vaguely apparent. Geological surveys state that the Clifton limestone formation outcropping in this glen as well as the nearby Clifton Gorge, is not ore-bearing. Yet, William Albert Galloway (lineal descendant of James Galloway, first white settler in the Chalahgawtha area), while he was a student at Antioch College, did some blasting in the gorge and uncovered a half-inch vein near the falls on the east end of Yellow Springs Creek, which runs through these grounds. The residue of some specimens from this vein were submitted to a competent assayer in Cincinnati and were found to contain a very definite bead of high-grade silver. Some decades ago an exploratory shaft in Clifton Gorge but no heavy deposit of silver was located and the shaft was abandoned and sealed off when it showed signs of collaping. Only a few years ago a geology student collecting rock samples in the gorge found several pieces of ore quite rich in silver content. The mother lode, if one exists, however, has never been located.


Sorry for such a long post but I hope this gives my fellow treasure hunters some useful information and a little history lesson as well.

 

[stonewalled]

Hi there I noticed your post about the battle of monterey. well there is still alot of goodies there but it's hard hunting but I found some nice things there. I lived in waynesboro for 15 years but I moved to mcconnellsburg last year. there's stuff scattered all over that mountain I found the original trail and hunted it and also found another route they took. Its hard hunting but most of the stuff i found was confederate. also there was a large union camp about a quarter of a mile past the greenhill cemetery it's the big hill on the left. just get mr martins ok and watch where you go the hill facing the cemetery is no tresspassing. I found a nice confederate block I along the furnace rd in the woods. and my friend found a 1840 saber blade a couple yards away. gardners ect I'm working on 3 other camp sites now but If you have any questions give me a call I well help you the best I can. I intend to hunt that area again next spring. heres my # 485-4070 good luck jeff

 

[Ohionewbie]

Hey Jeff, I think ya got the wrong post buddy.

 

[bailboo03]

Has there been any recent update to findings in this area of Oldtown or Massie's Creek concerning the silver or silver artifacts? I live in Bellbrook and grew up in Xenia so this area holds a special place in my heart. Love to explore Greene county with my metal detector!

 

[hackleshinn]

The shawnee went back for that silver,that's why it can't be found.Go down the little miami to Anderson's fork of the LM river,just upriver from Pt William,there are excavation sites on both sides.As far as the silver lode in Clifton,forget it.Go to Corry st in Yellow Dog follow it down to a place called "the vale".It can also be reached off what is now the Little Miami bike path.This comin summer,I' am in the process of openin a rest stop off the bike path goin north out of Yellow Dog-2 miles it was once a fuelin station with a water tower for the steam engines travelin the B&O.As for the battle site at present day George Rogers pk,that was an on goin battle coverin an area 4 miles at least,but that's another story.

 

[Nickleanddime]

That permit only allows sandy beach hunting. It states anywhere else has to be write on the form. I hunted Charles mills a couple weeks back and that's what it was. But.... As long as your outside the park area and on watershed district land you can hunt anywhere you want. They just do it like that in the parks because people were stealing items right off blankets and walking into campsites and taking items. But once that park is closed it might be fair game since the rangers are gone and the gates left open. Be something to check into.

By the way a place is never hunted out, it just means your detector doesn't work for that ground anymore. I use a cheap best buy detector and hunt "hunted out" grounds and find stuff every time. Good luck out there.