Lamb Canyon California Treasure

Gypsy Heart

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Nov 29, 2005
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Ozarks
Lamb Canyon Treasure?

Beverly Gardner can think of family legends when she travels Highway 79 down Lamb Canyon between Beaumont and San Jacinto. None of the Lamb family tales are more intriguing than the legend of buried precious coins.

If she ever is worried about driving the modern, four-lane highway in the dark of night, she can seek inspiration from ancestors who faced a lot more challenges traveling the route.

Her great-grandfather, Elijah Lamb, homesteaded the canyon in the late 1800s and hauled mail in his stagecoach that somehow made it up and down the rugged canyon road between Beaumont and San Jacinto. The location of the family homestead can be seen by looking for a stand of trees on the east side of Highway 79, a short distance downhill from the entrance to the Lamb Canyon Landfill.

Her grandfather, Edgar Lamb, lived on the homestead too and continued running the stage line. Gardner, who works as a tax preparer, was born 70 years ago near San Jacinto in a home on the Poorman Ranch where her father, James Lamb, served as foreman. She has listened to relatives tell family stories, including tales about her late Uncle Frank Lamb that probably mixed fact with colorful embellishments.

According to those legends, he lived in caves on the homestead, completely abstained from baths, beat a murder rap as a teen after killing someone in a fight and escaping from prison by posing in a coffin as a corpse and rode a bicycle into the mountains to tend sheep.

Legend also has it that he was a miserly sort who buried precious coins near the homestead. "Everyone was looking for the coins he got on a merchant's ship when he went around the world," she said. Gardner's sister, Mary Flake, wrote in a family history that her Uncle Frank used to disappear during campfire story-telling sessions at the homestead and return with silver coins.

Gardner said her relatives never found the coins. She thinks they may have been discovered and taken by hikers. Maybe not. The Treasure of Lamb Canyon could be waiting to be found.
 

pegleglooker

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Good story Gypsy,
There is also a story of a stage robbery in the late 1880's. After the stage left Beaumont and headed west, the stage was robbed. The posse caught up with the robbers but, shot them dead. Story goes that the gold was buried in the badlands that go west and south west of Beaumont. Which is just north of Lamb's canyon. I have been back in this area for awhile. There is a canyon called Massacre canyon with old lime kilns and I was told of some petroglyphs in the area as well.
 

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TheHarleyMan2

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pegleglooker said:
Good story Gypsy,
There is also a story of a stage robbery in the late 1880's. After the stage left Beaumont and headed west, the stage was robbed. The posse caught up with the robbers but, shot them dead. Story goes that the gold was buried in the badlands that go west and south west of Beaumont. Which is just north of Lamb's canyon. I have been back in this area for awhile. There is a canyon called Massacre canyon with old lime kilns and I was told of some petroglyphs in the area as well.

Where is Lambs Canyon and the site you are talking about. I tried to google earth it and google search, but couldn't find anything on either.
 

pegleglooker

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Hey all,
If you notice the water to the left that is Buscarelli Lake. Named by De Anza for Viceroy Antonio Buscarelli. Locally we call it Mystic Lake because during the summer heat it evaporates to almost nothing.

PLL
 

pegleglooker

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hey Gypsy,
I went out today to look around, but the underbrush was waist high and tough just to walk through. I'll wait a month or so and retry.. Here are some pixs for ya..

PLL
 

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treasurechest

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I know this is an old thread, but I live five minutes from Massacre Canyon. I've always wondered why there were fireplaces in that canyon. There's also a small teepee or something built into the left side of the canyon It's got a small entrance hole, and it's open at the top. Inside, there's bricks.

If you travel down Gilman springs road, by the Scientology center, there's a bunch of small fireplaces on the north side of the road. I've always wondered about those as well.

Any one in town want to go for a hike up Massacre? PM me.
 

Nuggets4me

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pegleglooker said:
Good story Gypsy,
There is also a story of a stage robbery in the late 1880's. After the stage left Beaumont and headed west, the stage was robbed. The posse caught up with the robbers but, shot them dead. Story goes that the gold was buried in the badlands that go west and south west of Beaumont. Which is just north of Lamb's canyon. I have been back in this area for awhile. There is a canyon called canyon with old lime kilns and I was told of some petroglyphs in the area as well.

I found this website searching for answers as to "what" the structures were along the trails. I was there yesterday and the water is flowing really nice off the first waterfall! :) What about that hollowed out teepee looking thing in the mountain? My brother who also grew up here has always heard that early settlers used those to burn trash? I don't know but I am curious! My husband and his friend panned the streams just for the heck of it last weekend to no avail... :BangHead: As for the petroglyphs, any idea where they might be? If they aren't covered by SPRAYPAINT? >:(
 

TheSentinel

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Jan 29, 2012
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I spoke with a customer at American Prospector in Temecula talking about Massacre Canyon and how there's a mine with tailings that he's been metal detecting lately. He didn't seem to care much who's property it was (I told him its CA Dept of Fish and Game).
 

moondog2000

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A friend and I took our detectors to the area where the old lambs homestead was at by the trees. We did not find anything but what looks like a 22 bullet. The ground appears to be turned over by gophers so we found no traces of a foundation and we did not find any iron like nails . Our detectors are good for a foot on big iron and we had no hits. I guess if a big fire goes through there and burns off all the brush I'll go back and try it again. I will try to load some pics but I don't seem to have any luck . What is a url ? and how would I load it.I have some pics on my desktop in a folder but can't seem to get them to this post.
 

moondog2000

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Lambs canyon

I might have figured the pictures out. My bullet find, some pics that look like the place where the house might have been IMG_0013.JPG IMG_0003.JPG IMG_0007.JPG
 

treasurechest

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Where the heck is there a mine up there? Sounds like I've got some exploring to do. I also read in desert mag, that they found a grave up near the west entrance to the water tunnel, when it was being built.
 

treasurechest

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I don't know if these caves are related to this story or not. If anyone is around Reche Canyon, and has time, maybe they could check them out.
33º58'02.80"N 117º12'00.08W
 

sevenduce

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May 27, 2014
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Lamb Canyon Treasure?

Beverly Gardner can think of family legends when she travels Highway 79 down Lamb Canyon between Beaumont and San Jacinto. None of the Lamb family tales are more intriguing than the legend of buried precious coins.

If she ever is worried about driving the modern, four-lane highway in the dark of night, she can seek inspiration from ancestors who faced a lot more challenges traveling the route.

Her great-grandfather, Elijah Lamb, homesteaded the canyon in the late 1800s and hauled mail in his stagecoach that somehow made it up and down the rugged canyon road between Beaumont and San Jacinto. The location of the family homestead can be seen by looking for a stand of trees on the east side of Highway 79, a short distance downhill from the entrance to the Lamb Canyon Landfill.

Her grandfather, Edgar Lamb, lived on the homestead too and continued running the stage line. Gardner, who works as a tax preparer, was born 70 years ago near San Jacinto in a home on the Poorman Ranch where her father, James Lamb, served as foreman. She has listened to relatives tell family stories, including tales about her late Uncle Frank Lamb that probably mixed fact with colorful embellishments.

According to those legends, he lived in caves on the homestead, completely abstained from baths, beat a murder rap as a teen after killing someone in a fight and escaping from prison by posing in a coffin as a corpse and rode a bicycle into the mountains to tend sheep.

Legend also has it that he was a miserly sort who buried precious coins near the homestead. "Everyone was looking for the coins he got on a merchant's ship when he went around the world," she said. Gardner's sister, Mary Flake, wrote in a family history that her Uncle Frank used to disappear during campfire story-telling sessions at the homestead and return with silver coins.

Gardner said her relatives never found the coins. She thinks they may have been discovered and taken by hikers. Maybe not. The Treasure of Lamb Canyon could be waiting to be found.
I've looked all through his Homestead and a cave I found pretty close to it..found nothing
 

sevenduce

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May 27, 2014
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I've looked all through his Homestead and a cave I found pretty close to it..found nothing

i have a old map its west of 79 you can still see the ruins of the foundation..on the east side of 79 would be too close to the Indian village
 

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