Anyone remember Gene Ballinger, "In The Steps" magazine, "The Association" etc.?

[hkentcraig]

Anyone remember Gene Ballinger, "In The Steps" magazine, "The Association" etc.?

Does anyone remember Gene Ballinger who used to published "In The Steps"/"In The Steps Of The Treasure Hunter" magazine in the 70's through to 80's and back in the 60's ran "The Association" which was a national metal detector sales organization (one of the first, if memory is correct) and did a lot of other things in the treasure hunting/metal detecting/similar arena.

I know the mere mention of the name Gene Ballinger often generates all kinds of comments in old-timers who remember him and all the things he or didn't do and I'd just like a sense of how many of those on this site even remember him and his legacy and how they feel about said, such as it is, TIA.

 

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[metal mania]

Re: Anyone remember Gene Ballinger, "In The Steps" magazine, "The Association" etc.?

no

 

[lastleg]

Re: Anyone remember Gene Ballinger, "In The Steps" magazine, "The Association" etc.?

Pretty sure Springfield knew the man. If you look up his old posts he might enlighten. Another one that knew Ballinger
hasn't posted anything in a year. I would start in the Treasure Legends - Lost Adams section.

 

[ZiaStar]

Re: Anyone remember Gene Ballinger, "In The Steps" magazine, "The Association" etc.?

I remember him ;o)

As you know, Dad passed away in 1999. He would be 76 years old today.

Dad made many friends over the years, and had many colleagues who admired his love of history. History is what it really is all about, is it not? He loved what he did, and worked very hard to share what he knew with people who had the same interests. I haven't seen him mentioned much on this site, but I know there are people out there who remember him fondly (and some maybe not so fondly). I often wonder what he'd think of some of the things that are going on in the world today. He was a good man and we miss him.

 

[hkentcraig]

I posted to see if there was any interest in a "YTSWR" re-issue, Gene's bio

I started this thread to see how many old-timers were around when Gene was publishing "In The Steps" magazine and might remember him.

In interest of full disclosure, I began my friendship and association with Gene when I purchased some adspace in 'Steps and somehow eventually became Associate Editor of the magazine a couple of years later and when things got truly insane in Gene's personal life and he was charged with murdering someone on his ranch in New Mexico and he and family moved to Florida soon after, though still shaking my head how all that happened actually happened, I wrote Gene's "biography" of which we sold 5,000 copies autographed by Gene and myself pre-publication @$25 each and another four press runs of 5,000 @$10 eventually through word-of-mouth for the expressed purpose of raising money for his legal defense (another story I'd rather not go into now).

Anyway, with Year 2011 being the 30th anniversary of the publication of Gene's biography "Yes, The Sun Will Rise" and the fact was and is the publication of YSTWR meant a lot to a lot of different people at the time it came out, I was and maybe still am considering re-issuing it through Amazon but considering the hundreds of hours it would take to do so, I'd like to have a sense of whether it would be worth my time, if my time spent re-publishing it would be welcome by the treasure hunting community or not. Comments?

 

[The Colonel]

ZiaStar,
I live in New Mexico and have had occassion to see copies of a news paper named "The Courier". I believe it was published by your dad. I am desperately trying to get back copies of this pub. Can you help?
Thanks
The Colonel

 

[spartacus53]

err Colonel, you do realize that Ziastar, much like you has only posted once and that was just over 5 years ago

I think you're chasing a false signal

 

[old owl]

Gene and I were in the same Army unit in Korea about 1955. We kept in touch into the mid 1960's but I lost track of him when he moved to New Mexico. I always thought the best of him and was surprised to learn recently what happened to him in the years that followed. I would welcome off line contact with Gene's family and close friends.

 

[Randy Bradford]

I'd love to see some technical information on Ballinger newsletters.
Names
Dates of Publication
Overview of content

Anyone know this?

 

[neo]

Anyone know what
Happened with him and the minutemen?

 

[Randy Bradford]

I recently purchased a large lot of Gene Ballinger publications: The Association, Treasure Hunters Unlimited, In the Steps, The Institute. Would like to talk to other collectors about buying and trading copies of Ballinger publications and other treasure hunting tabloids and newsletters.

 

[Jason Watkins]

Hi, I am looking for information about Gene Ballinger and the newspaper he used to publish. If you knew Gene Ballinger or have any information on the "In The Steps" publications, kindly e-mail me at jasonkwatkins@gmail.com. I'm hoping to learn as much as I can about his time as a treasure hunter. Thanks!

 

[foiler]

I met Gene in 1970. He had an impressive operation called The Association. Can't remember the little Michigan town it was in but he put the wife an I up at a local motel for a couple of nights. We discussed some treasure hunting lore and actually made some plans for a hunt of a mutually known cache. His "treasure museum" at the store was, at that time, probable the best in the country. I was in the military at the time and never was able to get back up there to see him though we kept in contact through the 70's. He ran into some legal problems years later and had to close the operation.

 

[neo]

https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=4070

 

[Randy Bradford]

I have more information for you, I just have to wait until I'm off work to post it. Ballinger had at least 3 or 4 different publications over the years, he also had a biography that was published that outlines some of his work with treasure hunting. He wrote a few treasure articles that I'm aware of but most of his writing seems to have been focused on the treasure tabloids which he was involved in throughout the 1970s and 1980s.

 

[Randy Bradford]

This was published in 2002 on the old Treasurenet boards by Alan Sippola, who has himself since passed, and represents a fairly good and concise history of Gene Ballinger's publication history for his papers:

John (Gene's father) and Gene Ballinger, first had a so-called pseudo Exanimo Establishment business (which Karl never authorized and told them to cease using the name) in Oscodo, MI. After that, John and Gene called it "The Association of Treasure Hunters" and published a tabloid-type newspaper by that same title. I joined "The Association" back in the mid-sixties.

After it folded, then came along in the early '70s "Treasure Hunting Unlimited" and they published another newspaper-type tabloid. But, it didn't last long. After that John, Katherine (Gene's mom), Gene and Phyllis moved to New Mexico where they started "In The Steps of the Treasure Hunter", publishing another tabloid newspaper around 1976 by that name. The name was then shorten to just, "In The Steps". Gene had his campers club thing going which was called "Your Place in the Sun". An accident happened and someone was murdered. Gene and Phyllis packed up and moved to Boyton Beach, Florida. "In The Steps" was still being published, along with Gene's bi-weekly "Advisory Report".

Suddenly, things stopped for a bit.

Then, no more "In The Steps", say "Hello, to "THA"! (Back with the name of Treasure Hunters Association in abreviated form). Gene published only one or two issues of that, before he was convicted for being involved with the murder somehow and sent to a Correctional Institution in Arizona for a few years. After that, Gene went back to New Mexico with Phyllis and he published for a newspaper there for a few years, before his death of cancer.

 

[Randy Bradford]

The Association Newsletter: Published from 1968 to 1971 comprising 13 verified issues
Treasure Hunting Unlimited: Published from 1972 to 1976 comprising 9 issues and 3 catalogs
In the Steps of the Treasure Hunter: Published from 1976 to 1985 comprising 34 verified issues, this was changed to simply "In the Steps" at some point.
T.H.A. Treasure Hunters News: Published from 1985 to 1986 comprising 3 verified issues and a catalog
The Institute: I haven't confirmed dates or issues as I don't have these available at this time, though I believe this was also a Gene Ballinger publication.

 

[CSpringfield]

Hello!

I'm looking for an article of Gene Ballinger's that appeared in his Hatch Courier from 1994. Any direction for finding copies of his publication would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

 

[Randy Bradford]

What was the article?

 

[neo]

I remember him ;o)

As you know, Dad passed away in 1999. He would be 76 years old today.

Dad made many friends over the years, and had many colleagues who admired his love of history. History is what it really is all about, is it not? He loved what he did, and worked very hard to share what he knew with people who had the same interests. I haven't seen him mentioned much on this site, but I know there are people out there who remember him fondly (and some maybe not so fondly). I often wonder what he'd think of some of the things that are going on in the world today. He was a good man and we miss him.

Do you have a list of his books I've read tomorrow the sun will also rise. At least I think that was the title.