Brett2259
Full Member
I've lost my mind. Can we search for that? 
Looking for other treasure legends...
- Thread starter Marc
- Start date
treasure_girl3
Jr. Member
- Feb 9, 2008
- 29
- 0
No offence but it might be impossible to find! 
TimC
Sr. Member
- Jul 24, 2008
- 405
- 73
- Detector(s) used
- Various
- Primary Interest:
- All Treasure Hunting
Funny I should come across your post. I just moved back to Milw. after living in Praire du Chien for ten years. I got permission to detect on a piece of private property along the river. I got a REAL signal next to a three foot diameter tree! Five inches down I removed a 1 foot by 2 foot old piece of sheet metal. Under it was a metal cash box. (I almost had a heart attack.) Rats.... the box was empty.The Pete said:
After I was able to contain my dissapointment, I made some interesting observations. The box must have been at the site for a very long time, because the tree, as it grew, crushed the box to mold around the base (root). It was empty for a very long time because the box was well rusted and very hard to open due to the deformation.
I figure that the original person that buried it emptied it at a later time, or someone else found it and removed the contents.
Now, it might not be the answer to the Fort Crawford payroll theft, but it does go to show that treasure can be anywhere. With Praire du Chien being founded in the 1600's who knows what you might be walking on every day and not know it.
TimC
Brett2259
Full Member
If ya find my mind...can I have it back? Please. :P
treasure_girl3
Jr. Member
- Feb 9, 2008
- 29
- 0
No thanks... if i find your mind i'll keep it. (you never know what info you might find in there) 
mikesteely
Tenderfoot
- Jan 6, 2008
- 5
- 2
Marc, thee's a treasure legend in the southeast about Chief Bob Benge, the red-headed half-Cherokee Chickamauga warrior, who is said to have a silver mine. He resided for several years, before being
ambushed and killed near Big Stone Gap, Va., in Rising Fawn, Georgia. And there's a peak just across
the interested to the west that is said to have been searched for that mine.
Benge was taking some female captives north to the Shawnee towns and, while passing through
the Cumberlands with them, disappeared and came back with some silver. He showed the raw silver
to one of the women and told her "This is what the white man seeks."
There's some information about Chief Benge in my book "Swift's Silver Mines and Related Appalachian Treasures."
Benge was a nephew of Chief Doublehead, who is also associated with the Lost Silver Mines legends, and
his cousin was chief John Watts, another half-bred who's name appears as one of Swift's associates.
Any way, I could write a book just about Doublehead and Benge and their play in the lost mine lore.
Take Care, Mike Steely.
ambushed and killed near Big Stone Gap, Va., in Rising Fawn, Georgia. And there's a peak just across
the interested to the west that is said to have been searched for that mine.
Benge was taking some female captives north to the Shawnee towns and, while passing through
the Cumberlands with them, disappeared and came back with some silver. He showed the raw silver
to one of the women and told her "This is what the white man seeks."
There's some information about Chief Benge in my book "Swift's Silver Mines and Related Appalachian Treasures."
Benge was a nephew of Chief Doublehead, who is also associated with the Lost Silver Mines legends, and
his cousin was chief John Watts, another half-bred who's name appears as one of Swift's associates.
Any way, I could write a book just about Doublehead and Benge and their play in the lost mine lore.
Take Care, Mike Steely.
Rebel - KGC
Gold Member
- Jun 15, 2007
- 21,680
- 14,739
Hi Mike... I HIGHLY recommend Mike's book; it is GOOD! 
New to MDing
Tenderfoot
- May 19, 2009
- 7
- 1
I'v been researching the treasure legends of Florida Pirates. Specifically, Jose' Gaspar and Black Caesar in and around Sanibel and Captiva Islands off of the West Coast. Can we have a forum for that? I'm sure there are Florida locals that wouldn't mind sharing their stories / opinions / facts / myths. Apparently no pirate gold has ever been found that would link any pirate activity in this area and historical fact vs. mythological and legendary storytelling conflict - so, myth?
MaineTHDiver
Tenderfoot
- Sep 27, 2006
- 7
- 0
- Detector(s) used
- Sea Hunter MKII
- Primary Interest:
- All Treasure Hunting
There is legend of a pirate fortress at the mouth of the Machias River as it dumps in to the sea. You guess is as good as mine where. I have looked at some early 1800 USGS maps of the area. Looking for areas that were never built up and might hold old treasure. But any pirate is not going to go very far up river. He will want the ocean at his back, so look at it as if you were the pirate.Parangjim said:
maui
Sr. Member
how about more info. on the lost pick mine in arizona?
take care. ron
take care. ron
K
Kentucky Kache
Guest
JFord said:
Post the stories you've read. If there is a copyright, rewrite the story in your own words. I'd like to see it. You could just post a link, but it's better to post at least part of the story.
Here's the story from www.kellycodetectors.com
"On the northern bank of the Tennessee River, in an area near Muscle Shoals, Alabama, lies a hidden limestone cavern containing an incredible multi-million dollar fortune in gold, silver, and jewels. Known as the Spanish treasure cache of Red Bone Cave, the history of this great lost wealth goes back to around 1540, the time of Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto's march into the New World.
In 1538, Charles V of Spain had given De Soto permission to conquer Florida at his own expense, and the Spanish explorers sailed with a richly equipped company of 600 men, 24 ecclesiastics, and 20 officers. The expedition landed at the Bay of Espiritu Santo, now Tampa Bay, and the Spaniards first marched north as far as the Carolinas.
Here, legend has it, De Soto and his men came upon the sacred mountain city of the Cherokees. The Indians were hostile, but the Spaniards subdued them, took their gold and other treasures, and pushed on westward to Alabama, then back through Tennessee to Alabama.
Since fall was over, and cold weather was coming on, the Spaniards began constructing a winter camp. Chickasaw Indians who lived on the south side of the Tennessee River proved friendly until spring came. At that time, De Soto, who was breaking camp for a trek into Mississippi, arrogantly demanded that the Chickasaw chief furnish several hundred pretty maidens to accompany the Spanish expedition.
This high-handed request was an indignity the Indians could not ignore, and a night-time attack on De Soto's camp was the result. The Spaniards, taken by surprise, were forced to flee. In doing so, the great treasure they had taken from the Cherokees was left behind. In his retreat, De Soto's guides led him into swamps and trackless forests where great numbers of his men perished.
Turning south along the river, he headed toward the Gulf of Mexico, but he never made it. At a place called Chickasaw Bluffs, he was seized with fever and died. Fearing that the hostile Indians would find his grave and mutilate his body, his men buried him in the Mississippi River. Only a handful of the remaining expedition ever succeeded in reaching the Spanish settlements on the Gulf.
Once the Spaniards had been driven away, the Chickasaw chief had some of his braves take the discarded treasure to a point on the north bank of the Tennessee River, where there were large limestone caverns. In one of these the treasure was concealed.
For 180 years, the story of the great treasure in the river cave was handed down from one Indian chief to another. All but forgotten otherwise, the treasure site lay undisturbed until 1720.
Then, one day in the summer of that year, a tall and handsome white trapper appeared at the Chickasaw village. A friendly man, he asked permission from the chief to trap game on tribal lands. Impressed by this act, the chief readily agreed. However, this wasn't the only reason for the chief's ready acquiescence.
He had only one child, a beautiful daughter. For some time he had been trying to marry her off, since he needed a grandson to succeed him. The girl, however, would have none of the braves who were brought before her for approval. But once she laid eyes on the handsome trapper, she lost no time in letting her father know he was the man she wanted.
Unaware of what was going on, and unmindful of the fact that the chief's daughter was watching him constantly, the trapper accepted the quarters offered by the chief and quietly went about his business of trapping.
A month passed, and one night he was awakened by two braves. Before he could fully awaken from a deep sleep, he found his hands being tied. He started to resist but when the Indians softly told him they meant to do him no harm, he let himself be blindfolded.
All that night and the following day, he was led through the cool dark forest. Several times the group rested, and he was given something to eat and drink. On one of the occasions the blindfold slipped from one eye, and before the Indians could readjust it, he managed to see a river and white cliffs. Since he had been up and down the river many times, he thought he recognized the area which lay many miles from the Indian village.
Shortly afterwards, he was led into a canoe, and the party moved across the river. Alighting, they went up an embankment. Then the ground began to slope downward, and he felt sand under his feet. From the change in the air, he knew they had entered a large cavern. At this point, the Indians told him to walk stooped, so as not to hit his head on low-hanging rocks. On several occasions, he heard the sound of bat or bird wings near his head and instinctively ducked.
After a while, the party stopped, and the trapper's hands were untied and the blindfold removed. Frightened and confused, he rubbed his eyes and wrists. Two Indians held torches to dispel the darkness, and, to his amazement, he saw that one of them was the Chickasaw chief himself, while the other was the tribal medicine man. Then he looked around the cave.
Reaching from the cavern floor to its ceiling were stacks of gold and silver bars, while rotted chests spilled jewels and other objects across the floor. The trapper could only shake his head in wonder. Where had all this wealth come from? He listened with open mouth as the old chief told him the story of the Spaniard De Soto and how the Chickasaw tribe had gotten the treasure many moons ago. But after being hidden for all these years, the trapper wondered why it was now being shown to him.
It was simple, explained the chief. If the trapper would marry the chief's daughter, all of the treasure he now saw would be given to him. And if he didn't want to marry the daughter, what then?
The old chief sadly shrugged. Since the trapper had been blindfolded and didn't know where the treasure cave was located, he would be allowed to leave in peace.
While the chief was talking, the trapper was doing some quick figuring. All of this wealth would be his if he married the daughter, but, if he had to live in the wilderness with the Indians, he might as well not have it. If he refused to marry the daughter, he would be allowed to leave unharmed. The old chief had said so, and he believed him.
Trying to hide his anticipation, the trapper told the chief that he would have to think about his decision for a few days. Since he already had a wife and family in one of the white settlements, he lied, he just couldn't make up his mind that quickly.
The trapper was blindfolded again, and the return trip was accomplished until the three men were once again in the great forest near the Indian village. The old chief was tired, so the men made camp for the night.
Later, as the two Indians lay sleeping, the trapper killed them both and threw their bodies into the nearby river. Thus, he made certain that he could leave the area. The next morning, he departed and soon showed up at Fort Rosalie, where he enlisted the aid of a friend to recover the treasure.
Hiding in caves by day, and looking at night, the two men spent several months in searching. Finally, the friend grew disgusted and returned to the settlements where he later died of yellow fever.
Alone now, the trapper took a chance and returned to the village of the Chickasaw. He was greeted warmly, and, to his surprise, heard nothing about the two men he had killed. Apparently, no one had ever known about their taking him to the treasure cave. This was just what he had counted on.
Searching out the old chief's daughter, the trapper told her that he wanted to marry her, and did so. In a roundabout way, he soon found out that she only knew her father had disappeared. It was apparent that she knew nothing of the treasure cave, nor did any other member of the tribe seem to.
Under the guise of trapping trips, the trapper continued his search for Red Bone Cave. But, try as he might, he could never find the right place.
In 1729, the trapper's wife died, and he returned to Fort Rosalie. But the place lay in ruins, the settlers having been massacred by the Natchez Indians. As the years passed and he grew older, he would sometimes tell the riverboat men at Natchez-under-the-Hill about the lost treasure cave. Maybe in time some lucky treasure hunter will find this lost cave and the multi-millions still hiding there."
"On the northern bank of the Tennessee River, in an area near Muscle Shoals, Alabama, lies a hidden limestone cavern containing an incredible multi-million dollar fortune in gold, silver, and jewels. Known as the Spanish treasure cache of Red Bone Cave, the history of this great lost wealth goes back to around 1540, the time of Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto's march into the New World.
In 1538, Charles V of Spain had given De Soto permission to conquer Florida at his own expense, and the Spanish explorers sailed with a richly equipped company of 600 men, 24 ecclesiastics, and 20 officers. The expedition landed at the Bay of Espiritu Santo, now Tampa Bay, and the Spaniards first marched north as far as the Carolinas.
Here, legend has it, De Soto and his men came upon the sacred mountain city of the Cherokees. The Indians were hostile, but the Spaniards subdued them, took their gold and other treasures, and pushed on westward to Alabama, then back through Tennessee to Alabama.
Since fall was over, and cold weather was coming on, the Spaniards began constructing a winter camp. Chickasaw Indians who lived on the south side of the Tennessee River proved friendly until spring came. At that time, De Soto, who was breaking camp for a trek into Mississippi, arrogantly demanded that the Chickasaw chief furnish several hundred pretty maidens to accompany the Spanish expedition.
This high-handed request was an indignity the Indians could not ignore, and a night-time attack on De Soto's camp was the result. The Spaniards, taken by surprise, were forced to flee. In doing so, the great treasure they had taken from the Cherokees was left behind. In his retreat, De Soto's guides led him into swamps and trackless forests where great numbers of his men perished.
Turning south along the river, he headed toward the Gulf of Mexico, but he never made it. At a place called Chickasaw Bluffs, he was seized with fever and died. Fearing that the hostile Indians would find his grave and mutilate his body, his men buried him in the Mississippi River. Only a handful of the remaining expedition ever succeeded in reaching the Spanish settlements on the Gulf.
Once the Spaniards had been driven away, the Chickasaw chief had some of his braves take the discarded treasure to a point on the north bank of the Tennessee River, where there were large limestone caverns. In one of these the treasure was concealed.
For 180 years, the story of the great treasure in the river cave was handed down from one Indian chief to another. All but forgotten otherwise, the treasure site lay undisturbed until 1720.
Then, one day in the summer of that year, a tall and handsome white trapper appeared at the Chickasaw village. A friendly man, he asked permission from the chief to trap game on tribal lands. Impressed by this act, the chief readily agreed. However, this wasn't the only reason for the chief's ready acquiescence.
He had only one child, a beautiful daughter. For some time he had been trying to marry her off, since he needed a grandson to succeed him. The girl, however, would have none of the braves who were brought before her for approval. But once she laid eyes on the handsome trapper, she lost no time in letting her father know he was the man she wanted.
Unaware of what was going on, and unmindful of the fact that the chief's daughter was watching him constantly, the trapper accepted the quarters offered by the chief and quietly went about his business of trapping.
A month passed, and one night he was awakened by two braves. Before he could fully awaken from a deep sleep, he found his hands being tied. He started to resist but when the Indians softly told him they meant to do him no harm, he let himself be blindfolded.
All that night and the following day, he was led through the cool dark forest. Several times the group rested, and he was given something to eat and drink. On one of the occasions the blindfold slipped from one eye, and before the Indians could readjust it, he managed to see a river and white cliffs. Since he had been up and down the river many times, he thought he recognized the area which lay many miles from the Indian village.
Shortly afterwards, he was led into a canoe, and the party moved across the river. Alighting, they went up an embankment. Then the ground began to slope downward, and he felt sand under his feet. From the change in the air, he knew they had entered a large cavern. At this point, the Indians told him to walk stooped, so as not to hit his head on low-hanging rocks. On several occasions, he heard the sound of bat or bird wings near his head and instinctively ducked.
After a while, the party stopped, and the trapper's hands were untied and the blindfold removed. Frightened and confused, he rubbed his eyes and wrists. Two Indians held torches to dispel the darkness, and, to his amazement, he saw that one of them was the Chickasaw chief himself, while the other was the tribal medicine man. Then he looked around the cave.
Reaching from the cavern floor to its ceiling were stacks of gold and silver bars, while rotted chests spilled jewels and other objects across the floor. The trapper could only shake his head in wonder. Where had all this wealth come from? He listened with open mouth as the old chief told him the story of the Spaniard De Soto and how the Chickasaw tribe had gotten the treasure many moons ago. But after being hidden for all these years, the trapper wondered why it was now being shown to him.
It was simple, explained the chief. If the trapper would marry the chief's daughter, all of the treasure he now saw would be given to him. And if he didn't want to marry the daughter, what then?
The old chief sadly shrugged. Since the trapper had been blindfolded and didn't know where the treasure cave was located, he would be allowed to leave in peace.
While the chief was talking, the trapper was doing some quick figuring. All of this wealth would be his if he married the daughter, but, if he had to live in the wilderness with the Indians, he might as well not have it. If he refused to marry the daughter, he would be allowed to leave unharmed. The old chief had said so, and he believed him.
Trying to hide his anticipation, the trapper told the chief that he would have to think about his decision for a few days. Since he already had a wife and family in one of the white settlements, he lied, he just couldn't make up his mind that quickly.
The trapper was blindfolded again, and the return trip was accomplished until the three men were once again in the great forest near the Indian village. The old chief was tired, so the men made camp for the night.
Later, as the two Indians lay sleeping, the trapper killed them both and threw their bodies into the nearby river. Thus, he made certain that he could leave the area. The next morning, he departed and soon showed up at Fort Rosalie, where he enlisted the aid of a friend to recover the treasure.
Hiding in caves by day, and looking at night, the two men spent several months in searching. Finally, the friend grew disgusted and returned to the settlements where he later died of yellow fever.
Alone now, the trapper took a chance and returned to the village of the Chickasaw. He was greeted warmly, and, to his surprise, heard nothing about the two men he had killed. Apparently, no one had ever known about their taking him to the treasure cave. This was just what he had counted on.
Searching out the old chief's daughter, the trapper told her that he wanted to marry her, and did so. In a roundabout way, he soon found out that she only knew her father had disappeared. It was apparent that she knew nothing of the treasure cave, nor did any other member of the tribe seem to.
Under the guise of trapping trips, the trapper continued his search for Red Bone Cave. But, try as he might, he could never find the right place.
In 1729, the trapper's wife died, and he returned to Fort Rosalie. But the place lay in ruins, the settlers having been massacred by the Natchez Indians. As the years passed and he grew older, he would sometimes tell the riverboat men at Natchez-under-the-Hill about the lost treasure cave. Maybe in time some lucky treasure hunter will find this lost cave and the multi-millions still hiding there."
what about lasserters reef here in oz, surely none better, the controversy still rages today 80 odd years on (con or fact) here is a link to some factual history
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/exploration/lasseter/index.html
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/exploration/lasseter/index.html
Old Bookaroo
Silver Member
- Dec 4, 2008
- 4,318
- 3,510
Oz:
Would it be too much to call this "The Downunder 'Lost Dutchman?'" I remember first reading about this many years ago in Long John Latham's True Treasure Magazine.
Here are a few references I found on the 'Web. One repeats yours. I added it because that site offers several very interesting articles.
“Lasseter’s Lost Reef":
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/exploration/lasseter/index.html
Lasseter’s Diary:
http://nationaltreasures.nla.gov.au/>/Treasures/item/nla.int-ex6-s53
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/exploration/lasseter/diary/index.html
More on the Diary:
http://www.lasseteria.com/CYCLOPEDIA/153.htm
Still more on the Diary:
http://www.lasseters-reef.com/lassetersgold/diarypicture.html
Search for Lasseter:
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/exploration/lasseter/search.html
The ‘Second Expedition' – including a very nice map! And a very interesting reference to Harold Bell Wright’s novel The Mine With The Iron Door (1923) that KvonM wrote about several times. Sometimes “truth” is stranger than fiction because it is fiction!
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_c...n/exploration/lasseter/second_expedition.html
Good luck to all,
~The Old Bookaroo
Would it be too much to call this "The Downunder 'Lost Dutchman?'" I remember first reading about this many years ago in Long John Latham's True Treasure Magazine.
Here are a few references I found on the 'Web. One repeats yours. I added it because that site offers several very interesting articles.
“Lasseter’s Lost Reef":
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/exploration/lasseter/index.html
Lasseter’s Diary:
http://nationaltreasures.nla.gov.au/>/Treasures/item/nla.int-ex6-s53
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/exploration/lasseter/diary/index.html
More on the Diary:
http://www.lasseteria.com/CYCLOPEDIA/153.htm
Still more on the Diary:
http://www.lasseters-reef.com/lassetersgold/diarypicture.html
Search for Lasseter:
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/exploration/lasseter/search.html
The ‘Second Expedition' – including a very nice map! And a very interesting reference to Harold Bell Wright’s novel The Mine With The Iron Door (1923) that KvonM wrote about several times. Sometimes “truth” is stranger than fiction because it is fiction!
http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_c...n/exploration/lasseter/second_expedition.html
Good luck to all,
~The Old Bookaroo
Old Bookaroo
Silver Member
- Dec 4, 2008
- 4,318
- 3,510
Oz:
That's a very interesting point! In the American West, there have been a number of major gold finds by folks who were out looking for a mythical "lost mine" (or "diggins"). The famous "Gold Lake" high in the Sierras triggered the stampede that lead to the Gold Bar finds. There is a classic Gold Rush account (The Dame Shirley Letters) that tells that story.
This happened in Death Valley, the mountains of Southern California, and elsewhere.
Good luck to all,
~The Old Bookaroo
That's a very interesting point! In the American West, there have been a number of major gold finds by folks who were out looking for a mythical "lost mine" (or "diggins"). The famous "Gold Lake" high in the Sierras triggered the stampede that lead to the Gold Bar finds. There is a classic Gold Rush account (The Dame Shirley Letters) that tells that story.
This happened in Death Valley, the mountains of Southern California, and elsewhere.
Good luck to all,
~The Old Bookaroo
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