Rowdy Yates
Full Member
- Joined
- Nov 15, 2006
- Messages
- 121
- Reaction score
- 163
- Golden Thread
- 0
- Location
- Coulterville, California
- Detector(s) used
- White's MXT
Major Gold Find at Golden Gate Park in California!! (GOTCHA'!!)
So, today I found the Mother Lode!!!!! Right here in Golden Gate Park!! I was doing some research, when I came across some information about the California Midwinter Fair in San Francisco at Golden Gate Park in 1894. It seems that there was an exhibit there called “Gold Gulch”. It was a re-created gold rush mining camp with a dance hall and displays about the Gold Rush. Here’s a link to the California Midwinter Fair….. If you scroll down, it talks about the “Gold Gulch” exhibit, and there are some pictures.
1894 Midwinter Fair at Golden Gate Park
So I researched a little more and found an old newspaper article which described a robbery which occurred there during the fair. Apparently, a Mexican/Indian by the name of Busco Oro made off with a handful of gold nuggets from the “Gold Gulch” exhibit. Here’s his picture:
Several people saw him grab the nuggets and run, so they pursued him through the park. They eventually chased him down and he was apprehended, but there were no nuggets to be found. So, I figured he must have ditched them during the chase. It seemed like a long shot, but I thought, “Maybe I could head out with the MXT and find them!”
The Midwinter Fair encompassed two hundred acres centered on what is now the sycamore-shaded Music Concourse in Golden Gate Park. The “Gold Gulch” exhibit was near the Japanese Tea Garden, which still exists today. This is the area where I concentrated on finding Busco Oro’s lost nuggets.
I figured he must have run away towards Big Rec. That would have been the quickest way out of the park. There are some woodsy areas, near the Botanical gardens, where I thought he might have had a little time to hide his loot. I hunted for about an hour and was getting discouraged, but sure enough, near the base of a large pine tree (it must had been a recent planting for the fair back then), I got a good target! I was in “Prospecting Mode” on MXT because I was looking for gold. The first signal rang out with a nice high-pitched scream, and the readout said “VDI = +32, Iron 10%”. It sounded too good to be true!! That target turned out to the first of SIX large GOLD NUGGETS!!!! All were found within an area of about five by six feet and the deepest was only 8-inches!!
I couldn’t believe it!!!! I found them!!!! They total almost three ounces!! I’m figuring there might be more nuggets there, so I’m heading back tomorrow. This is the most gold I’ve ever found!! I’m totally stoked!! Here’s the pic:
Needless to say, I never expected to find gold nuggets in Golden Gate Park, especially such nice ones, but hey…….. You never know what will happen next! I guess they don’t call it “Golden” Gate Park for nothing!!
Happy Hunting,
Rick
So, today I found the Mother Lode!!!!! Right here in Golden Gate Park!! I was doing some research, when I came across some information about the California Midwinter Fair in San Francisco at Golden Gate Park in 1894. It seems that there was an exhibit there called “Gold Gulch”. It was a re-created gold rush mining camp with a dance hall and displays about the Gold Rush. Here’s a link to the California Midwinter Fair….. If you scroll down, it talks about the “Gold Gulch” exhibit, and there are some pictures.
1894 Midwinter Fair at Golden Gate Park
So I researched a little more and found an old newspaper article which described a robbery which occurred there during the fair. Apparently, a Mexican/Indian by the name of Busco Oro made off with a handful of gold nuggets from the “Gold Gulch” exhibit. Here’s his picture:
Several people saw him grab the nuggets and run, so they pursued him through the park. They eventually chased him down and he was apprehended, but there were no nuggets to be found. So, I figured he must have ditched them during the chase. It seemed like a long shot, but I thought, “Maybe I could head out with the MXT and find them!”
The Midwinter Fair encompassed two hundred acres centered on what is now the sycamore-shaded Music Concourse in Golden Gate Park. The “Gold Gulch” exhibit was near the Japanese Tea Garden, which still exists today. This is the area where I concentrated on finding Busco Oro’s lost nuggets.
I figured he must have run away towards Big Rec. That would have been the quickest way out of the park. There are some woodsy areas, near the Botanical gardens, where I thought he might have had a little time to hide his loot. I hunted for about an hour and was getting discouraged, but sure enough, near the base of a large pine tree (it must had been a recent planting for the fair back then), I got a good target! I was in “Prospecting Mode” on MXT because I was looking for gold. The first signal rang out with a nice high-pitched scream, and the readout said “VDI = +32, Iron 10%”. It sounded too good to be true!! That target turned out to the first of SIX large GOLD NUGGETS!!!! All were found within an area of about five by six feet and the deepest was only 8-inches!!
I couldn’t believe it!!!! I found them!!!! They total almost three ounces!! I’m figuring there might be more nuggets there, so I’m heading back tomorrow. This is the most gold I’ve ever found!! I’m totally stoked!! Here’s the pic:
Needless to say, I never expected to find gold nuggets in Golden Gate Park, especially such nice ones, but hey…….. You never know what will happen next! I guess they don’t call it “Golden” Gate Park for nothing!!
Happy Hunting,
Rick
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