Newbie Southeast Idaho Stage Coach Robbery

Jim in Idaho said:
Another thing, Brian...Root Hog was a nickname given to the stage station which is going towards Blackfoot, and is about 13 miles northeast of the Big Butte stage station. The stories I've read said the robbery occured ON Root Hog divide. All the research I've done, and I've never been able to find out where Root Hog divide is located. There is no such name anywhere on the internet, other than the story. There is a ridge just west of the stage station, but we've searched it extensively with no luck, and the ridge offers few spots for a lone robber to stop the stage safely (without being shot). My initial thinking was that ridge was Root Hog divide. I no longer think that's the case, though it could be. Obviously Root Hog divide was a name the locals used, but was nothing official. There is also a "divide"of a sort southeast of the Butte about 3 miles, or so, heading toward Springfield, but it offers few places to stop the stage. We've searched that area, too.
Jim
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Have you ever seen a cave that 100 yards long in that area? I never been into this part of Idaho. But with this Google earth a person can really look into an area and see where the lava closes up the road. Root Hog divide could be where the Goodale's cutoff starts. There seems to be trails that lead nowhere, and one I think I seen that head towards Blackfoot. Why would the stage head for Blackfoot after the robber stole the loot, if they say they were heading for Springfield ?
 

Brian's Luck is Golden said:
Have you ever seen a cave that 100 yards long in that area? I never been into this part of Idaho. But with this Google earth a person can really look into an area and see where the lava closes up the road. Root Hog divide could be where the Goodale's cutoff starts. There seems to be trails that lead nowhere, and one I think I seen that head towards Blackfoot. Why would the stage head for Blackfoot after the robber stole the loot, if they say they were heading for Springfield ?
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With a long-range detectors a person would have a better chance. Weather looks cold and windy this week with thunder storms coming in , Is it safe to camp out in this wilderness
 

Jim in Idaho said:
Clay, there is another version of the story that it was near dark when they got back to the robbery site, and the guy was on a horse, and winding through the rocks just ducked out and got away. Knowing that country well, that's much more believable to me. Also, there are few caves in that country that extend for more than 10 yards.
Jim
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The posse trusted him and let him slip away , I believe that because, where did this other person come from years later looking for this gold. Town folk remembered this person. It's there just waiting for the lucky day when someone finds it .
 

I keep thinking about two 100 pound bars of gold. No ordinary horse could carry the weight of the gold and a man any distance in the desert. I've worked with mules and specially bred work horses that could carry that weight in that type country but your average western quarter horse isn't going to have much luck. Either the gold was left or exchanged very near the robbery site, the robber had two or more horses or the bars weren't 100 pounds each.

Any horseman knows navigating that desert alone with two horses is a lot of work. Horses were expensive and individually branded and recognizable. Stealing horses would get you killed faster than stealing gold.

Mines were known to make large dory bars for shipping. Bigger bars of greater weight are harder to steal or conceal. The 100 pounds is obviously an estimate, dory bars aren't poured to specific weights and fully refined gold isn't poured into 100 pound bars.

I'm wondering what mine/smelter the dory bars were from? Knowing their origin might give you a better idea of their shape and appearance. A lot of dory bars look more like iron or copper on their surface than gold. If the pour had free iron or copper in it it could have oxidized to a crumbly surface that doesn't resemble gold..
 

While there are few deep caves, there are deep crevasses that extend for a few hundred yards, and are difficult to get into, and out of. we have not detected the length of those for the loot. i could imagine a guy getting down in there and running off. some are 15 or 20' deep, and from quite narrow to several feet wide. but you'd end up on foot in very bad terrain. The story is the robber ended up in prison in Arizona, or New Mexico, and died there. The story also says a guy that had been in prison down there with the robber, showed up at Root Hog years later, with a map. Asked people if they recognized the landmarks, hung around for several weeks, and then disappeared.
Jim
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Clay, my understanding is that Wells Fargo started requiring the gold be shipped in minimum 100 lb bars to discourage theft. It's also my understanding that most shipments were Dore' bars that weighed 125 lbs. This particular shipment was 2 such bars. The story also mentioned the lone robber was not aware of the bars before stopping the stage. From what I got from the story he had just one horse, so was ill-prepared to carry off the bars, When they arrested him in Salmon he had cash and gold from the passengers. As far as horses...there places they would be fine, and places you wouldn't take one and places you wouldn't take one. The biggest factor is water, but getting to the Little lost valley, and on to Salmon would not be a problem.
Jim
 

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Sorry I can't help with your search but Welcome to the forum from North Carolina.
 

Brian, you can camp anywhere out there. When I look back over the years of treasure hunting, fur and big game hunting, etc. it seems like I spent half my life out there.
 

Here's some more info. That stage line was not operated by Wells Fargo. They may have been the agents, for the shipment, however. It was founded by Alexander Toponce, but soon sold. WF never had a financial interest in it. The gold came from a couple of possible sources. Most likely Bannack, MT., or maybe Virginia City/Alder Gulch, MT., or possibly Leesburg near Salmon.
Jim
 

Brian, Goodales Cutoff has two starts. One was to leave Fort Hall, and go north, crossing the Snake at what is now Ferry Butte. The other was to go upstream to Blackfoot, and cross the river there, and head northwest to the Big Butte. The two routes converged slightly north of the Butte. Both required watering on the north slope of the butte. Water came from Webb Spring about 1/3 up the butte. There was also seasonal, and sometimes year-around water from the Big Lost river several miles north of the butte.
Jim
 

Jim in Idaho said:
Here's some more info. That stage line was not operated by Wells Fargo. They may have been the agents, for the shipment, however. It was founded by Alexander Toponce, but soon sold. WF never had a financial interest in it. The gold came from a couple of possible sources. Most likely Bannack, MT., or maybe Virginia City/Alder Gulch, MT., or possibly Leesburg near Salmon.
Jim
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Some where I got in my head that was Wells Fargo gold, that would really make me jump with joy to get back at them for ripping me off on their credit card, I will surely be packing a torch and a hack saw
 

Jim in Idaho said:
Brian, you can camp anywhere out there. When I look back over the years of treasure hunting, fur and big game hunting, etc. it seems like I spent half my life out there.
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Is some of that road the old Oregon trail shortcut, seems like there should be lots of stuff to find out there, I'm sure you found your share of the bounty?
 

Jim in Idaho said:
Clay, there is another version of the story that it was near dark when they got back to the robbery site, and the guy was on a horse, and winding through the rocks just ducked out and got away. Knowing that country well, that's much more believable to me. Also, there are few caves in that country that extend for more than 10 yards.
Jim
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Do the local libraries have micro phis. of the old newspaper?
 

Nothing anywhere on this as far as newspapers. At least nothing I've been able to discover, and I've done a LOT of research.
Jim
 

Brian's Luck is Golden said:
Is some of that road the old Oregon trail shortcut, seems like there should be lots of stuff to find out there, I'm sure you found your share of the bounty?
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We've found some things. Mostly from stages rather than the emigrants. I found a thimble, which probably, but not surely, came from an emigrant. We've found considerable numbers of coins, and some military stuff, too. Very few people worked that road, and few now. There are still MILES of that road to search, as it heads west from Arco....some on what is now private property, but a whole bunch on public land.
Jim
 

I should add that I'm not really into that part of our hobby. My buddy is, so I occasionally go with him. I think the reason few emigrant relics are found is that by the time those wagons got this far west they had learned to keep everything very well buttoned-down...LOL. I started finding things out there because I was looking for the stage robbery loot, The relic hunting was sort of an offshoot of that.
Jim
 

Welcome !
Jon from s/e Michigan 8-) :cat: :occasion14: :headbang:
 

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