Spanish & KGC in the ozark mountains.

[L.C. BAKER]

Benjamin Franklin Ficklin was involved with the railroad from the time it was just a path between stage coach stops along the way. Ficklin serveyed a lot of it himself. When the government contract for the transcontinental railroad was issued Ficklin was Hiram Sibley's first partner. Ironically.... the other two bidders dropped out and the contract was issued to a man that partnered with a C.S.A. spy, blockade runner, who was eventually arrested for being involved in the Lincoln assassination. He was held until the others were convicted and hung, then they let him go without ever placing charges on him. If they had known about his ties to Senator M. Gwin back in 1853 and his friends and partners that belonged to the Nebraska City castle of the K.G.C., he would have had some more explaining and avoiding questions to do.

L.C.

 

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[orangeman]

What would a person think of a rail road that went to the middle of no where stopped and turned around. This has me wondering a great many things about what was going on in this place.

 

[Clueman]

Hello .........Many railroads had "spurs", a track that intersected with the main line. Many of these were used to connect logging operations (like they still do in the Ozarks, Midwest Timber has many active spurs for loading Walnut). Some were used to connect to loading stations for other natural resources (Limestone quarry).

There is an active loading spur about 6 miles from my house.

I hope this answers your railroad spur question.

 

[orangeman]

Thank you and that does answer my question.

 

[orangeman]

Any one ever heard of mining gold out of sand stone bluffs in Arkansas.

 

[orangeman]

I've heard some thing to that effect. I found some holes that where hand dug back about 15-29 feet into a sand stone bluff when I was a kid. Always thought the Indians done it for some reason. Then got to reading up on the Spanish and read some thing where they could mine gold out of sand stone.

 

[orangeman]

Got a friend that found several holes in a solid rock bottom that where put in by people. They have springs that fill them with water. He says they're tanning springs the Indians tanned hides in. Seems like a lot of trouble for Indians to chip out four big holes in solid rock to tan hides in.

 

[orangeman]

They could build a fire to hollow them out to but it would take a long time to get them that deep.

 

[orangeman]

Found an old civil war encampment that is interesting. There is also a story that goes with it. The way an old woman told me when I was a kid that there was a payroll unit camped there and they stashed the payroll and joined a battle over the the mountain in the next valley. They where killed and no one returned. The payroll is buried still.

 

[orangeman]

Has any one found man made caves. There more like holes that just go back a little ways. Mostly with smooth sides. Kind of roundish type holes.

 

[orangeman]

I'm thinking some I've come across are not natural.

 

[Juba II]

 

[PROSPECTORMIKEL]

Got a friend that found several holes in a solid rock bottom that where put in by people. They have springs that fill them with water. He says they're tanning springs the Indians tanned hides in. Seems like a lot of trouble for Indians to chip out four big holes in solid rock to tan hides in.

Orangeman, that theory isn't all that farthetched.
Indian camps were both, seasonal and permanent.

They moved to follow their food supply's trail. Whether birds, fish, deer, buffalo or vegetation, those cycles led them back annually to the same plots.

Things like fire pits and tanning pits were probably used for generations.

When you see those places, look around to find natural shelters and clean water supplies and food.

Probably looking in those places one might find tools or hunting supplies like arrow heads etc...

I would enjoy seeing those places and finding their history.

Sometimes the journey and discovery are the destination.

As for arrowhead hunting...
Just walk behind me and look in my footprints. That is how my kids found them. I stink at finding them.

MIKEL
#/;0)~

 

[PROSPECTORMIKEL]

As for KGC signs, I am not convinced that they are not among the signs on my site.

Many similarities.
#/;0)~

 

[orangeman]

There are Indian settlements a over this area. I know a place a few miles away that a whole bunch could've stayed and did stay.

 

[PROSPECTORMIKEL]

Do those places get into your blood, like they do mine?

#/;0)~

 

[orangeman]

Any of the historical places do. Found a civil war camp site that was pretty cool. Indian settlements are all over here. The one that I talked about earlier is pretty interesting. There are a bunch of over hangs in about a fifty yard area. Full of history. They've been dug up and tore up a lot but still a lot there. There is a rock shaped into a chair over looking all the over hangs right on the edge of a bluff.

 

[orangeman]

You can find arrow heads just about any where. In the creek, in fields, in the road. No telling. My cousins found a stone knife in a small creek bed when we where kids. That was a real find. He's still got it over thirty years later.

 

[orangeman]

Juba ll. Thanks for the interpretation I'm going to look into where a church may have been there.

 

[orangeman]

There are several old home places just out in the middle of the woods. Some are close to a hundred years old some have fruit trees still. The rock foundations are still at some most just have the chimney left.