We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. However, their work created great doubt that any lost Confederate gold ever existed in the first place. By all accounts, he stayed by the tracks between Atmore and Bay Minette Alabama stealing from the trains every chance he got. The legend states that DeSoto and his men cant to the Bay of Espiritu Santa which is now Tampa Bay Florida. Byron Campbell. He's been published in The New York Times" and "Huffington Post and has co-authored numerous collections of trivia, puzzles and humor. Named after one president, Thomas Jefferson, he went on to marry the daughter of another, Zachary Taylor. Hansen ended up killing one of the Union scouts. Matthew Paulson / Flickr. However, although the banks and the Confederacy had shipped their gold on the same train, each had its own security forces and the gold was never commingled. I hope you have found this article of interest and if you have any questions or comments feel free to leave them in the comments section below. Unfortunately, Parker found the U.S. cavalry already in the immediate area and made alternate arrangements. CBS News affiliate WTAJ-TVreported members of the Elk County Historical Society say they believe the gold is just an old wives' tale. ALABAMA TREASURE LEGENDS Table Of Contents The mountain I saw that looked like an overturned boat is just to the east of Belleville, off US 231. The treasurer of the Confederacy was on board and made numerous and well-documented disbursements along the way to meet military payrolls. Probably. Pistolero, In the book,"Buried Treasure You Can Find by Robert F. Mark, theres a little four line treasure tale. They ended up in a large cavern and when they took the blindfold off of the trapper he saw that the cave was filled to the ceiling with gold and silver bars, coins, and jewels. Curse of Civil War Gold Season 3: Release Date, Cast, Renewed or Canceled Civil War shipwrecks in Alabama were concentrated mostly in and around Mobile Bay. Navy Captain William H. Parker was placed in charge of the second train and, knowing that the special cargo was comprised of gold ingots, gold double eagle coins, silver coins, silver bricks and Mexican silver dollars, he gathered the only available personnel to provide a military guard. The courts eventually agreed with the federal government, who claimed the funds because the Richmond banks had aided a rebellion by making loans to the Confederacy. Moreover, he was unable to find any mention of the name Mumford in any record of the period. South Florida Sun-Sentinel. The Union Cavalry came upon them and they were both killed. Standing a discrete distance away and watching were Dennis and Kem Parada, owners of Finders Keepers, who still believe well, you known their name. In June 1863, President Lincoln ordered two wagons with false bottoms to carry anywhere from 26 to 52 gold bars weighing 50 pounds each from Wheeling, West Virginia, 400 miles north to Pennsylvania to pay the Union troops . In 1865, $100,000 of silver and gold was placed in two metal boxes by troops and tossed into the swamp in an attempt to keep Confederate money out of Union hands. JavaScript is disabled. But during heavy rains, the river would rise fast and recede slowly so during those times people could not cross. A man named Hardy Clemens who was a rich businessman, politician, and farmer bought a few acres of land in Coaling, Alabama on the shores of Big Sandy Creek in 1845. Hunley, was one of the first working submarines that operated with a crew. It is said that John Buried $100,000 worth of gold there. A big oak tree stands where his house was. Numerous unnamed drainages will also produce placer gold for a hard working prospector. Mr. Willismith owned most of the town. In Washington, Georgia, a small town untouched by the war, he was entrusted with $86,000 in gold coin and bullion (about $1 million in today's money) and disappeared into the night. Here are a few of the gems and buried treasure in Virginia that we managed to dig up. Knowing that he was wealthy and owned half of the town the legend has it that the gold could be buried anywhere in Fort Payne. Also while feverish, Castleton made the mistake of telling the troops about the gold. Legend of the Lost Confederate Gold. Alabama Lost Treasure Can Be Found - Metal Detecting Ghost Towns of the Lost Treasure and Tempting Mystery in Alabama Henry Allen Nunez was an early-day entrepreneur. The legend of James Copeland, along with his treasure, is largely drawn from the somewhat questionable account of Sheriff J.R.S. A second scholarship, known as the Sylvester Mumford Memorial Fund, was to be awarded to students from Brantley County who attend Georgia College, then known as Georgia State College for Women. Henry refused to tell the soldiers where the treasure was and was beaten again. May 17, 2014 at 12:00 am. CSS Texas (1865) - Wikipedia The bushwhackers were stragglers from both the Federal and Confederate armies who had heard of the treasure and the handouts being given to soldiers. Captain Kelly's Buried Gold. He also owned two plantations outside of what was called Savannah now central Alabama. Postal Service in 2000 and still has family and friends in Brantley County. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. There are rumors that caches of coins and silverware are buried on and around the plantation ruins. They also covered the boxes with straw and fertilizer to conceal the treasure within. In recent years, the number of students receiving tuition assistance has fluctuated between ten and twelve. Rumor has it that with Lafitte spending so much time at Fort Morgan he could have buried a worth of $10,000,000 there. So get your picks, shovels, and metal detector ready as we go through the 15 lost treasures of Alabama. This made Grady think that his uncle was burying the sack full of presumed gold coins in various places in the woods. but where did the money come from? . Explore Alabama - ALABAMA TREASURE LEGENDS Table of Contents: Alabama Treasure Legends, Legend of the Lost Confederate Gold, Old Flint River Settlement Gold, $30000 in Gold Coin Buried in Bridgeport Alabama, Loot Buried by Levi Colbert in Buzzard Roost Alabama , Rumors of Buried Treasure in Demopolis Alabama (White Bluff), C. Boaz Whitfield . His farm can be found off of Nicholasville Road North of Stone Road. They tried to get the horses and wagons out of the swampy area but the load was too heavy and the wagons got stuck. AUTHOR SUNDAY: The Confederate gold was protected by - Alabama History Those products, whether pictures of a service or a product contain links to the seller.What companies do I work with and promote?I work with Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, Clickbank, and MyTopo, affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to these websites.I also promote Solo Build It Site Built It, because it's the product I used to build this website. Win McNamee/Getty Images. It was the summer of 1863, and Union Lieutenant Castleton and his men were lost. Some say he buried his gold on his pig farm. #1. In April 1953, he and his three brothers were the first children from Brantley County to derive benefit from the Mumford funds at the Thornwell Orphanage in Clinton, South Carolina, after their father died from a heart attack in 1951 at age 47. This legend was first advanced by Martha Mizell Puckett, a former school teacher and Brantley County native, who spun her tale of Confederate gold in her book, Snow White Sands. The Chief agreed but he had other intentions as well. Today the town has only two homes standing that are in use. It happened between the Confederate Armory which was not over run during the war and present day, Wall Street . Apparently in 1865, $100,000 of gold and silver was put into two large metal boxes by Confederate troops, and then thrown into the swamp. The Rebel and the Rose"" reveals for the . There you go its all about rights again. Approximately Four miles north of Athens, Limestone County, and about half a mile from a prominent stream crossing, two huge metal box's, containing $100,000 in gold and silver were dumped into a bog by Confederate soldiers to prevent their seizure by the Union Soldiers in 1865. Henry Nunez They searched and searched for months coming up empty-handed so the trappers friend gave up and went back to Fort Rosalie. Did Jesse James bury Confederate gold? These treasure hunters think so In the 1966 Spaghetti Western movie "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," the protagonists get information about lost Confederate gold hidden in a . One time in Montgomery, in the late '80s, or early '90s, I was finishing some sheetrock in a small business, in sort of a row of businesses in the same long building. Norfolk Southern train derails in Springfield, Ohio, At least 12 dead after winter storm slams South, Midwest, Trump speaks at CPAC after winning straw poll, Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant to "take some time away" from the team after allegedly brandishing a gun in a club, How Paul Murdaugh testified "from the grave" to help convict his father, Man charged for alleged involvement in 2 transformer explosions, Promising drug could provide alternative to statins, new study finds, Iran to allow more inspections at nuclear sites, U.N. says, NTSB to investigate in-flight turbulence that left 1 passenger dead. Henry knew he could make a fortune with his ferry because the Perdido River was a popular crossing spot for people going from Alabama to Florida and vice versa. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. In April 1865, the Civil War ended for most Americans. 3. After exhaustive research, Lewis concluded that gold from the Richmond banks and the Confederate treasury had in fact been evacuated from Richmond and shipped south to prevent it from falling into the hands of Union forces. The funds were then stored there in a vault at a local bank, and within days after the war ended, the Richmond banks had their funds returned to Richmond on five wagons. Now only Hansens one friend knew about the treasure but his friend was arrested and charged with harboring a fugitive. I would think that they would have USED the gold before burying it. The belief that Confederate gold is buried in Wilkes County has persisted since the end of the war. Its still hidden in a limestone cave called Red Bone. However, this wagon train was robbed on the first night that it stopped to make camp, and the robbers improvised ways to carry the loot: stuffed in their shirts, pants, boots and whatever else would hold their plunder. The troops were trying to keep the gold and silver away from Union soldiers. Of particular note, Wayne J. Lewis researched the connection between the Confederate gold and the Mumford estate due to his personal interest in the legend. It is said that he would only accept gold coins as payment for the ground corn and flour that he sold. So if you are ever in that area you might want to have your metal detector and shovel ready because there might be something worth finding buried in the ground there. Demopolis is an abandoned town on the Tombigbee River, near the intersection of rout 43, and 80. Have fun in your search for Alabama treasure. The first submarine to engage and sink a warship, the Hunley didn't . The existence of caches of hidden or lost Confederate gold has been the source of numerous Georgia legends. Mystery Gulf Coast shipwreck. If its there Im all for digging it up. Dr. Clive Cussler a historian attempted to find the wreck of La Bellone in September 1989. These legends are fueled by the fact that the state was a hub . Camp Beauregard once stood just southwest of Mayfield. There's a book out called " Confederate Gold" I haven't read it but it may give some clues. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. One night two braves took the trapper, tied his hands and feet, and blindfolded him. And some say its buried amongst the slaves in the graveyard on the property. The Confederacys Ferrous Stonewall in a Far East Civil War. John Willismith was a rich businessman who lived in Fort Payne, Alabama. It was in Washington that the bulk of the treasure was captured along with Jefferson Davis and his staff. The question that I pose. La Bellone ran aground at the entrance of Pelican Bay in September of 1724 which is on the east end of Dauphin Island. 'The Curse of Civil War Gold' follows Michigan-based Kevin Dykstra in his 8-year mission to find the lost confederate gold of the Civil War. History, that is to say old rumors, tells us that a giant cache of gold was buried within walking distance of my house. FBI feared Pennsylvania would seize fabled Civil War gold and I have also researched the legend of Keel Mountain, I agree the O.R. Some of the most valuable placers in Alabama are found in Cleburne County. The area was then abandoned around 1830. Treasure hunters who say they found fabled Civil War-era gold in Appreciative of the home the Mumfords provided and his opportunity for a college education, he set out to discover the facts behind the Confederate gold. In fact, when she died in 1946 at age 99 in Washington, D.C., she bequeathed almost $600,000 to the children of Brantley County through an endowment and two scholarship funds. The story has it that Mr. Clemens buried $100,000 worth of gold on his property because he was worried about losing it. I live in Athens, Alabama. Also, keep in mind whenever you want to go metal detecting make sure you know the laws of the state in which you are digging in and always ask permission before metal detecting on any private property. The brakeman subsequently threw him off the moving train. Egill Skallagrmsson 's silver. As the men transporting the money neared Athens, Alabama, the wagon became stuck in a muddy "bog hole." In late May 1861, Jefferson Davis, the former Mississippi Senator and the reluctant president of the seceding Confederate States of America, moved the capital of the CSA from Montgomery, Alabama to Richmond, Virginia to boost the morale of the Confederate troops and weld Virginia to the Confederacy. They were transporting a large quantity of gold bars, hidden in false-bottomed wagons, from Wheeling, W.Va., to the . 28. Continue with Recommended Cookies. He ran an inn and Ferry that became known as Buzzard Roost in 1801. Morris was formerly a skilled circus performer and had an athletic build which made getting on off trains a breeze. The story goes that when she was forced to leave she had so much gold and silver her horses couldnt carry the load so she was forced to bury the gold and silver where she stood. The lost gold also played a key role in the legendary 1966 Western film, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Still lost: King Kamehameha's burial chamber. In the movie, the characters are hunting for $200,000 worth of gold that is rumored to be . This small island holds many lost treasure stories. Near Athens there may be a Confederate treasure. The King died in 1819, and was supposedly buried . Please enter valid email address to continue. JavaScript is disabled. No one else knew where the box was buried and it hasnt been found to this day. Hansen and the two soldiers went on their way dressed as farmers. athens alabama - Digital Alabama According to most news accounts and his website, hes been fighting for the right to dig there ever since. After meeting with the treasure hunters in early 2018, the FBI brought in a contractor with more sophisticated instruments. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. Also called hard currency. By 1960, this scholarship fund was creating more income from its principal investment than there were recipients for the scholarships. He resigned his commission as a captain after almost six years and he retired from the U.S. The wreck is still there and its treasure is waiting to be recovered! Several legends, actually. The two wooden boxes full of Confederate gold fell out of the wagons and sank quickly into the mud. Confederate Gold - New Georgia Encyclopedia As heir to the Mumford estate, Miss Gertrude allegedly made provisions to return the balance of the Confederate treasure to Southern hands after her death. He told his friend all about the story of the two wagons, treasure, and the fight with the Union soldiers. She was a cargo ship that held deer hides, beaver pelts, tobacco, and 40,000 crowns of gold and silver bullion and coins. Sharps had a nephew named Grady Sharps who witnessed his uncle go into his 100 acres of forest that he owned south of Whites Mill. $54 million in Lost Gold From the Civil War May Have Been Found I am sure some of your readers are from that area and are familiar with the Prattville, Montgomery area and of course, the Alabama River. FBI on trail of $55M in gold missing since Civil War - al The gold and silver coins are said to be buried east of his old homestead. All the Confederate officials would board the first train, while the second train would hold special cargo. Castleton got the fever (not a good thing in those days) and Connor took over for a while. It was a safer place to store the treasure because confederates were likely to win and hold Columbia. Buried treasure in Alabama may be located in ghost towns. The Ghost Town of Old Cahaba located on route 22 approximately 14 miles southwest of Selma, was used as a Confederate Fort during the Civil War. With the Davis party was a navy paymaster, James S. Semple. In November 2004, they claim to have found a fire pit in Dents Run where human skeletons were allegedly discovered in 1876. pistelero, everyone knows that confedereate gold was made and distributed throughout the south, and some stories about hidden treasure are real. One of the first settlements of Alabama is called Dauphin Island. Hes written for TV shows such as "The Tonight Show", "Politically Incorrect" and an award-winning childrens program. Lost Confederate Gold - LostTreasures.US Catahoula Creek is a thin and meandering waterway that . Ill Trade You a Fredericksburg for a Winchester and a Pea Ridge. The war, and its various aspects . In June 1863, President Lincoln ordered two wagons with false bottoms to carry anywhere from 26 to 52 gold bars weighing 50 pounds each from Wheeling, West Virginia, 400 miles north to Pennsylvania to pay the Union troops stationed there. You must log in or register to reply here. Hello all, Any of y'all ever read or hear of the Confederates escorting $250,000.00 in gold to the east coast in 1864 being attacked about two miles east of Tallassee, Alabama near or crossing a little creek? The Union soldiers dug up the cask and went and spent the money in Mobile, Alabama. Anyone ever hear of these lost Confederate Gold caches in Alabama Legend of Lost Gold of Keel Mountain National Treasure Hunters Gurley You see people didnt trust the banks back then because they were often robbed and the insurance programs of the Federal Government were not that good. A member of the society said there is no historical evidence that gold is buried in the area. The McGillivray plantation ruins lie 4 miles North of Wetumpka, Alabama. 10 strange Alabama discoveries, from a mysterious shipwreck to creepy Imperial Seal of China created by Emperor Qin Shi Huang, lost after the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period in the 10th century. 6) Lost Delosie Mine. The townspeople decided to defend Newton but were worried that if they got defeated that the towns treasury would be looted. Buried Treasure In Alabama Does Exist - Metal Detecting Ghost Towns of var FIX=FIX||{}; A message was sent to the Justice Department seeking comment on the suit, which asks a judge to order the FBI to immediately turn over the records. The Search for the Lost Confederate Gold - Cleveland Civil War Roundtable The trapper ended up not marrying the chiefs daughter and he went away freely although he killed two braves to make sure he was able to leave. Perhaps the best-known tale of lost treasure in Virginia is the legend of Beale's Treasure. De Soto and his men fled and left the treasure they had stolen from the Cherokees behind. The balance of the captured treasure was assembled and loaded into wagons for transport to Washington, D.C. Davis was attending church services on Sunday, April 2, 1865 when he learned that Lees defensive line at Petersburg had been broken and the evacuation of Richmond was imminent. The most famous lost Confederate ship, the H.L. Residents of Wilkes County who witnessed the event said that the bushwhackers waded knee-deep in gold and silver coinage before loading it in all kinds of bags and sacks and riding away. A rich man named Hansen was a Confederate sympathizer who wanted to financially help the Confederate economy that was falling apart at the end of the Civil War. Your email address is safe, and unsubscribing is easy. You are using an out of date browser. Some of the add-ons on this site are powered by. Is the "Lost Confederate Gold" a myth or reality??? Union forces were strong in the area north of Alabama so Hansen and two confederate soldiers decided to take the two boxes of treasure to Columbia where General Hood of the rebel troops was held up. General Dukes Brigade. Finders Keepers' owners, the father-son duo of Dennis and Kem Parada, had spent years looking for what, according to legend, was an 1863 shipment of Union gold that was lost or stolen while on its way to the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia. Lost Confederate gold near Tallassee, Al.?? But with 100 acres to cover and now metal detectors back then it was never found. Should Ken Burns start working on a new special?

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