Treasure in the Arizona Mountains
Treasure in the Arizona Mountains
This video was made after hunting for a treasure from a story that was told to me by an old guy named John, who I mention in my book Random Tangents.
We will take you up on the Mogollon Rim, above Payson, Arizona, and tell the story and discuss where I have searched and where I still think the treasure could be.
The story takes place at the end of the civil war when two confederate soldiers stole a wagon and loaded 16 kegs of gold coins from a cache that was buried by the Confederate Army. Making their way across Arizona to join up with some Confederate sympathizers in California they were attacked by an Indian war party.
They headed into the mountains and buried the 16 kegs of coins before being killed by the Indians.
Years later, in 1935, two Mexican fellows hunting close to the Mogollon Rim Road happened to find the kegs only taking a few of the coins before covering them over again. Unfortunate circumstances kept them from ever coming back but one of them finally told the story 35 years later. Follow along with me as I attempt to find the treasure.
For more treasure stories you may enjoy my book, “Random Tangents: Embracing Adventures in Life”: https://www.desertroamerpress.com/
thanks again
Mr. Hawk, I enjoyed listening to your story. Buried treasure is still being found in many places, especially here, in Israel.
Thank you Sir!
Nice areas, that’s a huge area to search for some lost barrels of gold.
I still got the case when gpa went hunting in the 80s
Pirate don’t save or hide gold they spend it.
If the hoard is ever found, does the finder have legal right to the treasure?
If I supply a solution to your treasure hunt will you split it with me if it works
I don’t see how a wagon and team of horses can even get rear the Rim area without a well taken path. I don’t see any truth in this story.
That must have been some expensive whiskey. Trading a gold coin for a bottle
Did you look around immigrant spring? Ima go look soon haha –
Love the area! I found numerous mines around that area!
Mr. Hawk…. Im hoping you carry a side iron on your excursions. You never know what wildlife or wild humans you may come across in dem der hills.
Sergio Leon wrote this story
I know this story. I lost my Dad, to la oro del diablo in 93.
My stomping grounds
Only one thing baffles me. Why only take 20 coins? Why not take as much as you can carry? Doesn’t make sense to me. Also wouldn’t there be records of a missing confederate shipment of gold? Just based on those two things I think he was just telling a good story.
A good tale well told! You had me running the math on the volume of Civil War-era powder kegs, the weight of gold coins, and how much a typical wagon could haul with the team you described. Thanks for the mental workout and the added excitement of the prospect of treasure to be found.
My great grandfather found Union Army treasure at Fort Lowell Tucson AZ back in the early 1900’s when the fort was still standing. My great grandfather found a 1865 Springfield 50-70 trapdoor rifle that was hidden up in the rafters. I still have it, it’s been in our family for over 100 years. It was missing the cleaning or ram rod and the bayonet. I located these original items and put them on the rifle up on the wall in my great room with a 1864 Ames wrist breaker sword.
Man Arizona has more buried treasure in the mountains then dirt …he’ll everyone out there should be rich by now
Really nice story, if only I could find this outcrop!!!
Actually it was the payroll for Fort Apache not confederate but Cavalry. Lieutenant Summerhayes was leading the first resupply mission on "Crooks Trail" from Camp Verde to Fort Apache. The year was 1874 and a wagon was lost over the cliffs when two mules separated from a team of six leaving four mules and a wagon to plummet over a cliff several hundred feet and not retrievable. This is documented in a book by Margaret Summerhayes called "Vanishing Arizona". Seems Margaret was fond of the mules a was saddened to hear four had perished along with a wagon. Not knowing at the time what was in the wagon she found it to be the wagon that held her fine china and silverware she had brought from New England. The wagon also carried the $3,000 plus payroll in $20 Gold Pieces and Silver Coins it also had a cargo of Winchester Repeater rifles.
Thanks so much for some good content, do you know how hard it is to fall asleep? Great story and it takes a week of watching to finish, I’m not trying to be mean but its great content. I love a good story. And I love how you tell them.
was the story from B.W. or W.W. from True West mag?
Soo have you guys found anything? Whats an update on your searching. The Validity of the Gold Coins being there is what I really question bc if you truthfully think about it even if your talking about a lot of gold coins being there in existence you’d think that if they are gone you’d think that some were left over due to the size of the kegs and loseing some over the rim of the kegs when they were poured out to touch and look at. I’m just really in denial if they existed at all bc of finding none over the years. Even if you found one GD you could make something of it but nobody has found none since the story was told. Soo the genius of this story is the Kegs are buried and if they can be found. Do you think he got his directions mixed up with where he was when he found the Kegs of Gold? I just think they are in a different place from where he stated he was at.
Thanks for sharing….
Just ordered your book! Looking forward to the stories 😃
A lot of people would make up stories about gold or treasure being cursed so people wouldn’t go looking for it or to encourage people to leave it if they happened to find it.
Greg, My family established "Miller" County, Missouri. True
I was once working an old building in Missouri removing some bricks from an old chimney and I found a 1914 Indian head nickel and then I was able to retire
Hey kinfolk lol. We may be related . People have asked me a long time am I related to Tony hawk 😂🤣😂🤣
Sadly our stories will end and become obscure. Hopefully the new generation will rise and continue the lore of all our pasts.
ANy update since 2020? I’ve been there numerous times. Crawfish out at Potato Lake. Interested if you hvae anything else on this treasure. I know better than to ask if you found it. 😉
Great story and not a disbeliever but if 16 barrels of gold were transported and hidden buy two people that would have to been a pretty monumentous feet right !
Miller is directly related to Jesse.
Good LUCK U ALL Happy Gold in Az..!!??!!
Logically because there was so many kegs the place these are buried are in fact near a wagon trail or a road nowadays. People bury things near springs cause manual labor works up a sweat. It makes perfect sense that the spring is near a road. People camped at springs years ago and still do.
Interesting
What’s that smell…. O 🐂♉ bullshit
We already found the coins amigo
Arizona is fun.
I love this story! Seems to have alot of credibility from my research. If I’m not up there in the area in the spring and fall hunting mushrooms, them I’m metal detecting old homesites in this area. Thanks for all the great videos you have provided to light the spirit of exploration that’s in our DNA. On with the hunt!!!??
Lmao the reason it will never be found is because it never existed gold fever is supported now by a wise story / tale
What is the "Big Hole" that the Mexican gentleman tossed the remaining coins into? A google search only turns up Sunset Crater Volcano, which isn’t really a "hole."
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I grew up in strawberry wow I didn’t know there was any gold out there
Sounds like the gold is bad luck
I bet a man named Bill Carson had something to do with that wagon load of confederate gold
Why is all of the treasure lost in Arizona? Can’t some be lost in my backyard!!
man I miss living in strawberry and going up to Woods Canyon