Finally, in the wake of the treasure hunters' appeal, the FBI said it had located 2,400 pages of records and 17 video files that it could potentially turn over - but that it would take years to do so. On March 7, 1896, he was in a general store in the town of Atmore, Alabama. This dental device was sold to fix patients' jaws. When Davis and his party were arrested on May 10 in Irwinville, Ga., leaders of the 4th Michigan Calvary only found a few worthless Confederate banknotes on his person, and there was no gold stashed away in the wagons. In 1872,The Chronicle put that question to the man in charge Col. Raphael J. Moses, the former Confederate quartermaster. (The fleeing Confederates also carried about $450,000 in Richmond bank gold, but wouldnt touch those funds, as they didnt belong to the Confederate government.). The question is, what happened? With Union troops closing in on the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia, in early April 1865, President Jefferson Davis and the rest of his government fled southward, allegedly carrying with them a considerable amount of gold, silver and other coins. Lachlan McGillivray was a wealthy fur trader back in the mid to late 1700s. It never got there. Vice President Alexander Stephens explained their ideology, saying, Upon the great truth that the negro is not equal to the White man; that slavery, subordination to the superior race, is his natural and normal condition.. Hanna, The Long Surrender by Burke Davis in 1985, and in 2001, An Honorable Defeat: the Last Days of the Confederate Government by Williams C.. It happened between the Confederate Armory which was not over run during the war and present day, Wall Street . Civil War historian William Rawlings explained, People like to believe theres something out there. The town of Louina lasted from 1834-1902. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. Jean and his older brother Pierre stole a lot of loot over the years in and around the Gulf of Mexico in the early 1800s. After he retired, Bob Brewer embarked on an adventure to find the missing Confederate gold, supposedly hidden by the mysterious Knights of the Golden Circle of the late 1800s to finance a second Civil War. He was referring to the commercial house of Fraser, Trenholm & Company in Liverpool, England. Hansen then used the horses to trample the boxes deeper into the mud. Demopolis is an abandoned town on the Tombigbee River, near the intersection of rout 43, and 80. Jefferson Davis fled Richmond with multiple wagons filled with gold and silver. By all accounts, he stayed by the tracks between Atmore and Bay Minette Alabama stealing from the trains every chance he got. The evidence is strong that no one else managed to dig up the silver either, quite possibly because of where it was buried in a cemetery area. He practically owned half of the town of Fort Payne. The rumor is that the gold was buried under the name of a confederate general between two false generals in a cemetery. The lost gold also played a key role in the legendary 1966 Western film, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Hardy Clemens died in 1863 leaving no trace of where he hid his treasure. While sitting at the store Morris Slater was gunned down by Constable Leonard McGowin and some other posse members. So what happened to that missing Confederate treasure? Lawsuits claim it wrecked their teeth. Union troops closing in on the Confederate capital. until he found some of the treasures! The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. They fought with the Indians and ended up taking their gold and jewels and then going onto Alabama. Some of the Southern leaders . Levi Colbert who lived from 1759 to1834 was the bench chief of the Chickasaw Nation. Hansen ended up killing one of the Union scouts. The Confederates got away or won the little skirmish or what have you but the men who hid it had been killed. An aspect of the treasure that Clark omitted concerned the fate of 39 kegs of Mexican silver dollars. He was then valued at $300,000 which made him a wealthy man, to say the least! Georgia has always claimed a special place with Confederate gold stories because Confederate President Jefferson Davis was not only captured in the state, but the fate of the gold was discussed at his last cabinet meeting held in Wilkes County. 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. Louinas gold and silver could still be buried under the ground in that old ghost town! Looking For a Top Rated Metal Detector That Wont Cost You Thousands of Dollars but works like a $2000 machine? Jefferson Davis , the first and only President of the Confederate States of America, circa 1865. The plantations were called Vale Royal and Springfield. If its there Im all for digging it up. Between the financial help he provided to Julia, payments to support his estranged wife, Leticia, and the expenses of his clandestine activities, the gold in his possession became depleted during his two years on the run. Its still hidden in a limestone cave called Red Bone. Abraham Lincoln was shot and killed on April 14, a loss which the Confederate president lamented, as hed felt Lincoln would have been easier on the South than Andrew Johnson. In April 1865, Confederate President Jefferson Davis and members of his cabinet evacuated the city by train and headed south. Davis and His Gold. I was born and raised in the area. So many of them buried their gold and silver for safekeeping. So if youre in Randolph County Alabama look up that old ghost town that was once called Louina. His wife gave in again and told the soldiers where another cask was buried. The whole of this region was captured by the Northern forces early in the Civil War. Hanna, The Long Surrender by Burke Davis in 1985, and in 2001, An Honorable Defeat: the Last Days of the Confederate Government by Williams C. Davis, the mystery of the disappearing gold was unresolved. The Nunez Ferry ran for 47 years from 1815-1919. The ferry was used by Confederate and Union troops during the Civil War. Where did the loot go? He took the bodies of the Confederate soldiers with him. The gold became a lost legend. Then check out 14 Lost Treasures of Wisconsin. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. She made her money by running a trading post and she was one of the only Indian women to have owned slaves. In an account he made to a Richmond newspaper in 1893, Parker recalled that the government funds placed in his charge totaled only about $500,000 in gold, silver and bullion. Still, rumors of the millions persist. Here's how this gold war began, according to a Pittsburg Post-Gazette article about a 1983 story in Lost Treasure magazine. The troops were trying to keep the gold and silver away from Union soldiers. Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, Posted on December 5, 2020 December 31, 2020 by Terry W. Platt. Confederate gold refers to hidden caches of gold lost after the American Civil War. Besides, Semple was done with any sort of an adventure. From there, I am assuming the Bellview back then is Belleville today, just with a name change. 's don't mention anything about the skirmish. These were enormous-sized boxes measuring from 3 deep x 2 wide x 4 long. Morris started robbing trains because he was angry with the Louisville and Nashville railroad because a brakeman found him on a train ride that was headed for Mobile that he didnt pay for. The McGillivray plantation ruins lie 4 miles North of Wetumpka, Alabama. They think that they found what could be the wreck site but they didnt attempt to salvage her. When he was captured, he had almost nothing. Going to war can be incredibly expensive. His anger turned to crime and robbing the L&N trains was the outcome. While on the route to Columbia the wagons and horses started to get bogged down on the marshy ground 4 miles North of Athens, Alabama. The below mentioned George Trenholm incidentally, accompanied Davis on part of his flight but dropped out prematurely due to ill health, which was taken as circumstantial evidence by his Union accusers, when they later accused Trenholm of theft. In Semples mind, if the U.S. could be drawn into a war with Great Britain, the North would need the South and would ease up on letting the former Confederate States back into the Union. When he would return he wouldnt have the sack with him. The total amount of money and gold that left Richmond with Davis is unknown. Named after one president, Thomas Jefferson, he went on to marry the daughter of another, Zachary Taylor. La Bellone didnt make it and sank near the entrance to Mobile Bay near Dauphin Island. The story of this lost treasure dates back to 1540 when the Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto was in this part of the New World. During the autumn of 1862, the mint turned $40,000 in gold and silver from New Orleans, Louisiana, into bars for shipment to Augusta. Bill Kirby has reported, photographed and commented on life in Augusta and Georgiafor 45 years. Finders Keepers filed a federal lawsuit against the Justice Department over its failure to produce documents on the FBI's search for the legendary gold, which took place nearly four years ago at a remote woodland site in northwestern Pennsylvania. But, the first story sounds very familiar with a post I put on Treasure Legends-"swamp gold." If you are venturing on to State or Federal lands. Instead of Liverpool, Semple eventually got as far as Nassau, after hiding out in the Okefenokee Swamp along the Georgia-Florida border for months. Some of the Confederate treasures reportedly buried in light of Union take over were: $30 Million in gold buried outside of Savannah, Georgia, a hub of minting, trading, and gold mining before it fell to Union forces. He returned to relative obscurity in his native Virginia, near where he was born in New Kent County, and turned his attention to earning a living. Have fun in your search for Alabama treasure. And peoples imaginations take over from there.. Here we go! Mr. Sharps became rich after owning the mill. He landed in a swamp and drowned because he couldnt swim. Visit here for more information on State laws regarding relic hunting, treasure hunting, and artifacts. 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. And peoples imaginations take over from there.. He came to Alabama in 1815 and set up a ferry for crossing the Perdido River that has banks of the Alabama and Florida side. That didnt happen, however, and it is believed to have been stolen. But when Union officers caught up with Davis on May 10, near Irwinville, Georgia, he was reportedly carrying only a few dollars with him. Check it out today its available on Amazon! De Soto and his army of men some 600 plus came to the Sacred mountain City of the Cherokees. So with no luck finding the treasure he packed up and moved to California. They searched and searched for months coming up empty-handed so the trappers friend gave up and went back to Fort Rosalie. The war, and its various aspects, continues to capture the interest and imagination of many Americans who are fascinated by the battles, leaders, and strategy displayed during that conflict. They tried to get the horses and wagons out of the swampy area but the load was too heavy and the wagons got stuck. Federal soldiers were eventually able to round up some $140,000 of what was taken. Over the course of the next two years, he traveled between the U. S. and Canada in clandestine activities, often using the alias Allen S. James, his travels financed with the Confederate gold. Stories of lost buried treasure hoards capture the imagination and spark the hidden treasure hunter within all of us, who learn about these Legends of Lore. He was very skilled at evading the police. But with 100 acres to cover and now metal detectors back then it was never found. Many posses were formed looking for Railroad Bill. The crew members that survived and made it to shore said there was a million dollars worth of gold and silver aboard. He was worn out, saddened by the devastation that existed in his part of the state, and the difficulty he and his neighbors were having in restoring their lives and properties. The lack of discussion in these books is not surprising. Henrys wife gave in and told the soldiers where one of the wine casks was buried. Dauphin Island held many camps over the centuries including a British army camp, a Spanish army camp, a Federal army camp, and a French army camp. According to Beauregard's biography, "What became of that coin is a mystery. Finders Keepers filed a federal lawsuit against the Justice Department over its failure to produce. Confederate gold refers to hidden caches of gold lost after the American Civil War. My Special Bundle Package of digital books and the links to my TV series is loaded with information that will guide you toward treasures large and small. Late that night, two trains departed Richmond heading south. One treasury clerk in particular, Micajah Clark provided a detailed accounting of the disposition of the funds. In the Civil War-era movie, Gone With the Wind (1939), Rhett Butler, played by Clark Gable, is rumored to have stolen the treasure. He was specific about the state, but Bellview and Booneville are marked as being in Tennessee. With enemy soldiers occupying the town, any effort to dig up the some 160,000 8-reale coins would have certainly been seen. They left Richmond with a bunch of money, and when [Davis group] was captured six weeks later, they didnt have it. There are rumors that caches of coins and silverware are buried on and around the plantation ruins. While they fought the commander detailed a couple of men to hide the gold just in case they lost and were captured. Long story short it is said that Levi Colbert buried some of his savings from the inn and ferry operations in what is now Colbert County Alabama. One account has the gold being stolen in the far south area of Brooks County where local lore has it the train was attacked by . With the Davis party was a navy paymaster, James S. Semple. Davis was arrested on May 10 by members of the 4th Michigan Cavalry. More from us: The Success of George H. Thomas Union Soldiers During the American Civil War. Treasure hunters in the area believe his house was located at the following coordinates: N 3030 38 W 872651 which is close to U.S. Highway 90 bridge that now crosses the Perdido River. Semple was drawn to Julia, and she to him, by circumstances of war and the aftermath. He ended up in prison until the end of the war. The Associated Press contributed to this report. He and his friend decided to head out to recover the treasure. Most importantly, Davis only has a few dollars on him when he was captured, which led to a long-running question: where did all the money and gold go? She had long black hair, gray eyes, and a figure that drew dozens of suitors before she had agreed to marry the president, then 30 years her senior. 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. More information on where and how to research for lost treasures. He didnt even tell his son. [5], George Trenholm, who was Confederate States Secretary of the Treasury for the last year of the Civil War, was arrested after the war and accused of making off with millions in Confederate assets. The coins are buried on city-owned land, and Danville officials, concerned about disturbing graves, continue to refuse all requests to dig, even test holes. It would be a great place to find all kinds of history and relics that might still be strewn about by all those army camps. / CBS/AP. He allowed both sides to use the ferry free of charge in hopes that he would be allowed to continue his ferry operations. The Confederate president and other government officials were urged to leave Richmond immediately to avoid being captured by Union troops. In the 1966Spaghetti Westernmovie "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," the protagonists get information about lost Confederate gold hidden in a grave at a cemetery. 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. It may not display this or other websites correctly. So the treasure has never been found. C.E. They loaded the two boxes of treasure onto two wagons and headed for Columbia. 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. (adsbygoogle=window.adsbygoogle||[]).push({google_ad_client:"ca-pub-0945725028962484",enable_page_level_ads:true}); The contractor detected an underground mass that weighed up to nine tons and had the density of gold, according to an FBI affidavit unsealed last year at the request of news organizations, including The Associated Press. You must log in or register to reply here. Like most Southerners, who strongly believed their cause was right, Semple was ultimately forced to admit that the Confederacy no longer existed and could not be resurrected, that nothing more could be done. Some of the add-ons on this site are powered by. The treasure may be On May 4, after Davis and the few advisers that remained with him made the decision to disband his government, they entrusted some $86,000 of the remaining treasury funds to two Confederate navy officials tasked with smuggling it out of the country to Britain. According to local lore, the gold was lost or stolen during the1863 Battle of Gettysburg. ; Official from Secretary Stanton. Legend of the Lost Confederate Gold. It definitely would be worth taking a metal detector to the beach. The true value of the treasure that left Richmondheld under the guard of Confederate Navy Captain William H. Parker and the young midshipmen in his commandwill likely never be known. They filled two wooden boxes full. So get your picks, shovels, and metal detector ready as we go through the 15 lost treasures of Alabama. An ardent Confederate, Julia had made a difficult decision late in the war to leave Virginia for her mothers home on Staten Island, New York. 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