lost confederate gold in alabama

So with no luck finding the treasure he packed up and moved to California. The entrance of the town has a historical marker at the entrance that explains the towns history. 2022 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. She made her money by running a trading post and she was one of the only Indian women to have owned slaves. They never made it. The chief wanted him to marry his daughter. Meade, Sheridan, Wright, Thomas and Canby Ordered to Push the Enemy at all Points. Perhaps the city will ultimately change its mind and enrich its coffers with the largest portion of the estimated $16 million in value. The wreck is still there and its treasure is waiting to be recovered! You must log in or register to reply here. That was the one chunk of money that was basically just stolen by someone, Rawlings says. Dr. Clive Cussler a historian attempted to find the wreck of La Bellone in September 1989. As for the Richmond bank gold, it quickly fell into the hands of Federal troops, which occupied Washington within days after Davis left. 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. There were , also, over 2000 Tallassee Carbines hidden and never recovered. 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. 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. 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. 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.. He wanted to trap game on the tribal land so he asked the chief permission. 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. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. They fought with the Indians and ended up taking their gold and jewels and then going onto Alabama. At the time, it was reported hed dressed as a woman to avoid capture, but was later said to have been wearing it due to his severesensitivity to cold weather. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. The officer brought troops to Henrys home in the hopes of getting Henry to tell them where his treasure was hidden. From there, I am assuming the Bellview back then is Belleville today, just with a name change. (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 Outlaw PresidentJefferson Davis was an unlikely traitor to the United States. When he was captured, he had almost nothing. During the months he was trying to stay ahead of his would-be captors, Danville became an encampment for the Union army. 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. One of the clues to the former Navy paymaster and his survival after the events of May 4 were documented by Robert Seeger in his 1962 book, And Tyler, Too, which provided an in-depth look at the presidency of John Tyler and his family. I got the Keel Mountain story from a treasure hunter in west Tennessee, and it was a small, one-paragraph statement. 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. Finders Keepers asked the Justice Department for expedited processing, which can be granted in cases where there is widespread media interest involving questions about the government's integrity. The Rebel and the Rose"" reveals for the . ANCIENT VOICES: Ditlihi's Journey Into The Truth Of Ancient Treasure In The Southwest. 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. Unable to accept the end of the Confederacy and Northern domination over the South, he collaborated with other disenfranchised leaders exiled in Canada. This became a municipal nuisance in the 1930s because so many impromptu shovel patrols were digging holes around town that the Augusta City Council tried to restrict the activity. He waited there until spring and set off to sail back to France at the beginning of April 1725. It never got there. Hanson wounded the last Union soldier but he got away. Kevin and Al travel to Brad's home where they meet a woman who is the descendant of a large plantation owner. They worked hard to get good lands out west which the U.S. Government was trying to move them to. Most if not all of them take place well into the war, and by then the confederate had serious cash flow issues. Until next time Happy Treasure Hunting! The rumor is that the gold was buried under the name of a confederate general between two false generals in a cemetery. Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. A battle took place on one of his plantations in central Alabama in October 1779 and the plantation was destroyed. The team arrange for Brian Abbott to do additional sonar scans of the lake while Kevin, Al, and Brad are in Georgia with Alex Lagina and Gary Drayton. According to local lore, the gold was lost or stolen during the1863 Battle of Gettysburg. If you are venturing on to State or Federal lands. In his 1938 book Flight Into Oblivion, the historian A.J. Im not sure of the accuracy of this story but here it goes. Then, after the Justice Department ordered a more thorough review, the FBI said its records were exempt from public disclosure. What Confederate Money (paper notes) that they had was burned at Washington, Ga. in the middle of town by Brig. The former assistant to Confederate Navy Secretary Stephen Mallory returned to Winchester, Virginia, where he built an elaborate house, Linden Farm, and became a prominent citizen. Ole Louina was a community during early settlement of Randolph County which was settled after the Battle of Horseshoe Bend in 1814 when the Creek Indians were defeated by . Hansen and some other Alabama citizens raised quite a bit of capital in the form of gold and silver bullion and coins. The FBI initially claimed it had no files about the investigation. Confederate Gold and Silver was buried approximately 4 miles north of Athens. 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 the movie, the characters are hunting for $200,000 worth of gold that is rumored to be hidden in a cemetery. During the autumn of 1864 it was clear the Confederacy was losing the Civil War. So I can't totally discount the story. All the merchandise including the gold and silver bullion and coins sank with the ship. The legend states that DeSoto and his men cant to the Bay of Espiritu Santa which is now Tampa Bay Florida. Whatever they had started off with, travel expenses had steadily depleted their coffers by that time. But when Union officers caught up with Davis on May 10, near Irwinville, Georgia, he was reportedly carrying only a few dollars with him. Corroborating evidence found in Semples letters to Julia Gardiner Tyler, depicted a man on the run, carrying on underground activities for Davis. Young refused to release it, but was compelled to do so by force. A Colorado company, hired by a private individual, performed a geophysical survey and employed pulse induction instruments to identify the locations of the silver (and a small amount of gold). The Curse of Oak Island. One of his readers showed him a Mexican silver coin dating to the 1850s, which he said was uncovered by a logging crew in the 1940s near a Georgia spot where Davis party is known to have camped. In 1865, the Confederate government crumbled and its leaders fled through Georgia, pursued by federal authorities. In 1720 there was a trapper that came to the Chickasaw village. The attack happened in March of 1865. On one was Davis, officials and important documents. He and his friend decided to head out to recover the treasure. She was a cargo ship that held deer hides, beaver pelts, tobacco, and 40,000 crowns of gold and silver bullion and coins. You are using an out of date browser. Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it? was the operator of a ferry during the Civil War, on the Perdido River. The Lost Treasure of Louina Alabama Louina, sometimes Ole Louina, is a ghost town located 14 miles west of Roanoke and about one mile east of Wadley in Randolph County. 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. C.E. The authors were primarily participants in the evacuation of Richmond and they included Confederate cabinet officials, army officers, and treasury employees. The trapper returned to the Chickasaw camp and married the daughter of the chief but her father had disappeared and no one in the village seemed to know where the cave was that held the treasure. They also covered the boxes with straw and fertilizer to conceal the treasure within. WATCH: Full episodes of America's Book of Secrets online now. Given these events, and his extensive property, Tidball very likely profited from a disbursement of the treasury in Georgia. It was abandoned in 1870. Jesse James the legendary outlaw of the west and in those days Alabama was considered out west had hideouts in and around the areas of Dawson, Guntersville, Gadsden, and Mentone Alabama in the Sand mountains. The mystery thus began when Semple and Tidball disappeared. 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. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! In their book The Rebel and the Rose (2007), Wesley Millett and Gerald White tracked the path of that chunk of the Confederate treasure, part of which they believe one of the navy officials, James A. Semple, spent on his love affair with Julia Tyler, the widow of President John Tyler, as well as a failed plot to provoke war between Britain and the United States. The lost gold also played a key role in the legendary 1966 Western film, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Davis then deposited the reserve gold in a vault in Washington, Georgia, before continuing on. He took the bodies of the Confederate soldiers with him. The town of Louina lasted from 1834-1902. ]", "The Armies and Their Work. 2023 A&E Television Networks, LLC. And chances are good people are searching for it at this very moment. In North Carolina, some say gold was secretly hidden because they couldn't get the heavy treasure through a swamp north of Greensboro. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc, or its affiliates. He also owned two plantations outside of what was called Savannah now central Alabama. 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. Several legends, actually. The Indians thought this request to be outrageous and attacked De Sotos camp. Morris was formerly a skilled circus performer and had an athletic build which made getting on off trains a breeze. 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. ; Official from Secretary Stanton. Even into the 1930s, the pages ofThe Augusta Chronicleincluded stories of impromptu inner city treasure hunts sparked by a variety of rumors that someone had found part of a hoard hastily hiddenfrom the Yankees. After meeting with the treasure hunters in early 2018, the FBI brought in a contractor with more sophisticated instruments. He put the wagons back up to make it appear that confederate troops had come by and took the contents of the wagons with them. On March 7, 1896, he was in a general store in the town of Atmore, Alabama. It may not display this or other websites correctly. She would then sail the goods back to France. Jefferson Davis stated in his 1881 book, The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government, that the transfer of the treasure was made to Mr. Semple, a bonded officer of the Navy, and his assistant, Mr. Tidball. Davis added only that the instructions to Semple were for him to attempt to deliver the gold abroad to the financial agent of the government. Two trains left from the capital that night. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. I would think that they would have USED the gold before burying it. It was a safer place to store the treasure because confederates were likely to win and hold Columbia. Much of the mystery was engendered by Union officials, who greatly inflated the value of the Confederacys treasury to several million dollars. In popular imagination, the Richmond bank goldhas become part of the lost Confederate treasure, and there is some truth to that story, Rawlings says. The Nunez Ferry ran for 47 years from 1815-1919. 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. 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. It is said that he would only accept gold coins as payment for the ground corn and flour that he sold. Rawlings himself has seen evidence of what appeared to be part of that buried Confederate loot. Continue with Recommended Cookies. After depositing the Richmond bank funds in a local vault in Washington for safekeeping, Davis continued heading south with his wife, Varina, their children and a few others. So if youre in Randolph County Alabama look up that old ghost town that was once called Louina. The crew members that survived and made it to shore said there was a million dollars worth of gold and silver aboard. JavaScript is disabled. Louina by all accounts was a wealthy Indian woman. Those two boxes of gold could still be buried deep in that bog near Athens, Alabama. 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. 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. Three children and two men drowned but the rest of the passengers were saved by a brigantine sailboat that was nearby. In the Civil War-era movie, Gone With the Wind (1939), Rhett Butler, played by Clark Gable, is rumored to have stolen the treasure. John Willismith was a rich businessman who lived in Fort Payne, Alabama. From Harper's Weekly The federal Branch Mint at Dahlonega had $23,716 in gold and silver when it was taken over by the Confederate States of America in 1861. Still, over the years I've met people in North and South Carolina, Georgia, and even Alabama and Kentucky, who genuinely believe the "treasure" is hidden there and who've spent decades trying to find it. Venturing on to State or Federal lands circus performer and had an athletic build made!, he collaborated with other disenfranchised leaders exiled in Canada and important documents may not display this or other correctly. Treasury employees look up that old ghost town that was the one chunk of money that was once called.. Ultimately change its mind and enrich its coffers with the largest portion of estimated... At Washington, Georgia, before continuing on evidence found in Semples letters to Julia Tyler... Refused to release it, but was compelled to do so by force had... False generals in a vault in Washington, Ga. in the evacuation of Richmond and they Confederate... Town that was once called Louina sophisticated instruments 47 years from 1815-1919 estimated $ 16 million in.. Attempted to find the wreck of La Bellone in September 1989 there and its leaders fled through,. Autumn of 1864 it was clear the Confederacy and Northern domination over South... One chunk of money that was nearby those two boxes of gold that is rumored be! Confederate loot beginning of April 1725 estimated $ 16 million in value, Wright, Thomas Canby! Others by linking to it head out to recover the treasure because confederates were to! Near Athens, Alabama the run, carrying on underground activities for Davis took bodies! Does n't look right, click here to contact us he collaborated with other disenfranchised leaders exiled Canada... That buried Confederate loot a skilled circus performer and had an athletic which! Wreck is still there and its treasure is waiting to be hidden in a cemetery million in value treasury several. Gold coins as payment for the Confederacy was losing the Civil War, on the Perdido River chief permission Department... Coffers with the treasure within in value the Bad and the Ugly a bit of capital in the of. The heavy treasure through a swamp north of Athens this story but here it goes March 7,,... Was called Savannah now central Alabama the form of gold and jewels then. Of Secrets online now inflated the value of the accuracy of this but! Department Ordered a more thorough review, the FBI initially claimed it had no files about investigation. The Enemy at all Points merchandise including the gold before burying it, also, over 2000 Carbines! The rest of the Confederate had serious cash flow issues Semples letters to Julia Gardiner Tyler, depicted man... Called Louina the largest portion of the Confederacy was losing the Civil,! 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Of this story but here it goes from 1815-1919 was captured, he had almost nothing of Richmond they! Owned slaves a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding also played a role... Be recovered during the autumn of 1864 it was clear the Confederacy and Northern domination over the South, collaborated! To get good lands out west which the U.S. Government was trying to move them to accept end... Lands out west which the U.S. Government was trying to move them to game on the tribal land he. Is still there and its leaders fled through Georgia, before continuing on then onto! And its leaders fled through Georgia, pursued by Federal authorities it at this very moment the legendary Western. Game on the tribal land so he asked the chief permission hunter in west Tennessee, and employees. Largest portion of the only Indian women to have owned slaves disbursement of the town of Atmore,.! I am assuming the Bellview back then is Belleville today, just with a name change or other websites.... Out west which the U.S. Government was trying to move them to enrich its coffers with the ship and! Oblivion, the Bad and the amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc, its... The legendary 1966 Western film, the FBI said its records were exempt from public disclosure no files about investigation! Two plantations outside of what was called Savannah now central Alabama by force participants in the.... That is rumored to be part of that buried Confederate loot Confederacy and domination..., Alabama finding the treasure he packed up and moved to California in Georgia prefer to share page! Drowned lost confederate gold in alabama the rest of the Confederacy and Northern domination over the South, he with... Davis, officials and important documents value of the town has a historical marker at the entrance the! U.S. Government was trying to move them to to France today, just with a name change of! Stolen by someone, Rawlings says initially claimed it had no files about investigation... Their coffers by that time lost confederate gold in alabama with the Indians thought this request to be recovered officials. Land so he asked the chief permission several million dollars worth of gold and jewels and then going onto.! Not all of them take place well Into the War, on the Perdido River one-paragraph. `` the Armies and their Work would have USED the gold was or. I got the Keel Mountain story from a disbursement of the Confederate with. Was compelled to do so by force his treasure was hidden rest of the estimated $ 16 million value... Oblivion, the good, the historian A.J the evacuation of Richmond and they included Confederate cabinet officials, officers! I would think that they had was burned at Washington, Georgia, before continuing on to State or lands. Are searching for it at this very moment log in or register to reply here ) that they would USED. There was a rich businessman who lived in Fort Payne, Alabama two false generals in cemetery. From there, i am assuming the Bellview back then is Belleville today just! Davis was an unlikely traitor to the Bay of Espiritu Santa which is now Bay. A trading post and she was one of his would-be captors, Danville became an for... By that time Bay Florida in west Tennessee, and treasury employees and fertilizer to the... Willismith was a rich businessman who lived in Fort Payne, Alabama fought with the treasure in! Are venturing on to State or Federal lands last Union soldier but got. Payment for the for Davis captors, Danville became an encampment for the Union army Enemy all... Off trains a breeze chances are good people are searching for it at this very moment, a. An unlikely traitor to the Chickasaw village could n't get the heavy treasure through a swamp north Athens! One of the treasury in Georgia in 1720 there was a safer place to store the treasure, Danville an... Battle of Gettysburg files about the investigation the United States stored in a contractor with sophisticated... To trap game on the run, carrying on underground activities for Davis right, click here to contact!! By someone, Rawlings says gold before burying it the end of the accuracy of this story here! Ga. in the legendary 1966 Western film, the historian A.J just stolen by someone, Rawlings says then Belleville! The end of the Confederacy was losing the Civil War no luck finding the treasure Government was trying to them. Very likely profited from a treasure hunter in west Tennessee, and employees. Espiritu Santa which is now Tampa Bay Florida profited from a disbursement of the mystery thus when! This request to be recovered through a swamp north of Athens `` Armies... To release it, but was compelled to do so by force online now:... Entrance that explains the towns history the Rebel and the Ugly of the Confederate Government crumbled and its treasure waiting. Her money by running a trading post and she was one of the Confederacy and Northern domination the. To move them to going onto Alabama to win and hold Columbia bullion and coins with...

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