** Lost Gold At The Dead Man's Mine ** A Miners Journal **

[GhostMiner]

   May 25   1937     Part One

 

   Last night got really cold. I kept hearing branches breaking all around the outside of camp. I got up a few times and shined a light into the trees but saw nothing. We had breakfast and John and I went to work. He took the west side of the rock and I took the east side. The plan was for each of us to dig a trench around the rock and join them making a closed loop. We would go down fifteen feet if need be and then widen the trench from there. We were hoping to find something by the second or third day but there were no guarantees in treasure hunting.

   Now Will and Hudson were acting as guards along with Sarge and Ben. They watched all directions just outside of camp so we could dig without constantly watching our backs. John and I also had our rifles close by. The morning was cold with a north wind and it felt good to be digging. About three feet down I hit a flat stone and bent over to lift it out of the trench. I brushed away the dirt and saw a Spanish cross carved into it. I showed John. He got excited and said we are on top of it. So we both started digging on my side of the rock. About three feet further down we hit another flat stone and it also had a cross carved into the face. The two of us were now digging as fast as we could. About two feet further down was yet again another flat stone. This one had a cross as well as an X inside a circle carved into the face. John said he thought we were getting close.

   TO BE CONTINUED .....................

[dig4gold]

Sounds a bit like "The Curse Of Oak Island" with the different levels having the boards across & then the 90 foot stone.

D4G

[GhostMiner]

4 hours ago, dig4gold said:

Sounds a bit like "The Curse Of Oak Island" with the different levels having the boards across & then the 90 foot stone.

D4G

That show always puts me to sleep lol.

[GhostMiner]

   May 25   1937     Part Two

 

   We continued down another five feet without finding treasure or clues. It was mid afternoon now and we decided to take a break and have some lunch. Our camp here was set up just forty feet from the rock so we could keep an eye on the spot. I took some lunch over to Will and Hudson and Sarge and Ben as well. We all felt like we were sitting on something big here. 

   John and I eventually got back to digging and worked up a good head of steam. We had only dug for about twenty minutes when we hit another stone. This one was double marked with two crosses and two X’s in circles. We set the stone on the ground just outside the trench and kept working. Three feet further down was once again the gruesome sight of human remains. Six skeletons. At this point we slowed the work and began to carefully excavate the bones. We worked at this for two hours and took another break. We had removed everything we could find. After a short break we started to dig down again. We dug until the light began to fade and set up some lanterns for light. Then we heard the familiar sound of the thud of a shovel against dense wood. It was nearly dark now and we tried to widen out the trench a bit to completely uncover the lid. The chest seemed to be much larger than the previous chests we had found. Then John said to have a close look. I held a lantern close to the lid. When I did I could see there was a second lid next to the first. Two treasure chests. John and I were standing on top of the lids. Most likely we were standing on top of a massive fortune of untold wealth.

 

   TO BE CONTINUED ....................

[GhostMiner]

   On Saturday, September 24, I will be posting the real info on how I came to write the journal on Jed Stevens & crew. I will divulge the true story behind the journal. It will tell you what the journal was based on including what Jed really got in the way of gold and how he got it. It will contain information from the actual government report that started this entire journey including how he died and where he is buried. There will be lots of info in this entry for all to read. I am doing this because I feel I owe it to all the faithful readers who have stuck with me on this incredible ride as the journal approaches 200,000 views. This will put to rest some of the speculation but I also must warn you that it opens the door to more mystery. The quest for gold & treasure continues. To the readers here, I thank you. 

[GhostMiner]

  May 25   1937     Part Three 

 

   I looked closely and estimated each chest to be about five feet in length. The width was around three feet and we dug around the sides to determine the depth. After about an hour we determined the depth to be about two feet on one and close to three feet on the other. I told John I was going to round up everyone and to wait for us before he opened them. It took nearly another half hour to get everyone gathered around the trench. No one could believe their eyes. 

   John and I attempted to lift the smaller of the two but it was real heavy and we were afraid the bottom would fall out so John knocked the lock off with a hammer and chisel. The lid creaked as we pried it open. I couldn’t quite make out the contents so I shined the lantern close to the top of the chest. There appeared to be some kind of red and yellow fabric covering the contents. It was old and slightly rotted but John said it was an old flag of some sort. We carefully lifted it out of the chest and there was a second cloth just like the first. We removed that one and our eyes fell upon the contents. Some of the crew started to laugh and some just gasped. John spoke slowly and said this couldn’t possibly be happening to a little rag tag crew like us. I just smiled and started to lift out some of the treasure.

   TO BE CONTINUED ..................

[GhostMiner]

   May 25   1937     Part Four

 

   The top of the chest was filled with jewelry and some kind of yellowed papers. We spread out a blanket and placed them on the surface. I took out handfuls of jewels. Below this level was another red and yellow cloth which I removed. This took me down to approximately the halfway depth of the wooden chest. The rest was filled with small gold bars or bricks and blank gold coins. It was endless. When I finally got to the bottom there was a human skull that sent shivers through me. I felt like we were going to pay a heavy price for uncovering the treasure. Then John broke off the lock to the second chest. I could only wonder what this one held.

   TO BE CONTINUED ................

[GhostMiner]

   May 25   1937     Part Five

 

   We got the lid open and shined the lantern down close into the opening. Once again there was a red and yellow cloth covering the contents. I took it out and placed it on a second blanket the crew had brought over. The chest was layden with more treasure. At the top were emeralds and jewelry. We took the pieces out by the handfuls. Then another red and yellow cloth which we removed. There were crystal and gold skulls beneath it. Then another red and yellow cloth that covered small gold bars.

   When we finished laying everything out we just couldn’t believe our eyes. We had much to look at including some papers with writing we couldn’t quite make out. For a while the entire crew just sat in silence. I don’t think any of us had expected so much treasure and we were stunned. Finally, John spoke. He said that we were all rich beyond our wildest dreams. We were millionaires. All I could think of was what are we going to do with all of this and where will we hide it. 

   John believed it was part of a Spanish treasure that probably came from Mexico. He said it probably had historical significance beyond anything ever found. He also advised everyone to keep quiet about this discovery. We needed to figure out what to do. As we were talking we heard gunfire. It was not far off to the east. Sarge said it sounded like it was coming from the area of the eastern drift mine dig. We had pretty much forgotten all about that area while we were on the treasure hunt. Ben said we needed to send a few people over there to check out what was going on but Sarge said it may be a trap. We may have been watched and what was left of the gang of thugs may be trying to divide us up in order to rob us. We were all standing in a circle around the treasure with our rifles pointed into the dark. 

 

   TO BE CONTINUED ....................

[GhostMiner]

   May 25   1937     Part Six

 

   There was a quick discussion as to what we should do about the gunfire at the eastern drift mine. We decided to stay where we were and spread out in a big circle around camp. We all took cover and sat and watched our perimeter. Our new found treasure was sitting at camp wrapped up in two blankets. This didn’t make us feel too secure about it. I couldn’t help but think back to our visit by the Indian Shaman and what he had warned. I had been in a number of battles out here since last year. When would my number come up? I tried to get these thoughts out of my mind and concentrate on what was at hand - guarding our goods and staying alive. 

   I heard more gunfire up at the drift mine area. Then I heard Sarge holler out for everyone to stay put. If the gang was trying to divide us and get some of us away from guarding the treasure it wasn’t working. They would have to think of something else. 

   TO BE CONTINUED .................