The first episode premiered on Tuesday November 17 at 10PM EST on the History Channel. When I was seven years old, we were at Athens Scuba Park owned by Calvin Wilcher and he was the one who told me the story, Roper explained.We were sitting in this dive store and Calvin just says, Hey, have you heard the story of pirate treasure in East Texas? At seven years old Im just going to find that extremely interesting. Hendricks Lake near Tatum is now off limits to the public because it is on land owned by a mining company. Abilene Reporter-News, June 24, 1958. Connecting the legend to peoples minds now so it doesnt die out, I think is important, Pinkerton asserted. It certainly had promise since it was a round piece of wood, like the legend of the wagon sunk in the lake. Spanish silver stolen by the privateer, Jean Lafitte. Texas oilmen. Host Mattie Blake and local movie maker Christian B. Roper (see Sunken Silver) led a team conducting underwater searching. The men, in fear of Spanish retaliation, are said to have hidden the wagons in a nearby body of water. There's no wonder it took 17 years to scour the ocean floor for this ship's treasure- a treasure lost in 1622 off the Keys. So where is it? We Found Out Archaeologists on Easter Island Have Discovered a Previously Unknown Moai Statue Buried in a Dried-Out Lake Bed Christie's Pulled In $202 Million at Its 20th/21st-Century Sales in . Aug. 6, 2015 9:51 AM PT. He also noted there were a handful of other treasure legends that were nearly the same but with a different location or body of water and no specific piece of evidence regarding the Hendricks Lake silver on which he can hang his hat., When asked what he hopes Sunken Silver will accomplish, he answered just to tell the story.. To make this film a reality, we are seeking donors to help us meet our minimum budget goal. Some tough local lawmen. 149 0 obj A team of treasure hunters could be on the verge of unearthing the "world's largest treasure hoard," said to be worth over $20 billion. Pictured from left, Gary Pinkerton, Brackson McKnight and Christian Roper. There are two legends in particular that seem to have found purchase in the minds of East Texas treasure hunters. Many believe the body of water concealing the silver to be Hendricks Lake near Tatum, although other places have also been examined. 2018 Sunken Silver. Ho-hum, right? 159 0 obj Or Black Lake. Little Cypress Creek, north of Gilmer, is the site where legend says a cache of Mexican coinage was dumped, according to A Brief History of Upshur County a history book published in 1946. 1. During 1957 and 1958 the most significant attempts to locate the treasure took place at the lake. Hendricks Lake was the sight of many treasure hunts over the course of the 20th century. 0000010052 00000 n Texas is full of buried bootyor, to be a bit more accurate, full of stories about buried booty that no one has been able to find. A few of the Cherokees were accompanied by agents of the Mexican government who had promised a lot of money to the tribe if they were able to drive out the Texans. Id met his daughter, who when she was 12, they let her push the plunger on the dynamite to blow up the bottom of the lake.. Overtime, Roper believes that this information was interpreted to mean that there was treasure in Hendricks Lake. Read More about Jean Laffites treasure in the Sabine River, USS Hatteras (formerly St. Mary) was a 1,126-ton steamer purchased by the Union Navy during the early part of the American Civil War. Oxbow lakes result from a river's course change, in this case the Sabine River just to thc north. He built a new kind of sewing machine, and in 1851 he started I.M. Its hard to find any newspaper before that, but thats the first and oldest mention that I found of it, he said. Building on that production they are airing a new 8-episode series titled "Beyond Oak Island" premiering Tuesday, November 17 at 9:00 pm central. In Texas, the Laffites founded a pirate colony named Campeche. Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) Winds light and variable.. To him it is the Chase and the history. The story was reporting the fact that Tatum beat a man to death who essentially made fun of that effort, Pinkerton said. We had not even known that he had heard of the treasure. hunt presented by Christian, Rick and Marty offer to send Matty Blake down to Beyond Oak Island Episode 2 Summary: Wild West Gold and the Search at Robbers Roost Canyon for Butch Cassidys Lost Treasure, All can be found to have a questing theme within them, Third Annual Masquerade Tribute of Hunts for Charity, The Second Annual Masquerade Tribute Wrap Up, Privacy Policy, Disclaimer and Affiliate Disclosure. Barnie Waldrop of carthage was one of the more persistent treasure hunters. . 0000000756 00000 n Hendrick's Lake treasure is focus of Houston historian's upcoming book, By Stella Wieser Fort Pierce. After sitting undisturbed for more than 10 years, a treasure chest holding gold nuggets and precious gems has been found in the Rocky Mountains. Pinkerton spent time in Carthage recently talking to those with accounts of some of the treasure hunters, and he hopes to connect with more people who have Hendricks Lake stories to tell. And if so is the treasure still there? <>/Border[0 0 0]/Contents(www.easttexashistorical.org)/Rect[308.5376 282.2367 447.0903 295.1273]/StructParent 4/Subtype/Link/Type/Annot>> When researching Trammels Trace for my last book, I encountered the treasure legend of Hendricks Lake. Over the years there have been many who made a minimal effort or spent a little time at the lake only to discover that the conditions were too difficult and they had neither the time nor the money for such an undertaking. 151 0 obj Many came to the lake to drain, dredge, dig, dynamite and scan its murky depths. Having already written a book on Trammels Trace, a road running through Tatum which he noted was the first road to Texas from the north, Pinkerton is now embarking on a journey to research the people and the reasons for the treasure hunting extravaganza for an upcoming book. During her time at the Watchman, she enjoyed writing features about businesses and local events. Some fishermen in the last century pulled several silver bars from those very waters with a hoop net. Jupiter Island. A man named Nathan Smith thinks he's found the remnants of a sunken ship from an 1822 hurricane north of Corpus Christi - thanks to Google Earth. . The location was later widely believed to be Hendricks Lake, an oxbow lake formation on the south side of the Sabine River. For more information about this incredible project and to see a short film trailer, go to their website at www.sunkensilver.com. No one's found the Spanish silver cache, but some treasure seekers in this area have struck gold-or gemstones, as the case may be. The story goes that Union soldiers tracked down Confederate president Jefferson Davis in 1865 and confiscated his gold. In attempting to honor what he perceives to be Fenn's wishes . 147 0 obj hb```E@9Z9:sj*5)o(Hd`8iQ^gFMJNvZ7he);Ndx8uy}xc;Mt0u410[t0v4t40t40Zt00L@,E@`E,AsE^X/q5tDX4C#{ (Image credit: Pictorial Press Ltd./Alamy) British . Some of the (alleged) lost treasures in Pennsylvania worth researching are ones like: $30,000 worth of gold coins said to be King George ll's Lost Plunder. The silver was never recovered. Visibility is nil, so it is a touchy situation. Charles Fitzhugh Grice had the technology needed to find Spanish silver if the treasure was there. Christian Roper and Brackston McKnight, film makers. The dig, which employed 39 Zuni workmen, was conducted from 1917 through 1921 and in 1923, and uncovered approximately 25,000 artifacts as well as human remains. . Hendricks Lake is a special place for Roper. Sometime around 1816,six wagon loads of Spanish silver ingots, allegedly stolen by the pirate Jean Laffite, were being transported through what is now East Texas. Error! Laffite approached them and was granted a commission and given command over a 43-ton schooner named General Santander. Skip Hollandsworth specializes in long-form narratives. e d u / e t h j / v o l 4 7 / i s s 2 / 1 0)/Rect[128.1963 131.7406 353.4453 143.4594]/StructParent 9/Subtype/Link/Type/Annot>> 4. https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/hendricks-lake. Low 47F. February 2023 Reader Quiz: What Did You Learn? In an interview with KETK, Pinkerton discussed the treasure, or lack thereof, at Hendricks Lake. 150 0 obj endobj On an 1863 map of the area, it was named Flanagan Lake but since the 1880s has been known by its present name. Jos R. Ralat is Texas Monthlys taco editor, writing about tacos and Mexican food. Legend remains victorious in spite of history and it just attests to the power that legends have over people when the facts may not necessarily support something, Pinkerton said. On his website, Fenn wrote, "It was under a. Somebody made fun of him; he clubbed the guy to death. And if so is the treasure still there? An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. including dialogue . This is the place where six wagon loads of silver stolen by Jean Lafitte from a ship called the Santa Rosa were supposedly dumped, according to HendricksLake.com, a website run by author and independent researcher, Gary L. Pinkerton. Sorry, there are no recent results for popular articles. The oilmen then built a raft with a hole in the center and sank large pipes into the goop on the lake bottom. Believed the treasure was in Martin Creek after meeting old Mexicans with a map when he was just a boy. Boise County - Near the Nevada state line at Rye Flats, a shipment of newly-minted gold coins . In 1912 it was like a big resort, come out and fish and real flowery language (in advertisements).. endobj However, all have failed in finding the supposed cache of silver, adding to speculation that the supposed treasure may be cursed. 156 0 obj He is the primary antagonist of season one of National Treasure: Edge of History. Omoa was the site of the largest Spanish fort in Central America, a fort constructed to safeguard the Spanish silver shipments from the mines of Tegucigalpa in Honduras. Tales of pirate booty and Mexican gold have captivated minds for generations, and it all could be closer than you might think. If you change your mind, you can easily unsubscribe. In the 1950s, the Sabine River and the nearby lake (Hendricks Lake) experienced a new onslaught of treasure seekers when the story of Laffites silver was published by the True West magazine. All they found was a big sawblade from one of the sawmills that had operated on the lake; they left the artifact behind for future treasure hunters. and the story of the Hendricks Lake treasure is no different. Barnie was a TV repair man, and he had built this underwater metal detector, like the size of a washing machine. We organized some strategic searches via dives doing grid patterns and things of that sort to try to get those up.. In the early 1820s, Great Colombia under the government of Simon Bolivar had begun commissioning former privateers as officers in their newly formed navy. Historian Gary Pinkerton says the legend is mostly unsubstantiated. Roper believes that the Little Cypress Creek story and the Hendricks Lake story may have a common heritage. ingots were in transport, but the Spanish had set a trap. According to the legend, the Cherokee were fleeing north after the Battle of Neches when Roper said their path crossed Little Cypress Creek on the property of a man named OHendrick. Fort Worth Daily Gazette, October 3, 1884. People from Texas, Louisiana, Iowa, Michigan, Mississippi, Wisconsin, Kentucky, California, and even England wanted to find that treasure. TYLER, Texas (KETK) Legends of buried treasure have fascinated people around the world since time immemorial. But theres just been this very persistent legend, and so in the late 50s, mid 60s, there were two really big efforts (to locate the treasure), tons of articles in the Watchman about these two different groups searching for it, dredging.. Both were the surnames of early settlers in the vicinity. This same engineer, only two years earlier, had led the team who located the Tecumseh, a Union metalclad ship sunk during the battle of Mobile Bay in August 1864. If you fill out the first name, last name, or agree to terms fields, you will NOT be added to the newsletter list. TREASURE HUNTER CLAIMS FBI IS COVERING UP DISCOVERY OF CIVIL WAR-ERA GOLD WORTH MILLIONS "The two vessels separated after the impact, both fatally damaged. 0000017011 00000 n Markers are dropped, and divers are sent down. And an MIT-trained electrical engineer who held a patent for underwater metal detection. He frequently returned to Galveston or the barrier islands near New Orleans to unload booty or take on supplies procured by Pierre. We need your support because we are a non-profit organization that relies upon contributions from our community in order to record and preserve the history of our state. At the age of 25, Jean Laffite was living in New Orleans, operating a warehouse essential to dispersing the goods smuggled by his brother Pierre. Lived at the lake, rented boats to people who wanted to fish. (All you English teachers out there, stop making fun of me for using the what is now known as phrase two sentences in a row.) endobj [150 0 R 151 0 R 152 0 R 153 0 R 154 0 R 155 0 R 156 0 R 157 0 R 158 0 R 159 0 R] 0000003470 00000 n Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos. Roper himself had first heard the legend when he was a young boy and has returned to it intermittently throughout his life. Stories like this, its what created a filmmaker in myself, its what creates archeologists, its what creates people that come up with plans to conquer whatever they want to solve in life, its just a special place.. Hotspots would include the many watercourses through the area and gravel arroyos northeast of Boise, near Idaho City. The Lost Padre Mine Somewhere in the Franklin Mountains overlooking the Rio Grande River in El Paso County is the Lost Padre Mine. We met with Gary and it was very strange because he was working on this book at the same time we were working on this film and it had been decades since anyone had ever shown any interest in Hendricks Lake.. Thats the one thing we all agree on about Sunken Silver, is that legend is a very powerful thing.. That was the story.. wooden object recovered during dive for the taping On the episode, diver Alex Wilcher brought up the one item found during the days spent searching. accessed March 05, 2023, Just another myth? Charles F. Grice, Interview by Gary Pinkerton, February 2019. There are two legends in particular that seem to have found purchase in the minds of East Texas treasure hunters. True Believers: Treasure Hunters at Hendricks Lake. Most of the cobs or old Spanish finds I've seen on the forum are either from Florida or the Upper East Cost. The people who believed the legend enough to pursue it were a diverse lot. At that time, the legend was that Mexican land pirates lived along the lake and dumped gold, silver, and precious stones in the lake when they were attacked by the Texans or some other forces. Tatum reportedly built a device with buckets on a conveyor and operated by steam engines to attempt to bail the water from the lake. Soldiers approach, wagons sunk in Hendricks Lake, an oxbow lake just south of the Sabine River in northeastern Rusk County. The July 17, 1958 edition of the Panola Watchman includes this update on a search for Jean LaFittes treasure at Hendricks Lake near Tatum. down. Jensen Beach. Two oilmen from Texas actually brought a giant crane to the lake after getting some interesting readings from the bottom of Hendricks Lake. But if you dont like that version of the legend there are others. Hendricks Lake is an oxbow lake one and one-half miles south of the Sabine River and about four miles northeast of Tatum in Rusk County, Texas (32.371864N, 94.493190W). George Mallory's lost camera. His book, True Believers: Treasure Hunters at Hendricks Lake, focused on the variety of people and their attempts to discover the fabled hidden silver and was released this past April. Ive actually been at this project about 14 months now. In 1909 members of the United States Geological Survey visited the site, which they described as being unproductive. Despite this, no silver bars were found. He was now legally authorized by Great Colombia to take Spanish ships. The stolen loot was smuggled north some years later but ended up in Lake. Legends live on! From the first searches in the 1880s to the large scale efforts of the 1950s and 1960s, its story has . Did the infamous privateer Jean Laffite steal a $2 million fortune in silver from a Spanish galleon and bury it in the Sabine River near the East Texas town Sabine? Pinkerton is an enigmatic figure. (In English documents, his last name was often spelled Lafitte, but Laffite was the spelling used by Jean and his brother Pierre.). When he got on board is when things started getting fairly serious.. Lets be honest, everybody loves a good treasure story. "You're a liability, Sebastian" Hendricks[src] Agent D. Hendricks is an FBI agent and the leader of Cras Est Nostrum. A nearby lake fed by the Sabine River also caught their attention, since the silver might have been transported there by the current. Lr !_) They know its there. Hendricks is an oxbow lake near where Rusk, Harrison, and Panola coun ties meet a few miles north ofTatum,Texas. Fearing an ambush by Native Americans, they then decided to hide the treasure by pushing it into the muddy waters of the Sabine River. Gary L. Pinkerton is an author and independent researcher. Pinkerton went on to describe how there have been dozens of expeditions and attempts to find buried treasure between Hendricks Lake and the Sabine River. Drained Lake Delhi Revealed Some Treasures: One scavenger found 50 antiques, three rings and an old radio in the mud of this lake in Iowa. Kuna, ID hosted by Treasure Valley Disc Golf. In 2005, Agent Hendricks was a young FBI agent who was aware . Although they attended different universities, Roper reconnected with high school friends Brackston McKnight and Ryan Travis and the three now work together on the project. The brothers meet with a Christian Roper who is actively hunting for the lost treasure of the pirate, Jean Lafitte. Every dollar helps. 0000001730 00000 n They say this inspired them to reach out to other treasure hunters and hear their stories. 154 0 obj He shows Rick and Marty the 1957 One group proposed to use a new divining rod activated with isotopes. There are people who spend their whole lives and considerable sums of money searching for sunken treasure ships, lost mines, and hidden loot. 0000017195 00000 n To view perks for contributors or to make a donation towards completion of the film, visit www.gofundme.com/sunkensilver. In Gretna in 1960, across the river from New Orleans, a large number of gold coins were found in an area frequented by Lafitte and his men .According to another story, Laffite buried a large cache on an unnamed island in Lake Borgne. Contacts. The popularity of treasure hunting during this time period was profiled in numerous pulp magazines and news features, and the business of supplying treasure hunters was page one news in the Wall Street Journal. <>/Border[0 0 0]/Contents()/Rect[493.2393 594.2333 540.0 607.124]/StructParent 3/Subtype/Link/Type/Annot>> He had heard about the Trace from his dad as a portion of it runs through family land. Hits are sounded off. 3 talking about this. Seagoville pharmacist who was the diver that planted dynamite on the bottom of Hendricks Lake. \Dy@tw sde!F@D}@10 4c/ This warrants some underwater metal detectors to be taken Off the shores of Nova Scotia is Oak Island, a place where unimaginable riches (or absolutely nothing) can supposedly be found at the bottom of a money pit that has eluded treasure seekers for centuries.Originally, the money pit was found in 1795 by a teenager named Daniel McGinnis who claimed he saw mysterious lights coming from the island, and upon investigating, found a small circular hole .

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