MINING LEGENDS

Objective: To enrich and expand study of natural resources with literature and history.
A Few Facts
The first documented discovery of gold in the United States was made by
12-year-old Conrad Reed in 1799 while shooting fish with a bow and arrow
in a North Carolina stream. Because gold was unknown in this part of the
country, the boy's father kept the piece for several years and used it as a
doorstop. In 1802, it was properly identified by a jeweller as gold.
Gold was mined in the U.S. prior to the Revolutionary War, but
authentication of those discoveries is still missing. Some regions of Arizona
have been mined for more than 600 years. The fabled Seven Cities of Cibola
directed Spanish exploration of the New World in the 1500's.
The discovery of gold lured thousands of people to the American
Frontier, and these prospectors settled the West and Canada.
The first authenticated U.S. gold rush was in Georgia in 1828, (though
many believe that the lure of gold in Georgia did not create a true gold rush).
The famous California Gold Rush began in 1849; it was followed by
e
Student Pag Colorado in 1859, South Dakota in 1874, Alaska in 1898 and Nevada in
1902.

Read More About It! • Gold is weighed in Troy ounces: 1 pound avoirdupois = 14.58 Troy oz.
Check out these children's books for • Gold content in jewelry and other applications is measured in karats.
your class: 1 karat = 1⁄24th part. 24k is pure gold; 18k is 18 parts gold and 6 parts
• Gold!… by Milton Meltzer; Scho- other metals. Most gold jewelry is 14k gold.
lastic
• One Earth (A National Audubon Se-
ries) by Ron Hirschi; Bantam Classroom Experience
Doubleday Dell Discuss the term "legend." What is fact? What is fiction?
• Klondike Fever by Michael Cooper; Working alone or in groups, students can create their own treasure maps based
Clarion on various myths, legends and books. By exchanging maps, they may locate
• White Fang and Call of the Wild, by the well-known treasure from the map and clues provided.
Jack London; Macmillan Children's
Book Group Dig A Little Deeper
• Robert Service Series and Yukon Po- • Research other mining legends or legends of the Old West.
ems by Robert Service; Putnam • To recreate the emotion of the California Gold Rush, pan
Publishing Group for gold in your own classroom. Special classroom pan-
A teacher reference: ning kits are available from MII.
• A Pictorial History of American • Write the legend of your classroom, or have students
Mining by Howard and Lucille create their own legends and share them if they wish.
Sloane; Crown Publishing • Every state has legends of buried treasure or lost wealth
waiting to be rediscovered. Research your local treasure.
Integrating the Curriculum
1. How long is the course in the Iditerod race? How many miles per hour did the most recent winner average?
2. The Egyptians used a great deal of gold. Where did they find it? How was it mined? How much does the gold
sarcophagus of King Tut weigh?
3. Why is there a Russian influence in Alaska?
4. What is the basis weight for Troy weight? (12 ounces = 1 pound) Why is it called Troy? How many Troy ounces
does each student weigh?
5. Secure a street map of your community and locate the origin of its street names. Were they named for any important
historical events, places or people?
6. Form several groups and have each select a decade of your state’s history to research and present to the class.

Mineral Information Institute Denver, Colorado www.mii.org 19

 Treasure Map
The secret map to the GOLD of the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine, in the Superstition Mountains of Arizona

Weaver's Superstition
Needle Mountains

Listen to the Legend of the

Lost Dutchman Gold Mine
Military
Trail below and see if you can find the
true location of the richest
natural gold mine in the
hidden face
arroyo Wiser's Trail American Frontier.
high
cliffs to
Phoenix
Wagoner Map
S Wagoner's mapped trail to the
ledge of rose quartz bonanza
cave
E W ore which he found in the Cover Before copying
Teacher's Note
north-south Superstitions
canyon N cover before copying
three
S Teacher's Note
red LOST DUTCHMAN
Students will not be
hills MINE Students will not be able to
TRAILS
able to find many clues
find many clues at all that
E W at all thatthem
will to
lead
will lead thethem
mine.
Whitlow's
to the mine. That's
That's why it is still lost. why
it is still
the lost.
––

Ranch N
Whitlow Have students use the
– – – – – ––

Canyon symbols Havebelow the students

to create
useown
their the treasure
symbolsmaps.
below
to create their own
–

––
treasure maps.
––
––––––

Frazer Canyon
Red ?
–– ––

Tank Picacho
Canyon Butte
Randolph
x Howland Ore The Dutchman's
––

Canyon
––

x– –
––

– –– lost mine map, modernized

– –––– ––
–– –– –– ––
to show the location clues
LaBarge Canyon To Phoenix
about which he told, and
Wiser's Trail.

TRAVELING SIGNS DIRECTION SIGNS

Trail or line to treasure may Trail to treasure; Mines or mineral nearby ORO Gold nearby
designate landmark Travel on
Mine in region below In a tunnel
Trail to mine or treasure; Trail to treasure or mine
Travel on Other signs further on In a shaft or cave Fifty varas away

Travel on to next sign on a Any pointing dog or horse Treasure on this side Treasure on opposite side
trail to wealth indicates the direction
Toward treasure or mine Treasure divided as shown
Travel to triangle marked out Travel around a bend from a
by trees or rocks marked out triangle E 3 Stop or turnabout Travel opposite direction
Change directions Turnabout

LOCATION SIGNS
Treasure here Treasure under
Wealth under Mineral here
Pointing out wealth Church treasures below
Mine location In or near (locator dot)
Pointing out treasure Pointing toward treasures Mineral below a marked out triangle

i
21
Mineral Information Institute Denver, Colorado www.mii.org 20
THE LEGEND OF THE LOST DUTCHMAN
America’s Most Famous Gold Mine
Back in the Superstitions,

T
he Lost Dutchman Gold Mine, still hidden in the
Superstition Mountains east of Phoenix, Arizona, the Dutchman had gathered up
has it all—fabulous wealth, Spanish treasure maps, his first sack of fabulous ore and
Apaches, claim jumping and murders, including mysterious gone to Florence, where word of his
20th Century deaths and disappearances. strike spread like wildfire. There he
450 years ago, Coronado searched the area for the Seven squandered his gold in an uproarious
Golden Cities of Cibola, the legendary wealth of earlier manner and regaled everyone who
civilizations of the Indian and Mexican empires. For centuries, would listen with expansive tales of
the Apaches watched as foreign men brought invading hordes old Spanish workings and unbeliev-
in search of gold in the mountains that were their god—the able amounts of gold. But of its
Superstition Mountains. location—ah, that was the secret
worth a king’s ransom!
In the winter of 1847-48 the Apaches began to attack in
earnest; and when all foreigners had been destroyed, the Walz vanished from Florence as abruptly as he
medicine men holding solemn council upon the matter stated had appeared. Then, weeks later, he turned up again with
that, should foreigners come again to disturb the gods, the more of his fantastic ore, but this time in Phoenix for another
Apaches might be “forever cursed by storms and floods and drunken spree. He told even wilder tales than before of his
all manner of the natural disasters which angry deities could bonanza, which promptly whipped the little village into such
contrive.” So it was decreed that a band of thirty squaws and a frenzy that practically every able-bodied man there made
two youths would be sent back into the Superstitions to cover immediate and secret preparations to follow the Dutchman.
the mines and destroy all traces of the fabulous workings. However, Walz was no fool, drunk or sober. He vanished
suddenly one night, dragging a blanket behind him to wipe
And there in the mountains this work party labored for out his trail.
one full moon, throwing ore and hastily abandoned tools back
into the shafts. Then they covered the mines with stout logs, A few weeks later, he reappeared. This time after his
which in turn were covered with the natural caliche cement usual spree, the Dutchman, upon leaving town, not only found
that hardens into rock. Over this they placed in cunning Indian a stampede-sized crowd waiting to follow but saw that many
fashion yet another covering of dirt and surface stones to more were already camped out upon the desert hoping to
match the surrounding ground. intercept him. After that, he continuously changed his course.
His tracks often ended abruptly, as though he had sprouted
In 1871, with the help of old Spanish treasure maps, Jacob wings and flown off.
Walz, “The Dutchman” and his partner, Wiser, were
prospecting the Needles Canyon area of the Superstitions Shortly afterward, he appeared in Tucson with two burro-
looking for lost Spanish gold. Both were well known loads of ore. It was there it was discovered that Walz had
throughout Arizona as “thorough-going scoundrels, capable never recorded his claim, meaning anyone who found it could
of most anything.” At the unmistakable sound of hammering own it. By this time everyone in Arizona was convinced the
by miners, Walz grabbed his .45-90 Sharpes, and Wiser his Dutchman was secretly working a hidden bonanza. In fact,
.45-70 Springfield, and they proceeded to ambush two miners there could have been no doubt of it in the face of his well-
(Jacobs and Ludi) near Weaver’s Needle. Jacobs and Ludi, known ore sales and continued production of the same
both mortally wounded, fled with Ludi dying soon. Jacobs fabulous ore for more than six years.
stumbling on alone, finally reached Andy Starr’s cabin in the In Phoenix, he rented a plot of ground and an adobe hut
desert, where he collapsed in Starr’s arms, babbling wildly near Henshaw Road and 16th Street and settled down at last
about Spanish-mapped mines and hidden ambushers before to a life of ease and the prosaic pastime of raising chickens
he, too, died. and wine grapes. There he guarded his secret with all the
Meanwhile, Walz and Wiser were examining the mine in delighted perversity of a child who knows something but
a veritable frenzy of activity, for the fantastic ore was almost won’t quite tell it.
a third solid yellow gold. And, thought the Dutchman, Whenever he needed money for himself or for his small
wouldn’t that ill-gotten wealth be worth twice as much to group of friends (who were in frequent need), he simply went
one of them alone? The Sharpes fired again, and Wiser was into his backyard to a certain spot, but different each time,
left to die in the mine. However, Wiser, like the miners before and dug up a tin can containing gold dust and nuggets. He
him, was able to crawl from the mine and, when found did that for the next 14 years, until he died on February 22,
delirious in the desert by friendly Pima Indians, was taken to 1891.
Col. Walker’s ranch near Florence. There for days Wiser The Dutchman gave numerous clues, and even drew
hovered between life and death, telling his incredible story of maps, as to the site of his now legendary mine, and more than
murder, bonanza gold and greedy treachery before he, too, a dozen have died trying to find it. The clues and maps are
died. readily available, but America’s most famed lost gold mine is
Source: Thunder Gods Gold, by Barry Storm still lost.

Mineral Information Institute Denver, Colorado www.mii.org 21

 The First Authenticated Gold Discovery in America
1799
There is no doubt that gold mining occurred in "America" before the country was founded, but authentic
records of discovery cannot be found. Therefore, the generally accepted first gold discovery is credited to the
seventeen-pound nugget found by 12-year-old Conrad Reed in Cabarrus County, North Carolina in 1799.
According to Historical Sketches of North Carolina 1584 to 1851, by John H. Wheeler:

T
he first piece of gold found at the mine was Mr. Reed to leave the metal with him and said he
in the year 1799, by Conrad Reed, a boy of would flux it. Mr. Reed left it, and returned in a
about twelve years old, a son of John Reed, short time, and on his return the jeweller showed
the proprietor. The discovery was made in an ac- him a large bar of gold, six or eight inches long.
cidental manner. The boy above named, in com- The jeweller then asked Mr. Reed what he would
pany with a sister and younger brother, went to a take for the bar. Mr. Reed, not knowing the value of
small stream, called Meadow Creek, on a Sabbath gold, thought he would ask a "big price" and so he
day, while their parents were at church, for the pur- asked three dollars and fifty cents ($3.50)! The jew-
pose of shooting fish with bow and arrow, and while eller paid him his price.
engaged along the bank of the creek, Conrad
After returning
saw a yellow sub-
home, Mr. Reed ex-
stance shining in
amined and found
the water. He went
gold in the surface
in and picked it up,
along the creek. He
and found it to be
then associated
some kind of metal,
Frederick Kisor,
and carried it
James Love, and
home. Mr. Reed
Martin Phifer with
examined it, but
himself, and in the
gold was unknown
year 1803, they
in this part of the
found a piece of gold
country at that
in the branch that
time, he did not
weighted twenty-
know what kind of
eight pounds. Nu-
metal it was: the
merous pieces were
piece was about the
found at this mine
size of a small
weighting from six-
smoothing iron.
teen pounds down to
Mr. Reed car- the smallest par-
ried the piece of ticles. The whole
metal to Concord, surface along the creek for nearly a mile was very
and showed it to a William Atkinson, a silversmith, rich in gold.
but he not thinking of gold, was unable to say what
The veins of this mine were discovered in the
kind of metal it was.
year 1831. They yielded a large quantity of gold.
Mr. Reed kept the piece for several years on The veins are flint and quartz.
his house floor, to lay against the door to keep it
I do certify that the foregoing is a true statement
from shutting. In the year 1802, he went to market
of the discovery and history of this mine, as given
to Fayetteville, and carried the piece of metal with
by John Reed and his son Conrad Reed, now both
him, and on showing it to a jeweller, the jeweller
dead.
immediately told him it was gold, and requested
George Barnhardt January, 1848

Mineral Information Institute Denver, Colorado www.mii.org 22