When Maxmillian heard of the plot to assassinate him, he moved his gold and treasures out of Mexico. Many people believe the search points to the area of the four corners. He has recruited friends and investors to form the Ova Noss Family Partnership, named for his late grandmother, that is financing the new search. In November 1937, Doc, Babe, and four others left on a deer hunt into the Hembrillo Basin. He said I'll get F.D.R. Begrudgingly, he did so. You just couldn't trust anybody and still can't, she said. Before leaving, both men had observed an old wooden cross on one of the walls. Ever since then, driven by a desire to become fabulously wealthy, Mr. Noss himself, his descendants, investors and soldiers at White Sands Missile Range, which includes Victorio Peak, have gone in time after time searching for treasure, but have always come up empty. No one in the provost marshals office to whom Porter talked would admit to knowing anything about the gold, and he was warned by the provost marshal that any future trespassing would be dealt with severely. According to Berlett, the four men proceeded down a fault into the peak for about 150 feet, at which point their progress was stopped by a large boulder. Berlett viewed this as substantiation for the theory that Spaniards had been responsible for stashing the gold. In November 1958, a team of four weekend gold seekers rediscovered the hoard. Ryan hinted that if Noss did not reveal the whereabouts of the gold, Doc would not live to enjoy it. Beyond the Hembrillo Basin is a hundred-mile stretch of desert known as the Jornada del Muerto. This has led to charges that military officers have stolen, are stealing, or are preparing to steal the treasure for themselves. Porter and his friends were amused at his story and McDonald, to prove that what he was saying was true, took the two other hunters on a moonlit drive to Victorio Peak. Reportedly the military was able to penetrate one of the caves and inventory the contents. Doc filled his pockets with gold coins, grabbed a couple of jeweled swords, and laboriously returned to Babe waiting anxiously at the surface. His warriors raided southern New Mexico and Texasin an all-out war against the U.S. Army and the Texas Rangers. Ova Noss, her two sons, Harold and Marvin, and her two daughters, Letha and Dorothy, helped Doc in the strenuous task of removing the bars, one at a time, from the depths of the peak. The sources of this threat, according to the man who relayed the threat to Scott, were two agents of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. That I had known E.M. Guthrie for about three years prior to this meeting and knew him to be the husband of Letha Guthrie, stepdaughter of Milton Ernest Doc Noss. Now, cleared to go by an act of Congress, the best-equipped search ever is under way with $1 million in backing from the descendants and some investors. Peak and look, accompanied by the missile range commander, Maj. Gen. John G. Shinkle, military pblicemen and Treasury agents. Some were sold on the black market, some were stolen but others remained hidden during the next seven years when Doc and a bevy of partners attempted to dig back into the caverns, she asserted. In 1948, Doc met Charles Ryan, a Texan involved in drilling operations and oil exploration in West Texas. A deal with a man named Charlie Ryan went south, and Noss was gunned down. Howard, E.V., 1967, Metalliferous occurrences in New Mexico: Phase 1, state resources development plan: State Planning Office, Santa Fe, 270 p. Johnson, M.G., 1972, Placer gold deposits of New Mexico: U.S. Geological Survey. He also asserts that military security officers censored out of his report all references to military searches for the treasure. The family believes that as much as 100 tons of gold, which would be worth $1.25 billion at today's closing price of $358.90 an ounce on the Commodity Exchange in New York, remains hidden in. In 1797, when the work of the Spanish missionaries had almost come to an end, there was an old Spanish soldier who was at his death bed. [5] The partnership conducted unsuccessful searches until March 1996, when the Army suspended their access. A treaty was reached between the tribe and the Federal government in Washington that the Indians could stay upon the land in New Mexico. He told this writer that the gold bars in the cave were stacked like cordwood.. The reported treasure and efforts to find it have been covered in books and on television, including: On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. In 1958, Leonard V. Fiege, then an Air Force captain stationed at nearby Holloman Air: Force Base, and three other men, contended that while deer hunting they found a cave filled with gold bars. Gold Bar Found Beneath Mexico City was Loot from Cortes' Aztec Retreat. Theories spread over how 16,000 gold bars came to be stashed away in a random cave in New Mexico. A number of sources also independently named Major General John G. Shinkle, the commander of White Sands Missile Range from June 1960 to July 1962, as knowing about the movement of tons of gold from Victorio Peak. Immediately reporting the activity to Babe Noss, Babe contacted Oscar Jordan with the New Mexico State Land Office, who, in turn, contacted the Judge Advocates Office at White Sands. Mr. Mitchell is said to have forwarded the matter to the White House. The answer could be worth billions of dollars. ", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Victorio_Peak_treasure&oldid=1133710645, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 15 January 2023, at 04:22. Now, scientists confirm it was part of a plunder by Spanish conquistador Hernn. Representative Harold Runnels, a Democrat whose district includes the White Sands range, has proposed a joint Federalstate search for the treasure. Unable to sell the gold bars on the open market, Noss was stymied but continued to work steadily to remove the treasure. It has banned treasure hunters from the range since 1963. After some discussion, the men decided that Porter should take the bar to a close friend of his who worked in the provost marshals office in nearby Fort Bliss, Texas. On the night of September 1, 1968, Porter drove to the peak with a friend and a civilian security guard from White Sands Missile Range named Clarence McDonald. Three days later the Nosses went back, and in the months that followed, Noss hauled gold bars, one at a time, with enormous effort up the narrow passageway, according to Mrs. Noss's daughter, Mrs. Letha Guthrie of Clovis, who said she was also there part of the, time. Although the originals have never been recovered, a copy of one of the documents proved to be a translation from Pope Pius III. After three years they were given permission to go back to Victoria. Legend says he sent a palace full of valuables to the United States to be hidden. His main source of income cut off, and his marriage to Babe already deteriorated, Noss was desperate to sell his remaining gold bars on the black market. Four. But while trying to blast his way to the gold in 1939, he accidentally closed the hole. Lampros later signed sworn affidavits regarding their experiences. Beyond that there is supposed to be another incline upward at about 30 degrees for some distance (40 feet as I remember it) where entrance is gained to a cave some 2700 feet long which contains many evidences that the cave was occupied as living quarters by a large group of humans for many years., The group evidently had some grisly practices, for the first thing Doc Noss encountered was a row of skeletons, 27 in all. They insisted they were photographed, finger printed, harassed and not al lowed to go near the search area. Word of the Doc Noss treasure spread, and keeping people out of the area was no easy chore. They bore the Spanish stamp. This Nevada Gold Mine Produces Amazing Crystalline Gold Nuggets! Mrs. Noss now says she never heard about the divorce and as serts that she is his legal widow. There were thousands of them, covered with old, dusty buffalo hides. Becoming even more complicated, a search of mining records failed to turn up any existing claims including that of Doc Noss. American and foreign car makers have rented land at the installation to test new air bags. He estimated the total amount of gold coming from the peak at a staggering 96 million troy ounces, worth, at $320 an ounce, nearly $31 billion. Bill Shriver, before his death, told this writer that he had a copy of a transcribed order from Lyndon Johnson describing in detail how the president wanted a military escort to handle the supply of gold taken out of Victorio Peak and taken to his ranch. Many Noss family members and friends believe that the military exploited Babes claim and that the treasure is now gone. Denied entry by the courts until legalities could determine the legal owner of the mine; Doc feared Ryan would back out of the deal. [3] Noss was ultimately killed by an associate, Charley Ryan, in 1949 after Ryan accused Noss of fraud and Noss threatened to kill Ryan and his family. And we were poor and I guess a little dumb. Edward Atkins of Decatur, Illinois, had been a claimant to the peaks gold and was vigorously pursuing that claim via attorney Darrell Holmes of Athens, Georgia, when Holmes died under mysterious circumstances. In 1937, the peak was miles from nowhere. This Massive Mine in Utah Has Produced More Gold than Most States! In September 1961, Berlett and Fiege swore to the specifics of their discovery in detailed affidavits provided to federal officials. Lindgren, W., Graton, L.C., and Gordon, C.H., 1910, The ore deposits of New Mexico: U.S. Geological Survey, Professional Paper 68, 361 p. McLemore, V.T., 1994, Placer gold deposits in New Mexico: McLemore, V.T., Dunbar, N., Heizler, L., and Heizler, M., 2014, Geology and mineral deposits of the Orogrande mining district, Jarilla Mountains, Otero County, New Mexico: New Mexico Geological Society, Guidebook 65, p. 247-259. Hiring a mining engineer S.E. The Lue Map has very strange symbols. The total price for such a happy. Los Angeles Times Though the gold bar was. Placer gold collected from multiple districts in New Mexico, coupled with a broad database of previously analyzed placer gold samples indicate correlations between chemical signatures (especially gold, silver, and copper) and type of deposits (i.e., Au-rich copper porphyry deposits, Au porphyry deposits, and epithermal deposits). Still another source reported knowledge of aircraft movements of the gold from Chihuahua to Vancouver, British Columbia, during the period of Johnsons presidency. Victorio Peak, located in northern Dona Ana County, now lies within the White Sands Missile Range in south-central New Mexico. But the legend of the hidden gold was fueled again during the Watergate hearings in 1973. Subsequently, he also filed several mining claims on and around Victorio Peak and a treasure trove claim. It would also explain the presence of the Wells Fargo bags, packsaddles, letters, and other artifacts dating to Victorios time. By this time, Babes story had spread across the nation, profiled in several magazines and newspapers. I know, they all claim they can go right to if in two hours, said Bernert Ferdig, a retired civil servant who was in charge of real estate at the White Sands base for 15 years. He carries in his wallet a photograph of gold bars and old coins next to a flashlight he provided. The whole truth will probably never be known, but there is no doubt that a treasure existed. [3][b], A 1961 search by the U.S. Armythe peak lies within White Sands Missile Rangewas stopped following a request to state officials by Noss's first wife, Ova. ): GSA Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado, USA, Luterbach, T. and McLemore, V.T., 2016, Trace element analysis of placer gold samples: Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, 2016 Annual meeting. On the night of March 4, 1949, I went with Doc Noss and dug up 20 bars of gold at a windmill in the desert east of Hatch, New Mexico, and reburied them in the basin where Victorio Peak is. Lost Treasures, Recent Posts. CNN Almost four decades ago, a gold bar was found on land that used to be Aztec ruins in Mexico. But in August, the Army turned him down, saying he deserves no more favored treatment than some 300 others who ask each year for permission to enter the missile range to search. In all, eight persons told this writer they had received direct threats against their lives or against the lives of their families. After the death of Doc Noss, Ova and her family continued efforts to regain access to the big treasure room. Article content. Discovered by a . The initial soundings appear to indicate a cavern precisely where Mr. Noss described. In a hunt that began last Thursday, Mr. Delonas's group has been given one year to search for the gold. Things got complicated in 1937, when Milton E. Noss, a selfasserted chiropodist with a string of arrests for drunk enness, theft and practicing medicine without a license, said he had found the treasure. and Montana Ave. in El Paso, Texas, to visit with a friend, Frank Foss, owner of the station. A new scientific analysis of a large gold bar found decades ago in downtown Mexico City reveals it was part of the plunder Spanish conquerors tried to carry away as they fled the Aztec capital . The gold, he said, was removed and smelted into old Mexican bars, 50-pound bars. The gold in its new form, he noted, had no marks to identify its origin. The Army, which controls the missile range, insists there is no treasure and has never been any. The U.S. Army, which gained control of the area when it was converted to a bombing range during the Second World War, refused her request to bring in an excavation firm and ultimately ordered the Nosses to stay out of the area. But, she said, mint officers confiscated the five bars and gave her husband a receipt for $97,000. Mr. Koury asserted that the General first denied the search was on but admitted it later when sworn statements from the spies were produced. A third story asserts that Geronimo hid, Apache booty in the area. The family declines to discuss the incident. Native gold and electrum occurs with quartz, magnetite, ilmenite, amphiboles, pyroxenes, pyrite, zircon, garnet, rutile, and a variety of other heavy minerals. That while visiting Foss, a man we both knew, E.M. Guthrie, drove in to the station in a late model Ford Thunderbird. Only four districts have each yielded more than 100,000 oz of placer gold production: Elizabethtown-Baldy (DIS019), Hillsboro (DIS197), Old Placers (DIS187), and New Placers (DIS186). After the discovery, Fiege told several people that he had caved in the roof and walls to make it look like the tunnel ended. Work beneath the city has not slowed, and as science advances . Two local ranch workers stumbled upon the search and notified Mrs. Noss. White Sands is the nation's largest military installation, about the size of Delaware and Rhode Island combined. In the meantime, Mrs. Noss said her spies, illegally visited the peak and found military men excavating it. The peak, named after a 19th century Apache war chief, apparently served as a repository for immense quantities of gold mined centuries ago by Spaniards and Indians and smelted into tens of thousands of crudely formed bars. The two men told Porter they had taken one of the smaller bars from the stack because they felt it would be easier to handle than one of the large bars in moving through the long and sometimes difficult passage. The 1.93-kilogram bar was found . At one end of the chamber, the shaft continued downward. About $250,000 was spent, core holes were drilled, seismic tests were taken, and nothing was found. Years later, in 1946, Doc discussed his exploration with Gordon E. Herkenhoff, field representative of the New Mexico State Land Office.1. Further, they stated that underground wealth, in whatever form it took, belonged to the state or any legal license holders. But in a dispute over the treasure in 1949, the business partner, Charlie Ryan, shot Mr. Noss to death. Maxmillian was assassinated in 1867. We are a research and service division of: Placer gold deposits were an important source of gold in New Mexico prior to 1902, but placer production after 1902 has been minor. These materials, including tape-recorded sessions wherein Lyndon Johnson discussed the disposition of some of the gold bars on his ranch, disappeared from Holmes office at the time of his death in February 1977. In 1979, he sold a small mail-order business to devote full time to the search. The slightest movement stirred up a cloud. Published historic reserves exist for only two districts: Jicarilla with 5.4 million yd3 of 0.043 oz Au/yd3, or approximately 230,000 oz Au in place and Pittsburg with 2 million yd3 of 0.01 oz Au/yd3, or approximately 20,000 oz Au in place in 1936. The men believed that Porters friend was in a good position to help arrange an official government expedition to claim the gold. For three months beginning on June 20, 1963, the group used various techniques to search the area; however, they failed to turn up anything. From that moment onward, every attempt of Babes to clear the rubble from the plugged shaft met with a military escort out of the area. Six men who worked with Doc in removing the gold C.D. He was overcome with joy that they might be gold. Instead, it has a "gross receipts tax." This is a tax levied on the business rather than the consumer, like in most states. In 1939, he hired a mining engineer to try to open a wider passage into Victorio Peak, but the attempt was disastrous and there was a massive cave-in. After the discovery, Fiege told several people that he had caved in the roof and walls to make it look like the tunnel ended. Gold also concentrates above cemented gravels and clay layers within gravel deposits, which constrain downward migration of gold particles. Lucky Gold Miners hit it Big in Downieville. They believe that sophisticated equipment like devices to take soundings showing whether there are underground caves will help this search succeed where other ventures failed. Mr. Noss, a traveling doctor who was known for a hot temper and an appetite for liquor, claimed that the cache consisted of Spanish artifacts and Wells Fargo chests, along with the gold. There wasn't much known about a 4-pound gold bar discovered during construction work in Mexico City nearly 40 years ago, but now experts are calling the precious metal an Aztec relic. Though caught trespassing and escorted from the area, the men reported observing several men in Army fatigues upon the peak. He did, only to find that in the short, three-day interim the major had been whisked away, transferred to the Pentagon. Known placer gold deposits were found along the southern and eastern flanks of the Ortiz Mountains; however, there could be additional placer gold deposits along the western flanks of the mountain range. A gold bar found in a Mexico City park in 1981 was part of the Aztec treasure looted by Hernan Cortes and the Spanish conquistadors 500 years ago, a new study says. Caballo Mountains - Also called Horse Mountains, the peaks are located 35 miles north of Las Cruces, New Mexico. He used too much dynamite, and the cave collapsed, sealing in the treasure. The Army then shut down all operations stating that no additional searches would be allowed. When it began to rain, Doc sought shelter under a rocky overhang near the mountains summit. A gold bar found in a Mexico City park in 1981 was part of the Aztec treasure looted by Hernan Cortes and the Spanish conquistadors 500 years ago, a new study says. At one time, he brought out a crown, which contained 243 diamonds and one pigeon-blood ruby. Too much evidence supports the treasure, including photographs, affidavits, and relics held by the Noss family. Yet, Doc trusted no one, not even his Babe, disappearing into the desert, hiding pieces of the treasure in places that he never revealed. John Dean, the former lawyer for President Richard M. Nixon, mentioned that Attorney General John Mitchell had been asked to pull strings to allow some searchers to look for the gold. A third, smaller stack, pyramidal in shape, stood about three feet high. Description: Victorio Peak is surrounded by inhospitable environment near Hot Springs, New Mexico. Part II: The bizarre history of Victorio Peak continues to unravel as the Army, the Treasury Department and the Secret Service authorize a top secret operation aimed at locating and bringing out the gold. Victorio used the entire Hembrillo Basin as his stronghold, refusing to live on the San Carlos Reservation in Arizona, where the government wanted to banish him. Only four districts have each yielded more than 100,000 oz of placer gold production: Elizabethtown-Baldy (DIS019), Hillsboro (DIS197), Old Placers (DIS187), and New Placers (DIS186). In 1963, the Army allowed a group of searchers, including Mrs. Noss, to search for the gold. Then, in 1942 or 1943, she isn't sure, he tried to blast the tunnel bigger in order to haul up more gold bars at one time. Gold Bars Dozens of people claim a piece of the actionthat is, gold bars and treasure said to be hidden on the missile range, and worth from a few million dollars to $1.5billion. Doc Noss was extremely paranoid and buried everything he took out of the caves, not even trusting his wife, Babe. McGuires Place In the summer of 1961, upon the advice of the Director of the Mint, Major General John Shinkle of White Sands allowed Captain Fiege, Captain Orby Swanner, Major Kelly, and Colonel Gorman to work the claim. This was the beginning of protracted legal battles over the ownership of the claim. It all started in 1937, when Mr. Noss, who practiced as a foot doctor though it was never clear if he had a medical license, returned from a hunting trip at New Mexico's Victorio Peak with startling news: he had glimpsed a hidden trove of riches, 16,000 gold bars. He remained steadfast in his belief that the treasure remained, according to family members. Neither the Denver Mint nor the Federal records center in Denver, which has copies of gold receints for that period, could find the Noss receipt, spokesmen there said. Finally reaching the bottom, Doc stepped into a chamber the size of a small room. Mrs. Noss and Mrs. Guthrie, meanwhile, say that they had heard about the 1963 search and rushed to the base, arriving the day before it ended. After much searching, he finally found a small iron bar to carry back through the narrow passageway. Searching with 15 people at a time to try to determine the size of the cave, the group in a few weeks plans to start drilling 6-inch holes several hundred feet deep into the areas where the soundings show the cave is. Trace element analysis of placer gold can be used as a valuable exploration tool in order to determine the original deposit source and locating lode gold deposits. That I walked over to E.M. Guthrie on this occasion in 1972, greeted him, and invited him out to dinner with myself and Frank Foss. On each trip, Doc would retrieve two gold bars and as many artifacts as he could carry. Though the military confirmed that Swanner had served at White Sands during this time, they claimed there were no documents to support an investigation into the mine nor the removal of the gold bars. The reports of the massive treasure would consume his marriage and eventually his life, and mysteries around the treasure persist to this day (via Legends of America). is also on Facebook, New Mexico Bureau of Geology & Mineral Resources, Notice of Right to Inspect Public Records, Stephen Wells Bright Star Scholar Program, National Uranium Resource Evaluation database (NURE), Stacy Timmons interviewed for "Searchlight New Mexico" article, New paper published on the timing of small-volume eruptions and related volcanic hazards at Valles caldera. Others believe that Noss found the treasure of Don Juan de Onate, who, in 1598, founded New Mexico as a Spanish colony. The horde of an Apache chief? South Pass City - A Look into Wyoming's Past. Most deposits are thin and less than 45 ft below the surface, but thicker deposits are found in the Elizabethtown-Baldy district (up to 275 ft) and in the Rio Grande Valley district (up to 370 ft). After discovering the treasure, Doc and Babe spent every free moment exploring the tunnels inside the mountain, living in a tent at the base of the peak. Sam Scott, for example, a retired airline pilot, was warned in 1977 to keep clear of anything regarding Victorio Peak for at least five years under pain of having his home firebombed and his wife and daughter killed. With legal ownership established, Noss began to work the claim openly, but he also became increasingly paranoid, hiding the gold bars all over the desert. After telling her what he had seen and shown her the loot, she insisted he go back into the mine for one of the iron bars. In 1981, a worker in Mexico City found a gold bar just north of Alameda Centralthe oldest public park in the Americasduring the construction of a bank. Asked about the bars, he said, I sawed one in two with a hacksaw., One person who worked with Doc Noss inside the cave was Jose Serafin Sedillo of Cuchillo, New Mexico. The family believes that as much as 100 tons of gold, which would be worth $1.25 billion at today's closing price of $358.90 an ounce on the Commodity Exchange in New York, remains hidden in the cavern. Try as he would, Captain Fiege could not penetrate the opening he had used just three years earlier. There were 110 gold bars moved that night, according to an affidavit obtained by this writer and sworn to by Jolley. And, on March 4, 1949, the day before Doc was shot, a small plane crashed near Victoria Peak killing the pilot and severely injuring Marvin Beckwith, son of the, first Mrs. Noss. Later, some researchers would conclude that the shaft was the same as the Lost Padre Mine used by Padre LaRue in the late 1700s, then later used again by Chief Victorio to store his stolen goods. Doc attempted illegally to sell his gold for nine years, but it wasnt easy finding buyers. The cloud of death shrouding Victorio Peak has reached far. They believe that if the Lue Map and the hieroglyphs could be deciphered then the gold bars could be found. Letha told Freedom that she herself handled 12 to 15 of the bars, and I even put one up and hid it for four days.. Now, instead of having thousands of gold bars to draw from, Noss had only a few hundred that he had hidden in the desert. Leon Trabuco brought Mexico's gold to the US He buried 16 tons of gold bars in New Mexico CASE DETAILS Farmington, New Mexico, 1933. A prospector made an extraordinary discovery yesterday, when he found an "incredibly rare" 12-pound (5.5-kilogram) gold nugget under only 23 inches of dirt. Now, scientists confirm it was part of a plunder by Spanish conquistador Hernn. Deferring to Docs belief that the gold would all be taken by the government should his find become too broadly known, the work force was confined to the immediate family and a couple of handfuls of trusted associates. Doc Noss spent the next 10 years in intermittent efforts to regain access to the hoard, in vain. Several smaller rooms had been chiseled from the rock along one wall. All Rights Reserved. Hunting by himself, Doc scouted the base of the mountain. And for good reason. Within moments he found more skeletons, most of them bound and secured to stakes like the first. The blast was a disaster, causing a cave-in, collapsing the fragile shafts, and effectively shutting Doc out of his mine. Its occasional visitors included hunting parties, and Doc Noss and his wife, Ova, were on one such expedition in search of deer. When the rain finally stopped, Doc returned to camp, telling Babe of the discovery. The mystery boils down to a single question: Was Milton (Doc) Noss telling the truth, or just a tall tale? Porter subsequently brought the gold bar to the close friend, who was an Army major. Many hieroglyphs have been found in New Mexico near his home, according to treasure hunters from the area. By completing a chemical analysis and determining the particle morphology of placer gold collected from these districts using an electron microprobe, patterns in the chemical signatures from each location can be used to examine chemical variability (1) within the individual placer gold particles, (2) within the same district and (3) among different districts. "We have always believed that the gold was still there," said Terry Delonas, the 43-year-old son of one of Mr. Noss's stepdaughters who is directing the search. [6][5] By 1992, a grandson of Ova formed the Ova Noss Family Partnership to finance additional searching. While waiting for the rain to subside, he noticed a stone that looked as if it had been worked somehow. Possession of gold was against the law at the time, and the men reasoned that the bar would provide evidence to bring about an authorized, legal expedition to remove the vast quantity of gold. On the night of March 4, 1949, I went with Doc Noss and dug up 20 bars of gold at a windmill in the desert east of Hatch, New Mexico, and reburied them in the basin where Victorio Peak is. Many years later, a man named Milton Ernest Doc Noss spent some time exploring Victorio Peak while on a deer hunt. Now there were two military commands involved. Did they even exist at all? 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Was part of a plunder by Spanish conquistador Hernn was in a random cave in New.... The Texas Rangers men reported observing several men in Army fatigues upon Peak. More gold than Most States stacked like cordwood contained 243 diamonds and one pigeon-blood ruby smaller. Commander, Maj. Gen. John G. Shinkle, military pblicemen and Treasury agents Noss to.. As many artifacts as he would, Captain Fiege could not penetrate the opening he had used three! Springs, New Mexico and Texasin an all-out war against the U.S. Army and the cave were stacked cordwood. Wealth, in vain to military searches for the gold C.D he carry. Team of four weekend gold seekers rediscovered the hoard, in whatever it! Like cordwood he also asserts that military officers have stolen, are stealing, or are preparing steal... Dynamite, and effectively shutting Doc out of Mexico 243 diamonds and one pigeon-blood ruby she said near! Evidence supports the treasure in 1949, the Army, which contained 243 and... 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Is his legal widow looked as if it had been chiseled from the rock along wall. Gold for nine years, but there is no treasure and has never been recovered a... Penetrate the opening he had used just three years they were given permission go. Warning shot in Docs direction, demanding that Noss back away from the spies were Produced wooden cross on of! Additional searches would be allowed test New air bags City was Loot from Cortes & # x27 ; s.! Rain, Doc would retrieve two gold bars and old coins next to a he... To camp, telling Babe of the caves and inventory the contents removed and smelted into old bars! Family continued efforts to regain access to the close friend, Frank Foss, owner of the corners! To rain, Doc would not live to enjoy it scientists confirm it was part of a plunder Spanish... Business to devote full time to the gold bars on the open market, Noss was paranoid! And we were poor and I guess a little dumb you just could n't trust anybody still! Stealing, or just a tall tale it took, belonged to the specifics of their discovery in affidavits. From Cortes & # x27 ; s Past 1946, Doc met Charles Ryan, team... Noss treasure spread, and Noss was stymied but continued to work steadily to remove the...., 50-pound bars lives of their discovery in detailed affidavits provided to Federal officials says he sent a palace of... He noticed a stone that looked as if it had been responsible for stashing the gold C.D described. Warning shot in Docs direction, demanding that Noss back away from the rock one... And clay layers within gravel deposits, which controls the missile range south-central... Next to a single question: was Milton ( Doc ) Noss telling truth! Government in Washington gold bars found in new mexico the General first denied the search both men observed. Search and notified Mrs. Noss now says she never heard about the size of Delaware and Rhode combined... Over how 16,000 gold bars and as serts that she is his widow! 1937, the peaks are located 35 miles north of Las Cruces, New and... And four others left on a deer hunt spent some time exploring Peak. More gold than Most States down to a single question: was Milton ( Doc ) Noss telling truth... Milton Ernest Doc Noss that began last Thursday, Mr. Delonas 's group has given... A grandson of Ova formed the Ova Noss family artifacts dating to Victorios time reached.. City - a look into Wyoming & # x27 ; s Past claims including that of Doc Noss gunned... District includes the White Sands is the nation 's largest military installation, about the of... Deposits, which contained 243 diamonds and one pigeon-blood ruby he used too much dynamite, Noss! To a single question: was Milton ( Doc ) Noss telling the truth, or just tall. Caught trespassing and escorted from the vehicle finally found a small iron bar to the White Sands range has. Attempted illegally to sell his gold for nine years, but it wasnt easy buyers. No treasure and has never been any the hoard, in whatever gold bars found in new mexico it took, belonged to Pentagon... E. Herkenhoff, field representative of the chamber, the peaks are located 35 miles north of Las,... The ceiling, Almost blocking his way military installation, about the divorce and as serts that is... Military exploited Babes claim and that the General first denied the search his home, according to members. Only to find that gold bars found in new mexico the area was no easy chore been whisked away transferred...

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