Rocky Mountain Prospectors &

Treasure Hunters Newsletter

The News
v. 19, n. 12 December 2015

Going for the Gold

Visit RMPTH On The Internet At http://rmpth.com

Contents
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12
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19

2015 Christmas Party

About The News
Winter Preparations And Alternatives
Lenborough Silver Coin Hoard
Declared Treasure
Find Of The Month Winners
Shop Tool Definitions
Colorado Mountain Memories
Calendar of Events
Calendars
Wreck Of Steamer Lost In 1862
Storm
Bounce Is Not Just For The
Dryer
Trading Post
More Colorado Treasures Just
Waiting to Be Found
2015 Schedule of Events
Contact List

All Aboard for the

RMPTH Christmas Party and
Find of the Year Program
Wednesday, December 2, 2015
Note Special Start Time: 6:00 PM

Dinner at 6:30 PM Sharp!

This will be a pot luck dinner, so please bring

your favorite meal item to share. Coffee and
soft drinks provided by the club. Paper plates
and plastic ware will also be provided.

See you at the RMPTH Xmas Fandango!

Merry Christmas and

Happy Holiday Season
It is to be regretted that the rich and powerful too
often bend the acts of government to their selfish
purposes.
- Andrew Jackson

May the bottom of your pan be

covered with gold and may gold coins
appear under your detector coil.

About The News

he News is the official newsletter of the Rocky
Mountain Prospectors and Treasure Hunters
Club (RMPTH): our mailing address is 278
Sierra Vista Drive, Fort Collins, CO. 80524.

Opinions expressed in The News are those of the

authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the
club or its members. Publication of information in
The News constitutes no guarantee of accuracy. Use
of any information found in this publication is at the
sole risk of the user. Neither RMPTH, nor its coordinators, nor The News, nor its editors or contributors
assume any liability for damages resulting from use
of information in this publication.
Submissions
Articles, letters and short items of interest on prospecting, detecting and treasure hunting topics are
welcome and encouraged. All items submitted for
publication are subject to editing. Submittals for publication may be made in writing or, preferably, in ASCII text format on IBM-compatible disk. If you have
questions about a submission, please contact the editor for information.

Advertising
Classified advertising for topic related items is free
for non-business ads. See the Trading Post section
for donation pricing of camera-ready display ads. Donations for ad makeup from sketches, etc., are available on request.
About RMPTH
RMPTH is an independent nonprofit hobbyist social
club, open to anyone interested in prospecting, detecting or treasure hunting. Its purpose is to provide an
educational and social forum of mutual benefit for
members. RMPTH holds a monthly meeting and conducts various field outings, as well as offers special
presentations and seminars. Active participants have
voting privileges. The monthly newsletter, The News,
is readily available on the Internet. Annual dues are
$25 payable in June. Applicants joining in any month
other than June pay partial dues of $2 per month for
months remaining prior to following June plus $1.

Copyright
Unless otherwise noted, other nonprofit groups
may reprint or quote from any articles appearing in
The News without prior permission, provided that
proper author and publication credits are given and
that a copy of the publication in which the article appears is sent at no cost to RMPTH at the above mailing address. Clubs wishing to exchange newsletters
with RMPTH are invited to send a copy of their newsletter together with an exchange request.

CLUB MEMBERS TAKE NOTE

Club Hats, Shirts, Jackets, & Patches are again available.
Ask for info at the club meetings to purchase your club items!
We will be running a 50/50 Drawing at each club meeting. At the end of each
meeting Tom will split the pot 50/50 and a lucky member will go home with more
money than they came with.!
The remaining 50% goes to the club treasury.
Page 2

The News, December 2015

Winter Preparations
And Alternatives
By Andrew Miller

ts wintertime and youre thinking, What am I going

to do all winter? There are a lot of things you can do
during the winter as a detectorist, and in this article,
we will discuss many of those things. Before we get into
the things we can do as a detectorist during the winter
months, we will first take a look at winter preparations for
your metal detector and
gear.
PREPARATIONS
Remove batteries from detector
Clean and store detector indoors
Clean your tools
Clean your detecting bag
Neatly replace tools in bag once they are dry
Remove coil cover (prior to cleaning)
Wash gloves, rags, etc
ALTERNATIVES
Research sites for next spring
Get permissions lined up
Sort your finds
Clean your finds
Properly store your finds
Clean your finds containers
Coin Roll Hunt (buy rolls of coins and search them for
goodies)
Log your finds (database and/or hardcopy)
Frequent forums
Stay connected to groups
These are just some things you can do during the winter
months to keep you busy. Be creative and you will come
up with a variety of ways to prevent yourself from becoming
idle.
Disclaimer: By no means is this a complete list of preparations and alternatives, It is only the authors opinions
and ideas.

The News, December 2015

Lenborough Silver Coin

Hoard Declared
Treasure
17:13 Thursday 05 November 2015
by Tom Burton
tom.burton@jpress.co.uk

T
Gaol.

he rare hoard of Anglo Saxon coins, believed

to be worth 1 million, has been declared
treasure and may soon be displayed at the Old

The discovery of 5,000 silver coins, near Lenborough,

is said to be the biggest hoard in modern times.
Treasure hunter Paul Coleman, 60, stumbled on the
11th Century coins in December, assuming his metal
detector had found another manhole.
But perfectly preserved and featuring the faces of Anglo Saxon kings, the coins were found in a lead
bucket two feet underground.
Archeologist Brett Thorn from Bucks County Museum
hopes to house the hoard once it has been valued in
the New Year.
And he thinks pledges from residents will ensure the
coins can be displayed locally. He said: The British
Museum are fully behind it coming to us.
It would then be split and displayed at the Old Gaol in
Buckingham, MK Museum and at the county museum
in Aylesbury.
Weve already had 10,000 in pledges and the more
people who sign up, the more it shows bigger charities
that theres strong local support for the hoard.
Mr Thorn said the hoard was either on its way to a
mint in Buckingham to be melted down and re-cast or
it is family savings, built up over 20 years.
He explained that one of the coins - an Agnus Dei containing a lamb and flag- could be unique because it
was printed with the wrong back by mistake.

Page 3

Find of the Month

Winners
November, 2015

Most Valuable Coin:

Tom Marschall - 1920 Mercury
Dime
Oldest Coin:
Tom Warne - 1868 Shield
Nickel
Largest Raw Gold: Mike Noll Clear Creek Gold
Most Raw Gold: Mike Noll Clear Creek Gold
Best Bottle: Tim Coatman - Antique Cream Bottle
Best Jewelry:
Tom Coatman Silver Ring
Most Unique Find (Excavated):
Tom Warne Saddle Horn
Most Unique Find (NonExcavated):
Betsy Emond Antique Italian
Framed Image of young girl
praying
Rock, Gem, Mineral & Fossil:
Mike Noll - Petrified Wood
Nice Finds!

In January (on a date to be

announced) we will hold a
planning session to decide on
events for the coming year. Plan
to attend and share your ideas!
Gold Glossary
Pack train - Pack trains were used to transport the bare necessities to miners and loggers in the 19th century. They usually consisted of 5 or more horses or mules and a
few men.

TREASURE HUNTERS
CODE OF ETHICS

I WILL respect private property and do no treasure

hunting without the owner's permission.
I WILL fill all excavations.
I WILL appreciate and protect our heritage of natural
resources, wildlife, and private property.
I WILL use thoughtfulness, consideration, and courtesy
at all times.
I WILL build fires in designated or safe places only.
I WILL leave gates as found.
I WILL remove and properly dispose of any trash that I
find.
I WILL NOT litter.
I WILL NOT destroy property, buildings, or what is left
of ghost towns and deserted structures.
I WILL NOT tamper with signs, structural facilities, or
equipment.

Page 4

The News, December 2015

Shop Tool Definitions

KIL SAW :
A portable cutting tool used to make boards too
short.

BELT SANDER :
An electric sanding tool commonly used to convert minor touch-up jobs into major refinishing jobs.
WIRE WHEEL :
Cleans paint off bolts and then throws them somewhere under the workbench with the speed of light.
Also removes fingerprints and hard-earned calluses
from fingers in about the time it takes you to say, 'Oh
****' . Will easily wind a tee shirt off your back.

Mineral Specimen Identification

As part of their community outreach, Metropolitan State
College of Denver, Dep. of Earth & Atmospheric
Science, Professional Services Division offers FREE
MINERAL SPECIMEN IDENTIFICATION. Participants
will aid in the education of future Geoscientists!
Details and specimen submittal forms with instructions
can be downloaded
from:
SPECIAL OFFER FREE MINERAL SPECIMEN
http://college.earthscienceeducation.net/MINPET/
MINID.pdf

DRILL PRESS :
A tall upright machine useful for suddenly snatching
flat metal bar stock out of your hands so that it
smacks you in the chest and flings your beer across
the room, denting the freshly-painted project which
you had carefully set in the corner where nothing could
get to it.
CHANNEL LOCKS:
Used to partially round off bolt heads. Sometimes used
in the creation of blood-blisters.
HACKSAW :
One of a family of cutting tools built on the Ouija board
principle. It transforms human energy into a crooked,
unpredictable motion, and the more you attempt to
influence its course, the more dismal your future becomes.
VISE-GRIPS :
Generally used after Channel Locks to completely
round off bolt heads. If nothing else is available, they
can also be used to transfer intense welding heat to the
palm of your hand.
OXYACETYLENE TORCH :
Used almost entirely for igniting various flammable
objects in your shop and creating a fire. Also handy for
igniting the grease inside the wheel hub out of which
you want to remove a bearing race.
TABLE SAW :
A large stationary power tool commonly used to launch
wood projectiles for testing wall integrity. Very effective
for digit removal!
HYDRAULIC FLOOR JACK :
Used for lowering an automobile to the ground after

Property Wanted
For Detector Hunt
RMPTH is looking for private property on which to hold
an organized club detector hunt. Obviously, it would be
most ideal if this property is known to have seen some
past historical activity. If you have such property or
know of someone who does, please contact Rick
Mattingly to plan a club field outing event.

(Continued on page 9)

The News, December 2015

Page 5

Colorado Mountain
Memories
by Steven Wade Veatch

lently turned the school on its foundation.

This was not the only strange occurrence that happened
at the school. Several cows wandered into town one day
looking for salt to lick; instead of salt they found some
unattended dynamite and ate that it must have tasted
really good.

Unfortunately, the cows then wandered over by the

schoolhouse where they bloated up and died scaring the
students. I can imagine the Giggey brothers looking out
of the schoolhouse window at this sight.

He was among a group of young men who were determined to make a new life, fortune, and future in the
American West.

George Leon Giggey finished what he thought was

enough school, and decided to remain in this beautiful
land of dark pines and blue sky. In 1881 he married
Nancy Chambers, who grew up in the nearby Gold Hill
Mining District. She was one of the first children born in
Gold Hill.

hile headed for the California Gold Rush of

1849, George Giggey (who was my greatgreatgrandfather) first made his way through
the mountainous and untamed wilderness of what would
later become Colorado.

After working in the California goldfields he turned his

attention to Colorado, where he prospected for gold for a
while and then returned to the East.
In 1865 George Giggey returned to Colorado with his
family of ten children and built a homestead in the wilderness near what would become, in just a few years, the
town of Caribou. The town developed around the Caribou silver mine that was discovered by Sam Conger in
1868.
George Lytle, one of Congers partners, was from British
Columbia and named the mine after his caribou hunting
trips in Canada.
By 1870 the Caribou Mine was in full production and
was shipping ore down Coon Trail to the nearby settlement of Nederland for processing.
By 1872 the frontier town of Caribou built a much
needed schoolhouse. Three of George Giggeys boys attended Caribous first school session: They were George
Leon (my greatgrandfather) who was 14 years old; Adelbert, age 7; and Charley who was only 6 years old. I can
feel the boys excitement when they took their seats in
the oneroom schoolhouse with new furniture, blackboards, maps, globes, and a new teacherMiss Hannah
Spaulding.
During the winter of that first school year in 1872, Caribous children braved fierce winter storms to school.
Brutal winter blizzards and high snowdrifts made this
the first and last winter session of school in Caribou.
From that time forward, school was held only in the
summer months. A miner once told Miss Spaulding that
he did not know how long winter lasts in Caribou because he had only been there three years!
To help the schoolhouse resist the powerful winds that
constantly blew at Caribous high elevation, an entire
years supply of fire wood was stacked neatly against the
east side of the building, with long poles propped up
against the same end for added support. Although this
worked against the angry Caribou winds, the town did
not plan for a range bull that wandered over one summer day to the school and knocked down a support pole
while scratching its back. Without the pole supporting
the schoolhouse, a violent gust of wind raised and vioPage 6

Life was not easy in the mining camps, and mortality

was high. Nancy died in 1894. Soon George Leon Giggey
fell in love with and married Mary Nelson. He started a
second family at the old Giggey ranch near Caribou that
included my grandfather, Roland, his brother George, a
sister, Mary, and another sister Alice who died at birth.
George Leon Giggey moved his second family from the
old Giggey ranch to Nederland in 1908 so that my grandfather and his brother and sister could attend school.
George Leon Giggey built the family house in Nederland,
hauling the large timbers down from the mountains with
his draft horses. He built a large barn behind the house
where he kept horses, a cow, and my grandfathers burrow, Becky. He also built several other out buildings.
By this point in time, Nederland was a thriving trading
town for many of the area mines. Nederlands name
came from Dutch investors that at one time owned the
Caribou Mine and organized the Mining Company Nederland of the Hague. The Dutch owners built a large mill in
Nederland, which treated silver ore hauled in from Caribou. Nederland was also on the edge of a tungsten deposit.
Sam Conger, the same prospector who had earlier discovered the Caribou silver mine, developed the tungsten
district.
Tungsten, with the highest melting point of all metals, is
an important industrial element. Ferberite is the chief
tungsten ore mineral of the Nederland tungsten district,
and ranges from massive deposits to well-developed, jetblack crystals in veins that follow area faults.
The veins lie in a narrow zone that begins about four
miles west of Boulder and extends west-southwest for 10
miles to Nederland. The tungsten belt grades into gold
telluride deposits. Nederland also marks the north end
of the Colorado Mineral Belt, a 50-mile wide zone that
extends to the southwestern part of the
state. This mineral belt contains most of the precious
metal deposits in Colorado.
Nederland experienced quite a boom when the price of
tungsten soared in 1900 and had another boom during
(Continued on page 7)
The News, December 2015

(Continued from page 6)

Prospector of 2015:
Bryan Morgan
Detectorist of 2015:
Tom Marschall
Congratulations!

Door Prize Donors

For November
Cigar BoxRick Mattingly
Whites Detector Bag - Barb

Schuldt
Eye Loupes - Barb Schuldt
Camo Flashlight Tom Warne
Display Case - RMPTH Stores
U.S. Coin Handbook - RMPTH
Stores
Hand Warmer - RMPTH Stores
Silver Quarter - RMPTH Stores
Silver Dime - RMPTH Stores
1906 Indianhead Cent - RMPTH
Stores
Rain Poncho - RMPTH Stores

World War I because of the greater demand for tungsten

steels. Tungsten was now vital to the country. The Primos Mining and Milling Company and the Wolf Tongue
Mining Company became the two major tungsten mining
companies in the area. The Wolf Tongue Mining Company consolidated many of the mines around Nederland
and also bought the old Caribou Mill in Nederland. The
name, Wolf Tongue, came from the modified and abbreviated spelling of wolframite (a tungsten mineral) and
tungsten.
My grandfather, Roland, grew up in Nederland during
these boom times and watched the town grow from 300
to over 3,000 people. He saw the start of the construction of the Barker Dam and Reservoir in 1907 and the
completion of the project in 1910. The Central Colorado
Power Company constructed the dam to power a hydroelectric plant. In the winter my grandfather and his
friends would play on the solid ice that covered the reservoir. Several times they rigged a
sail on their sled that would catch the howling winter
winds that moved them over the wind-swept ice.
My grandfather and his brother had many adventures in
the early days of Nederland. In the summer and fall my
grandfather and his brother would take off into the
woods and cut aspen trees and haul them into town
where they sold them as firewood. A local bakery preferred toburn aspen logs in the ovens and remained a
steady customer for the two boys. One day, The boys
had to look inside, and were duty-bound to grab a stick
of dynamite from the shed and
then set it off in a clearing. A loud blast knocked over
several trees and left a ringing in their ears. Fortunately,
no one was hurt.
The two brothers also liked to take turns riding Becky
the burrow as they explored the area mining camps. My
grandfather used to tell the story of visiting an English
prospector who lived in a tent with a wooden floor. The
tent was well furnished and was heated with a potbellied stove in the winter. The Englishman, always
neatly dressed, enjoyed visiting with my grandfather in
those early days. The English prospect told my grandfather about England and other exotic places. The Englishman had a number of books on history, literature, and
other subjects. He took time to tell my grandfather about
the books and how important they were that they could
truly be transformative. I believe this was the point in
time that sparked my grandfathers quest of lifelong
learning.
My grandfather and his friends liked to spend a lot of
time at the Tanner Brothers grocery store looking everything over. One day in 1910, while at the grocery store,
they heard a large commotion in the street. When they
ran outside to investigate they saw a Stanley Steamer
coming up Main Street. Nothing like this had ever been
seen before: It was an automobile that ran on steam.
Prosperity in Nederland brought the extraordinary Fatty
Mills movie theater to Nederland. N.M. Fatty Mills left
the mining town of Eldora after the gold ore began to
play out and came to Nederland in 1909. Fatty started
his theater in a white frame building on Main Street.
Beautiful mountain scenes were painted on the walls on
(Continued on page 8)

The News, December 2015

Page 7

(Continued from page 7)

either side of the sloping floor. At the end of each show a

painted curtain slowly lowered over the screen. The theater was a busy place; Fatty ran two shows each night and
two matinees each week. Fatty Mills, who weighed 300
pounds and smoked a corncob pipe, was very popular
with the kids of Nederland. My grandfather turned the
crank on the projector and received five cents for each
performance, so he got to see the movies for free and
make some valuable money at the time. Mills remained
in business until his death 20 years later.
The deadly flu epidemic gripped Nederland in 1917. My
grandfathers brother George came home from work not
feeling well and made it as far as the couch. He died that
night. The mountain winds wept that night, as did my
grandfather. George never had a chance to make it to
Nederlands Antlers Hotel, which had been converted to
a hospital to help the stricken citizens of Nederland recover. George died with seven dollars in his wallet. My
grandfather carried them in his wallet for the rest of his
life.
In 1919 Mary Nelson Giggey and her two children moved
to Boulder where my grandfather went to the Boulder
Business College. His father, George Leon Giggey, remained for a while in Nederland as a teamster and
played the fiddle on Saturday nights at the local dances.
Now these dances were big affairs, and brought men and
women from not only the town but surrounding mining
camps, ranches, and homesteads. George Leon Giggey
later left Nederland and went to Dove Creek, Colorado
where he took up ranching and started another family.
My grandfather later moved to Colorado Springs, at the
foot of Pikes Peak, and worked for Spencer Penrose at
the Broadmoor Hotel as his private secretary, and remained working at the hotel until he retired in 1965.
Spencer Penrose made his first fortune in Cripple
Creeks gold and then another fabulous fortune from
Bingham Canyons copper. My grandfather often said he
had the best job in the United States. My grandfather
lived an epic life and moved in rarefied circles.
In the seasons that followed my grandfather returned to
Nederland many times to see how the town had changed
from his boyhood days. He first brought my mother to
Nederland several times, sharing his many memories
with her. When my mother went to Nederland as a young
girl she enjoyed the Sunday horse shows at the Lazy VV
cattle ranch. She would sit in the bleachers and watch
Zarife perform a purebred Arabian horse from Egypt
perform. The Lazy W Cattle
ranch held these entertaining horse shows for a long
time.

In his later years my grandfather passed down his Nederland memories to his two grandchildren Steven and
Greg Veatch. On each trip through Boulder Canyon on
the way to Nederland he always pointed out the Perfect
Tree to his grandchildren, The Perfect Tree was an 80foot tall blue spruce that had perfect symmetry. My
grandfather had watched the tree since he was a boy,
and seeing the tree each time brought back many memories of his early days in the mountains and the town of
Nederland. Today the Perfect Tree is gone, but I still remember it clearly and the warm, untroubled trips with
my grandfather.
Today, only an old cabin and two stone foundations remain at the Caribou town site where the first generation
of Colorado Giggey children went to school. One foundation is the Donnelly general store. The other stone foundation is Werleys saloon that was once complete with
pool tables, beer, and fights. Although many things have
changed, some things remain the same.
Mining and exploratory work continues at Caribou just
as it did over 130 years ago. In fact, Tom Hendricks,
who has been working the Caribou property, has sold
out to Calais Resources, a gold and silver mining firm
headquartered in British Columbia.
In Nederland, there is an empty spot on the street today
where my grandfather's home once stood. It burned
down in a fire a few years ago. Fortunately, one of my
greatgrandfathers buildings was removed in the early
1940s. It was moved near Divide, Colorado to a fishing
club called Ute Lakes. Over the years other rooms were
added to it.
Today this old out building has been remodeled and is
the kitchen to my cabin.
But there is more going on in Nederland than just reminiscing. The town is once again starting to bustle because of tourism and people moving into the area that
desire to live in a small mountain community. Although
my family is gone from this area, I think they can be
proud of the part they played in the settlement of the
American West.

The Prospectors Quill

October, 2015

Before You Buy That Metal Detector Handbook Check:

http://www.mdhtalk.org/articles/before-you-buy-hb/before-you-buy-handbook.pdf
Page 8

The News, December 2015

(Continued from page 5)

you have installed your new brake shoes, trapping the

jack handle firmly under the bumper.
BAND SAW :
A large stationary power saw primarily used by most
shops to cut large pieces into smaller pieces that more
easily fit into the trash after you cut on the inside of the
line instead of the outside edge. Also (as with the Table
Saw) excels at amputations.
TWO-TON ENGINE HOIST :
A tool for testing the maximum tensile strength of all
the crap you forgot to disconnect.
PHILLIPS SCREWDRIVER :
Normally used to stab the vacuum seals under lids or
for opening old-style paper-and-tin oil cans and splashing oil on your shirt; but can also be used, as the name
implies, to strip out Phillips screw heads.

Search High and Low

By Pat Hughes
When looking for a treasure that may have
been hidden or lost long ago, remember that
the Earth is constantly in flux geologically.
All rivers and lakes will become fields and all
grassy areas will become water. It is why one
can find sea fossils on the highest mountains
and why a chest that was buried in the ground
may be underwater today. Even though the location in all the documentation of a treasure
may state it is hidden in the ground, it may be
worthwhile to search under that lake.
www.LostTreasure.com Newsletter 10-20-2015

STRAIGHT SCREWDRIVER :
A tool for opening paint cans. Sometimes used to convert common slotted screws into non-removable
screws and butchering your palms.
PRY BAR :
A tool used to crumple the metal surrounding that clip
or bracket you needed to remove in order to replace a
50 cent part.
PVC PIPE CUTTER :
A tool used to make plastic pipe too short.
HAMMER :
Originally employed as a weapon of war, the hammer
nowadays is used as a kind of divining rod to locate
the most expensive parts adjacent to the object you are
trying to hit. Also very effective at delayed fingernail
removal.
UTILITY KNIFE :
Used to open and slice through the contents of cardboard cartons delivered to your front door. Works particularly well on contents such as seats, vinyl records,
liquids in plastic bottles, collector magazines, refund
checks, and rubber or plastic parts. Especially useful
for slicing work clothes, but only while in use. These
can also be used to initiate a trip to the emergency
room so a doctor can stich up the damage.
SON OF A B**CH TOOL :
Any handy tool that you grab and throw across the garage while yelling 'Son of a b**ch' at the top of your
lungs. It is also, most often, the next tool that you will
need.

The News, December 2015

Page 9

Calendar of Events
December Meeting
Wednesday, December 2. We will meet at the Pulliam
Building in downtown Loveland at 6:00PM. Refer to
the adjoining map for directions.
Meeting Agenda
6:00 - 7:00 Pot Luck Christmas Dinner
7:00 - 7:30 Business, Announcements
7:30 - 7:45 Break
7:45 - 9:00 "Find of the Year Program and
Best Find of the Year Vote. No Find of the Month
Program in December. Bring your new finds to the
January meeting.

Visit RMPTH On The Internet At

http://rmpth.com

RMPTH DUES
RMPTH is an unincorporated Social Club with
no income generated. All
expenses are covered by
$25 annual dues. Members are requested to
consider minor donations
at each monthly meeting
to cover refreshments.

MAP TO THE MEETING PLACE

Pulliam Community Building
545 Cleveland Avenue, Loveland, Colorado

Directions:
The Pulliam Community Building is situated on the west side of Cleveland Avenue in Loveland,
Colorado. Park at the rear of the building (west side). Entry to the meeting room is from
the doorway on the south side of the building (not the main entrance on Cleveland Avenue!).
Page 10

The News, December 2015

December 2015
Sun

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

10

11

12

18

19

25

26

RMPTH Finds Program

& Social 6:00P

RMPTH Board Meeting

6:00P

13

14

15

16

20

21

22

23

17
24
Christmas Eve

27

28

29

30

Christmas Day

31
New Years Eve

January 2016
Sun

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

New Years Day

14

15

16

RMPTH Finds Program

& Social 6:00P
RMPTH Meeting 7:00P

10

11

12

13

RMPTH Board Meeting

6:00P

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31
The News, December 2015

Page 11

Wreck Of Steamer
Lost In 1862 Storm
Tue, 10/20/2015 - by Chris Carola, Associated Press

This August 2015 photo taken from video provided by Roger

Pawlowski , shows the bow of the sunken ship Bay State in
Lake Ontario near Fair Haven, N.Y. (Roger Pawlowski via AP)

Old tobacco tin detected which contained gold nuggets. Tobacco tins were the ready-made coin purse of yesteryear. Never
fail to closely check any old tobacco tin you come across .
Dug or not!

RMPTH Field Outing Statement

NOTE: The Coordinators and participants stay in touch
and continue to review and plan upcoming presentations
and outings for the year on a monthly basis. Our editor
Rick Mattingly needs timely event information for each
issue of The News. Please get information about any particular event to him by the 15th of the month to meet the
printing deadline for the next issue.
Planned trips, outings, activities, and meeting programs
are in the newsletter and on line at the clubs website.
Planning is a work in progress and additional outings and
activities are added and sometimes deleted on an ongoing basis. Events planned in the upcoming month are
emphasized to the attendees at the monthly meetings.
Contact the Presentations Coordinators or Editor if you
have any suggestions or ideas throughout the year for
fieldtrips, outings, and programs.
The best made plans may change at the last minute due
to the illness of the Trail Boss, weather, land access, vehicles breaking down, wrong meeting sites, etc. Please
be understanding of extenuating circumstances and contact the coordinator or Trail Boss of a specific event if
there is any question of an event being cancelled or
changed at the last minute.
Page 12

he wreck site of one of the earliest propellerdriven steamships to sail the Great Lakes has
been found in Lake Ontario more than 150
years after it sank in a storm, killing everyone on
board, a team of New York-based shipwreck hunters
said Tuesday.
Jim Kennard and Roger Pawlowski, both of the Rochester area, said the wreck of the Bay State is in water
hundreds of feet deep, about seven miles off Fair Haven in central New York, 155 miles west of Albany.
The Bay State departed nearby Oswego in November
1862 with a cargo of general merchandise destined
for Ohio. But a storm turned into a gale, forcing the
ship's captain to turn back.
"That was the beginning of the end," Kennard, who
has been searching for shipwrecks since 1970, told
The Associated Press.
The 137-foot-long, two-tiered ship vessel started coming apart, losing sections of its upper decks to the
high winds and waves before eventually sinking and
leaving a debris field about a quarter-mile long on the
lake bottom.
Seven passengers and between nine and 11 crew-

(Continued on page 13)

The News, December 2015

(Continued from page 12)

members were lost. Kennard said records of the exact

number of crew weren't kept, but the captain and at
least four crewmen were from Oswego.
The Bay State, owned by a Cleveland, Ohio, company,
was built in Buffalo in 1852, a decade after the first
propeller-driven steamers joined paddle-wheelers on
the Great Lake, the explorers said.
Kennard and Pawlowski, with underwriting support
from National Museum of the Great Lakes in Toledo,
Ohio, were searching for wrecks along the lake's
southeastern shore in late August when their sidescan sonar revealed a debris field in several hundred
feet of water about seven miles from shore. At the
eastern end of the field the sonar detected a large object, which turned out to have the same dimensions
as the Bay State, Kennard said.
Video equipment on a remotely operated vehicle, or
ROV, captured images of the wreck before the
$45,000 device got snagged on some debris, Kennard
said. It would be another month before the ROV could
be retrieved as inclement weather prevented divers
equipped with deepwater gear from descending to the
wreck site. When they did, the divers reported seeing
a propeller and a large opening on the port's left side
for loading cargo, he said.
A story published in the Oswego newspaper around
the time of the Bay State's disappearance also helped
confirm that the wreck is that of the Bay State, Kennard said.

Victor, CO Train Robbery

During the summer of 1897, four
men hijacked five iron chests of
gold bullion from a moving train
10 miles south of Victor , Co. The
train was on its regular run from
the Victor stamp mill to Denver,
Co. The four train robbers were
killed shortly thereafter in a running gunfight with pursuing lawmen, but none of the gold was
recovered. Posse members
made a rough search of the area
at the time, but there was no sign
of the stolen gold. For years afterward, prospectors and treasure hunters searched for the hidden loot, but it has never been
reported found.

Cargo and debris from the wreck washed up along

Lake Ontario's southern shore around Oswego, giving
shoreline residents a windfall, Kennard said.
"It was like opening the store for you for free," he said.
"They'd come down to the beach and cart this stuff
away for free."
New York law doesn't allow the salvaging of items
from historic wrecks, but Kennard said he's hoping to
send divers back down to the wreck next year to record images of the steam engine and the propeller,
something state historic preservationists and maritime historians are keenly interested in seeing.
In recent years, Kennard, Pawlowski and other members of their exploration team have found and identified more than a dozen of the estimated 200-plus
shipwrecks resting on the bottom of Lake Ontario,
including the HMS Ontario, a British warship that
sank during the Revolutionary War.

The News, December 2015

World's second largest diamond, harvested in Botswana in 2015

Mined by Lucara Diamond Corporation, the company claims that
the 1,111 carat stone is the largest diamond found in more than
100 years. Photo by @LucaraDiamond
Page 13

Bounce Is Not Just For

The Dryer
1. All this time youve just been putting Bounce in the
dryer! It will chase ants away when you lay a sheet
near them.?? It also repels mice.
2. Spread sheets around foundation areas, or in trailers, or cars that are sitting and it keeps mice from
entering your vehicle.
3. It takes the odor out of books and photo albums
that dont get opened too often.
4. It repels mosquitoes. Tie a sheet of Bounce through
a belt loop when outdoors during mosquito season.
5. Eliminate static electricity from your television (or

computer) screen.
6. Since Bounce is designed to help eliminate static
cling, wipe your television screen with a sheet of
Bounce to keep dust from resettling.
7. Dissolve soap scum from shower doors. Clean with
a sheet of Bounce.
8. To freshen the air in your home Place an individual sheet of Bounce in a drawer or hang in the closet.
9. Put Bounce sheet in vacuum cleaner.
10. Prevent thread from tangling. Run a threaded needle through a sheet of Bounce before beginning to
sew.
11. Prevent musty suitcases. Place an individual sheet
of Bounce inside empty luggage before storing.
(Continued on page 15)

Beautiful 1.68 Ounce Nugget With Quartz Recovered In California This Summer

Page 14

The News, December 2015

(Continued from page 14)

12. To freshen the air in your car Place a sheet of Bounce under the
front seat.
13. Clean baked-on foods from a cooking pan. Put a sheet in a pan,
fill with water, let sit overnight, and sponge clean. The anti-static
agent apparently weakens the bond between the food and the pan.
14. Eliminate odors in wastebaskets. Place a sheet of Bounce at the
bottom of the wastebasket.

Gold Glossary
Ore - Any natural combination of minerals. Especially one from which a
metal or metals can be profitably extracted. Commonly a mixture of one or
more of the following: quartz, gold,
copper, silver, sulfur, iron, and nickel.

15. Collect cat hair. Rubbing the area with a sheet of Bounce will
magnetically attract all the loose hairs.
16. Eliminate static electricity from Venetian blinds. Wipe the blinds
with a sheet of Bounce to prevent dust from resettling.
17. Wipe up sawdust from drilling or sand papering. A used sheet of
Bounce will collect sawdust like a tack cloth.
18. Eliminate odors in dirty laundry. Place an individual sheet of
Bounce at the bottom of a laundry bag or hamper.
19. Deodorize shoes or sneakers. Place a sheet of Bounce in your
shoes, boots or sneakers overnight.
20. Golfers put a Bounce sheet in their back pocket to keep the bees
away.
21. Put a Bounce sheet in your sleeping bag and tent before folding
and storing them. It will keep them smelling fresh.
22. Put a sheet of Bounce in your pockets while outdoors to keep yellow-jackets away.

Gold Facts
Symbol: AU
Atomic Number: 79
Atomic Weight: 196.967
Melting Point: 1063 (1945 F)
Specific Gravity: 19.2
MOHs Scale of Hardness:
2.5 - 3
Karat
24K = 100% Pure Gold
18K = 75% Pure Gold
14K = 58% Pure Gold
10K = 42% Pure Gold
Troy Weights

1 grain = 0.0648 grams

24 grains = 1 penny
weight (DWT) = 1.552 grams
20 DWT = 1 ounce =
480 grains = 31.10 grams

YOUR
ADVERTISEMENT
COULD BE HERE!
Call Rick Mattingly
at 970-669-1205
or rickmatt@q.com
The News, December 2015

Page 15

Trading Post
FOR SALE: Jewelers propane/oxygen torch, many cabochons, beads and tools. Contact Ann at
(970) 6667-3705.
FOR SALE: Minelab SD2200 Gold Nugget Metal Detector:
10-1/2" Mono Super Coil, 10-1/2" SD Series Super Coil, two
batteries w/wall & car charger, headphones, backpack,
waist battery pack, signal enhancer, extra lower stem, instruction booklet & video, carry case. Ready to go for the
gold. New Price: $1200. Contact Paul at (970) 482-7846.
FOR SALE: 5HP pump motor, Gold King 3" Hi-banker with
dredge attachment w/adjustable stand, Gold Grabber Hibanker, 125 feet hose, Rock net and steel cable, misc. fittings and valves & large metal bucket. Prefer to sell all together for $1,350 but negotiable. Call Eric Stickland at
(303) 833-6848 or
estick@live.com.
WANTED: Used lapidary equipment. Call Kathie 970-2211623
WANTED: Federal or state duck stamps; mint or used. Contact John Hart at (307) 778-3993.

NOTE:
Purchase arrangements are between the buyer and
seller only and involves no financial benefit to RMPTH.

About Trading Post

The News runs classified ads in Trading Post
for three consecutive issues. Trading Post ads
for topic related items up to 10 lines (or 70
words) long are free. To place an ad in Trading
Post contact Rick Mattingly at (970) 613-8968
evenings
or e-mail at: rickmatt@q.com
Commercial Advertising
Specifications
(Monthly Donation Rate)
Full Page (8 1/2" X 7")
Half Page (3 1/4" X 7")
One Third Page (3" X 4")
Business Card (2 3/4" X 1 1/2")

$30
$20
$15
$ 5

Ads must be received by the 15th of the

preceding month. Contact Rick Mattingly for information on this service at
(970) 613-6968 evenings or e-mail at:
rickmatt@q.com.

All mistakes and

misspellings were
intentionally made so
that you could have the
pleasure of finding them.
Colorado School of Mines
Geology Museum
Golden, Colorado
Contact us: 303-273-3815 or
geomuseum@mines.edu
Identification of specimens is performed
between 10 a.m. and noon, Tuesdays and
Thursdays.
Page 16

The News, December 2015

WEEKEND & SMALL-SCALE

MINERS CODE OF ETHICS
I WILL respect other prospectors claims and not work
those claims without the owners permission
I WILL have on-site all necessary permits and licenses
I WILL build fires in designated or safe places only, and
in accordance with current State and Federal guidelines
I WILL be careful with fuels and motor oils and be cognizant of their potential destructive effect on the environment
I WILL remove and properly dispose of all trash and
debris that I find - I will not litter
I WILL be thoughtful, considerate and courteous to
those around me at all time

More Colorado Treasures

Just Waiting to Be Found

rapahoe County - A cache of gold ore worth $10,000

was buried somewhere in Pat's Hole within today's
Dinosaur National Monument. Worth many times that
value today, the treasure has never been recovered.
Costilla County The treasure of the paymaster of Fort Garland was stashed on Trinchera Creek.
El Paso County - Near Monument, between Colorado Springs
and Denver, the Butch Cassidy gang is said to have
stashed $100,000 from their bank robberies.
El Paso County An outlaw gang called the "Bloody Espinosas" terrorized the San Luis Valley in 1863. Supposedly, the
gang had received a vision from the Virgin Mary and tried to
drive the Anglos out by robbing them. They were said to have
buried their treasure near the present-day town of Cascade in
Ute Pass on the slopes of Pikes Peak. For a time, the gang
eluded capture but were finally conquered by an army scout
from Fort Garland who rode back to the fort with their heads
in a sack.

I WILL appreciate and protect our heritage of natural

resources, wildlife, fisheries and private property, and
respect all laws or ordinances governing prospecting
and mining

Garfield County - Train robbery loot hidden near Grand Valley remains undiscovered.

I WILL NOT remove stream bank material, destroy

natural vegetation or woody debris dams, nor discharge
excess silt into the waterways

Huerfano County - Two barrels of coins belonging to Henry

Sefton were lost at the Gomez Ranch in the Sangre de Cristo
Mountains.

I WILL NOT refuel motorized equipment in the stream

Lake County - Some of Jesse James' stolen wealth is said to

be hidden in Half Moon Gulch, southwest of Leadville.

I WILL NOT allow oil from motorized

equipment to drip onto the ground or into the water
I WILL NOT prospect in areas closed to prospecting
and mining

Gilpin County - A chest filled with gold was hidden on Ralston Creek Road between Central City and Denver.

Larimer County - The Musgrove Gang, headed by Lee Musgrove, were thieves and rustlers who ranged from Texas to
Wyoming to Kansas. Noted for their barbarity, they were said
to have killed at least twelve people during their raids. However, Colorado lawman Dave Cook went after the gang, and
one-by-one, either killed or arrested each and every one of
them. Lee Musgrove was finally caught by Cook in Wyoming
Territory and was jailed in Denver. On November 23, 1868 a
crowd stormed the jail and lynched the outlaw. The Musgrove Corral Treasure of gold and silver coins is said to remain buried along the Cache la Poudre River.
Otero County - The site of Bent's Fort on the old Santa Fe
Trail is supposed to be where much Treasure is buried.
Lincoln County -- In 1847, $100,000 was stolen by bandits in
Sacramento, California during the California Goldrush. It is
said that the gold was hidden in a gulch several miles east of
Clifford in Lincoln County. The spot was supposedly marked
by three stones, each bearing the date 1847. This story was
further supported when a flat stone bearing the inscription
"D. Grover and Joseph Fox Lawe, Aug. 8, 1847" was discovered near Clifford many years ago.

Offer Your Assistance To Any

Of Our Program Coordinators
The News, December 2015

Moffat County - In the 1890s, Butch Cassidy and his Wild

Bunch often fled into the remote valley of Brown's Hole to
escape from lawmen. It is believed that much of their outlaw
loot was cached here and never recovered. Located just south
of Wyoming, along the Utah-Colorado border, it was rumored
that the only law was that of the fastest gun.

Page 17

Rocky Mountain Prospectors and Treasure Hunters Club

2015 Schedule of Events
Month

Meeting Program

Trip/Activity

January

Cheyenne War: Indian Raids on the

Roads to Denver, 1864-1869
By Jeff Broome

No Trip/Activity Scheduled

February

Cache Hunting
By Rick Mattingly

No Trip/Activity Scheduled

March

Setting Up A Gold Sluice Box

By RMPTH Members

No Trip/Activity Scheduled

April

Metal Detecting
By Tom Warne & Rick Mattingly

Local Detector Hunt

Map, Compass & GPS Clinic

May

Gold Nugget Shooting With Detector

By Rick Mattingly

Prospecting & Detecting Clinic at Lions Park

Denver GPAA Show
Lets Go Gold Panning On The Arkansas Event GPOC

June

Gold Dredging
By RMPTH Members

Clear Creek Gold Outing

State Annual Gold Panning Championships

July

Map Reading for Prospectors

by Wayne Sutherland WSGS

No Trip/Activity Scheduled

August

Surface Finds
by Tom Warne

Vics Gold PanningBlackhawk

September

Map & Internet Research

By Rick Mattingly

Local Detector Hunt

October

Gold, Silver & Gem Recovery

by David Emslie

Local Detector Hunt

November

Annual Show & Tell &

Silent Auction

No Trip/Activity Scheduled

December

Annual Find of the Year Awards &

Christmas Party

No Trip/Activity Scheduled

Good Hunting in 2015!

Page 18

The News, December 2015

Rocky Mountain
Prospectors & Treasure Hunters
Contact List
RMPTH Coordinators

Home

E-Mail

President

Tom Warne

1-970-635-0773

goldigger48@msn.com

Interim Vice President

Tim Coatman

1-970-353-1919

old37chev@aol.com

Treasurer

Dick & Sharon French

1-970-482-2110

dickyf99@centurylink.net

Secretary

Rick Mattingly

1-970-669-1205

rickmatt@q.com

Rick Mattingly

1-970-669-1205

rickmatt@q.com

Rick Mattingly

1-970-669-1205

rickmatt@q.com

Finds Program

Dave Landes
Betsy Emond
Joe Johnston

1-720-985-4186
1-970-218-0290
1-303-696-6950

midnightoil45@aol.com
bemond@fcgov.com
cjoej1@peoplepc.com

Presentations

Rick Mattingly

1-970-669-1205

rickmatt@q.com

Club Historian

Steve McNeill

1-970-556-0755

pawfullo@yahoo.com

Club Meeting Greeter

Barbara Schuldt

1-970-407-1336

Club Librarian

Joe Johnston

1-303-696-6950

cjoej1@peoplepc.com

Club Photo Librarian

Tom Warne

1-970-635-0773

goldigger48@msn.com

Meeting Setup

Jim Friedricks

1-720-270-8895

Door Prize

Tim Coatman

1-970-353-1919

old37chev@aol.com

Zinc Penny Project

Tom Marschall

1-970-396-0133

tmarschall47@gmail.com

50/50 Drawing

Woody Hogdon

1-970-667-5010

ftcolwoody@juno.com

Coin Raffle

Woody Hogdon

1-970-667-5010

ftcolwoody@juno.com

The News Staff

Editor-in-Chief
Internet Web Site
Web Master
Volunteers/Coordinators

General Information Contact: Rick Mattingly at 1-970-669-1205 or rickmatt@q.com

Visit RMPTH on the Internet at: http://rmpth.com

Lets Go For The Gold !

The News, December 2015

Page 19

The News
Rocky Mountain Prospectors &
Treasure Hunters Club
278 Sierra Vista Drive
Fort Collins, CO. 80524

DECEMBER, 2015 ISSUE