Metal detecting a Civil War musket...

Some More New York State Treasure's

Some of the oldest coins and relics can be found here, as this is one of the earliest settled parts of the country. It was the Canarsie Indians who controlled all of Brooklyn, Lower Manhattan, all of the islands in the East River, the western half of Queens, the eastern shores of Staten Island and the upper N.Y. Bay. It was these Indians who welcomed Verrazano to our shores in 1524, Hudson in 1609 and even sold Manhattan to Peter Minuet in 1626. The first land grant went to Jacob Van Corlear on June 16, 1636, for Long Island and the oldest cattle ranch in the U.S. was established in 1747 at Montauk, Long Island.

We have our share, perhaps more than our share of lost treasures, buried caches and long lost hoards. Incredibly, very little is written about this part of the country, so here is a few stories to inspire all of you New York treasure hunters. For those interested, there is a whole book devoted to New York treasures and sites.

1) In 1917, Dr. Albert Leffingwell told his son Thomas that he had hidden a quantity of coins on his property in Aurora, N.Y. Before, he could show his son the hiding place, he suddenly died. His son Thomas spent many years in fruitless search of the property, digging random holes in all he believed to be likely places. To speed up the search, he even hired workman to aid in the search, also to no avail till his death in 1974.

Twleve years after his death, two hired hands remodeling a section of the house, discovered a secret room on the third floor of the 140 year old structure. The room contained some old toys, three steamer trunks filled with historical items, an 1856 mason jar and wine decanter both filled with coins. These, dating from 1803 to the 1860s were estimated to be worth about $10,000. The total count was 200 coins.

Relatives of Thomas Leffingwell. were quick to point out that although the 200 coins had indeed been hidden, these were probably not the main treasure, as Dr. Leffingwell had stated on numerous occasions that he had hidden the coin cache under a tree somewhere on the property, never mentioning the secret room or its contents.

Last we heard, egged on by the unexpected find, family members plan to resume the search by means of metal detectors. The find, certainly lends a degree of truth to the existence of the coin cache and a glimmer of hope that it will eventually be found.

2) The automobile magnet, Walter Perry Chrysler, is said to have hidden a sizable treasure on his estate located just above Southhampton Beach in Suffolk County, Long Island before his death in 1940.

3) An English army officer of noble birth by the name of Moses Follensby was believed to have buried about $400,000 in the Adirondack Mountains. In 1820, he built a log cabin on the pond that now bares his name, Follensby Pond. (Two other bodies of water also bare his name: Follensby Clear Pond just west of upper Saranec Lake, and Follensby Jr. Pond about 8 miles north of the same lake.) One October day, he was found near death and mumbling by two sportsmen fishing near his cabin. Before dying, he revealed to them the location of a chest hidden under a large stone. It contained a British uniform coat, a package of letters, a gold scabbard decorated with jewels and impressed with a coronet, gold and gem inlaid toilet articles, and two pistols mounted in silver.

Further examination of his belongings, revealed that he had buried the $400,000 nearby his log cabin, supposedly located just a few miles southwest of Tupper? Lake in Franklin County.

The site of the cabin is lost in the dust of time but it is known that he lived near the pond, on his property which was supposedly located near Follensby Road, two miles southeast of Tupper Lake near routes 3 and 30.

4) Somewhere in the Columbia County town of Austerlitz, high on one of the snow capped cones of the Tatonics lies an abandoned gold mine. (It was not very profitable as the yellow streaked quartz yielded very little gold.) Oscar Beckwith was born in this area in 1810, and after many years of traveling the west, returned home at age 67. After finding traces of gold on his property, he sought financial backing from a certain Simon Vandercook, taking him on as a partner. The partnership did not work well and in 1882, Beckwith did away with his partner. The grisly remains were found hacked up and disemboweled in his cabin. The skull had been charred inside a wood stove, the liver cooked in a frying pan and other parts apparently prepared for pickling in a brine barrel.

Beckwith was able to escape justice for six years, but was eventually found and brought to justice. Beckwith eventually confessed his crime and described in detail how he had bludgeoned, stabbed and partially consumed his victim to get rid of the evidence. The crime was so gruesome that Beckwith was sentenced to death by hanging.

While awaiting the sentence to be carried out, he told some of his visitors about the discovery of a new gold vein, much richer than the first, which he discovered just before he eliminated his partner. No coaxing would get him to reveal the location of the new site, for he hoped the governor of New York would commute his sentence. He was hanged on a cold March morning in 1888, in the courtyard of the jail at Hudson. Shortly thereafter, the infamous blizzard of ·8 swept across the Taconics, obliterating Beckwith? old cabin and any signs of his gold mine.

Was there a second gold mine? Greed was probably the incentive for Beckwith? murdering his partner Vandercook, thus it lends credence that a new gold vein had almost certainly been found.

5) At the outbreak of hostilities in 1775, the wealthy families of the northern colonies were almost universally Tory, who had grown rich on the British colonial policies and were sure that Washington? rag-tag army would be easily crushed by the superior British troops. Tories, as English sympathizers, did not sit well with American Loyalists who, as the war heated up, began to tar and feather all the Tories they could get their hands on and proceeded to seize the goods and lands. After the Continental Army? success in New Jersey and upper New York State, Tories began fleeing, often to Canada. Those who had time to prepare, were able to take their goods and treasure with them, but many were forced to leave much of their wealth behind.

Some Tories chose to stay behind and continue to serve the British as spies or otherwise lending their service as best they could. One such Tory was Robert Gordon, born in London in 1739. He had a place called Red Barn Lot, on the west side of Wood Creek near Whitehall. As things got too dangerous for him, he loaded his wealth on a small boat, securely packed in an iron box and started for Canada. Somewhere in the marshes on the west shore of the Haven or Harbor on the Poultney River, he was forced to dispose of the iron box by throwing it overboard. He long prospered in St. Johns, Canada till he disappeared while on a hunting trip.

What lends some credence to the story is that in 1934 a state dredge brought up a metal box in its jaws while engaged in a swamp clearance project. The box momentarily rested on the mound of muck but slipped and toppled back into the water. Other explorations have yet to relocate the elusive treasure box.

TREASURE FINDS

Not all treasures stay buried as demonstrated by these finds. A farmer named Vostburg, living near Champlain in upstate New York turned up a quantity of ancient gold coins while plowing. The treasure was supposedly buried by Patriots who stole it from a contingent of British troops which was camped near Champlain during General Burgoyne? campaign against New York State. The Patriots probably lost their lives in the conflicts that followed. The coins were worth several thousand dollars by 1909 valuation.

In 1894, a schoolteacher named George W. Hawkins was digging some holes to plant beans, when some 18 inches down his spade hit metal. He hurriedly retrieved over 100 Spanish coins dating between 1770 and 1775. The house Hawkins lived in was originally occupied by Reverend Brewster of the old Presbyterian Church on Setauket? Village Green. As the British captured the green and skirmishes erupted, the Reverend buried his personal wealth for safekeeping behind his house, intending to recover the coins as the situation abated. He was probably killed or otherwise prevented from retrieving the hoard.

As you see, New York certainly has its shares of both lost and found treasures. With its tantalizing mixture of just enough evidence to get us close but not quite enough to get us there, it has again proven an irresistible challenge.

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The Patriotic and Moral Imperative for Owning Gold and Silver- Part II

I know that I'm getting away from the main subject of my blog but please bear with me.
 I hear every day how our nations economy is slowly turning around, although I have yet to see this with my own eyes. I know many of you might also feel the same way.
I'm also going to tell you that Silver and Gold is my business .. for the sake of full disclosure.
Knowing this, I want you to think about this post and maybe forward it to a few friends. We the people of the United States of America need to take back our currency, we can all make a huge dent in the Bankster's wallets by one simple act ....

The time has come for us to step up to the plate and do our patriotic duty.

Patriotism is a love of and loyalty to one's country. A patriot is someone who loves, supports, and is prepared to serve their country.

The word patriotism comes from a Greek word meaning fatherland. For most of history, love of fatherland or homeland was an attachment to the physical features of the land. But that notion changed in the eighteenth century, when the ideals of personal freedoms and liberty strongly emerged into political thought. Patriotism was still a love of one's country that included connections to the land and people, but then also included its customs and traditions, pride in its history, and devotion to its welfare.

Today most people agree that patriotism also involves service to their country, but many disagree on how to best perform such service. Some believe that the national government speaks for a country; therefore, all its citizens should actively support government policies and actions. Others argue that a true patriot speaks out when convinced that their country is following an unwise or unjust action.

"Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted; the indifference of those who should have known better; the silence of the voice of justice when it mattered most; that has made it possible for evil to triumph." -- Haile Selassie

When was the last time that you acted in a manner that would help insure your personal liberties and freedoms? When have you acted in a manner that did not simply depend on the Government to protect and take care of you. The solution will come as a result of our individual actions. There are no groups on our side. The larger the group, the larger the problem.

I will be forever imploring you to own up to your individual patriotic responsibilities. One easy way is for you to do this is to purchase physical gold and silver bullion. In reality, compared to the amount of fiat currency in circulation, there is so little bullion available for purchase, that a concerted effort on your part could send the value of gold, and just as importantly silver, to the moon.

By participating in this simple, passive action, we can be part of the solution and avail ourselves a chance to survive the mind-boggling catastrophe that lies ahead. We are faced with an epic struggle against the tyranny of false money. Gold and silver are assets that are not borne out of someone else’s debt or liability. Debt based money is abusable and will, therefore, always be abused. Like the children in a dysfunctional family, we have been severely abused. Denial is not a river in Egypt.

History records that the money changers have used every form of abuse, intrigue, deceit, and violent means possible to maintain their control over governments by controlling money and it's issuance. -- James Madison

Besides enriching ourselves through the exercise of buying and owning gold and silver, we can passively bring about some very important changes in one way that will really make a difference. As the price of bullion subsequently rises, more and more people will begin to see Federal Reserve Notes for what they really are; fake money, and recognize and appreciate precious metals for what the really are; real money.

If one half of one percent of Americans each went out and bought ten ounces of silver, that would amount to 14,000,000 ounces of silver. COMEX has much less than 100,000,000 ounces of silver available. That much buying pressure would have an explosive effect on the price. This could force the hand of the cartel and help change the world for the better.

Get the word out. A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle. Consider it your patriotic and moral imperative.

Buy gold and silver.

It's not what you don't know that will screw you up, it's what you know that is wrong. The spin you hear from the mainstream media is intended to mislead you. Open your eyes and face the future. If you leave your head in the sand and ignore it, you are only leaving your butt exposed for the world to kick. This all may sound like gloom and doom, but when you get a handle on what is going to happen, you will have a future filled with opportunity. Fortune favors the Informed.  Click Here To Fire The First Shot!!!

Thinking of Selling Your Silver or Gold Coins... Don't!!

Sales of gold and silver bullion coins were up sharply in the first half of 2009, when dealers were citing strong physical demand amid worries about other investments.

Sales remained strong but abated somewhat in late spring and early summer, but there are at least some signs it might be on the rise again, said one dealer. “Over the last 30 days, business has picked up again mostly because, I believe, there is a lot of skepticism still in the market about which way the economy is heading,” said Scott Thomas, president and chief executive of American Precious Metals Exchange in Edmond, Okla.

Bullion coins are meant to provide investors with a convenient and cost-effective way to add small amounts of precious metals to their portfolios. It is valued by the weight and the type of precious metal.

This is different from numismatic coins, which are valued on the basis of factors such as limited mintage, rarity, condition and age. The only coin in this category sold by the Mint in the first half is the 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coin that was launched in January. Sales hit 68,445 in the first half, the Mint reported.

The outlook for bullion-coin sales may hinge on whether inflation begins to rear its head or whether there are more credit-market problems, said James Cook, president of Investment Rarities in Minneapolis.

The U.S. Mint said it sold 680,500 one-ounce American Eagle gold bullion coins in the first six months of the year.

By contrast, in the first half of 2008, the Mint sold 180,000 one-ounce Eagle coins and 67,000 American Buffalo coins. (Release of 2009 Buffalo bullion coins is planned for later in the year, the Mint said.)

For all of 2008, sales of one-ounce American Eagle bullion coins totaled 794,000 and sales of one-ounce Buffalo coins totaled 172,500.

Any comparison to year-ago totals must take into account Mint sales of half-, quarter- and tenth-ounce American Eagle bullion coins that have been suspended this year due to a shortage of blanks. When including these, the combined weight of all Eagle gold coins sold in the first half of 2008 amounted to 197,500 ounces, still far short of the 2009 total of 680,500.

For all of 2008, a total of 1,172,000 Eagle coins were sold totaling 860,500 ounces, which, in turn, was a sharp increase from 409,500 coins totaling 198,500 ounces in 2007.

Buying Old Homes & The Treasure Rebate

WINNIPEG - Fred Murray was hoping for a renovation rebate on the old house he bought, he just didn't think it would come in the form of old coins, shinplasters and other currency from over 100 years ago.

Murray, who runs his own stucco business, bought an Elmwood bungalow last spring and was spurred to renovate by the federal government's Home Renovation Tax Credit.

It was when he ripped out ceiling panels in the 750-square-foot home's basement that he realized he'd be supplementing that funding with some older money.

In addition to Canadian currency -- ranging from regular and commemorative coins to paper money, including the 25-cent bills commonly known as shinplasters to $100-bills -- the collection also included foreign cash from Weimar Germany, 1920s China and the United States, stamps from numerous countries and clippings from Winnipeg newspapers.

"If it pays for the house, it's a bonus," said the 54-year-old.

While Murray said he knew nothing about collectible currency or stamps before his demolition find, he's now a little more up to speed. However, he's not interested enough to hold onto the collection and plans to ship it off this weekend to an Eastern Canada auction house.

He said he has no idea what he'll get for the collection but plans to put it right back into the renovations.

From older neighbours, Murray found out the house was built by a German immigrant named Albert Schmidt -- whose identification he also found in the rafters -- in the 1940s. He lived in the home until sometime in the 1970s.

It was apparently Schmidt who meticulously stashed the collection above ceiling boards between rafters in the basement, Murray said.

"He spent years and years putting this together. I get hold of it and I'm getting rid of it," Murray said.

Murray said coins were packed in cloth bags, pill bottles and tin cans while the bills and stamps were stored in paper envelopes.

Murray said the basement rec-room had been renovated at least three times previously, but in each case new panelling was tacked on over the existing ceiling, leaving the treasure undiscovered.

"That was good for me," he said.

Man finds gold coins worth $20,000

Man finds gold coins worth $20,000