Wednesday, May 29, 2019 12:04:05 AM
Eleven and One Texas Lost Treasure Tales
MMGYS
Great To Have You With Us Tonight
Texas Lost Treasure
Texas has more buried treasure than any other state, with 229 sites within the state’s borders, and a total value estimated at $340 million. Here are just some of the Treasure Tales from the Lone Star State; but be cautious, as some of these hidden caches are alleged to be cursed.
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Caballo Mountains – Also called Horse Mountains, the peaks are located thirty-five miles north of Las Cruces. Gold bars, silver and jewels were reportedly buried by a spring under the big rocks of Cabello Canyon. The buried cache was said to have been stolen from the Chihauhua-Spanish by the Indians during the Indian uprisings. Having no need for the treasure, the Indians carted the goods by horses and mules to the hiding spot after their murderous raids.
Capitan Mountains – A huge store of Aztec Indian treasure in gold bars and rich ore, said to total some $25 million, is located in the Capitan Mountains, possibly in a cave or cavern.
Cimarron – While traveling along the Santa Fe Trail to Independence, Missouri a group of freighters were attacked just three days into their trip. The freighters were carrying 25 bags of gold coins worth about $150,000. Seeing the imminent attack the men buried the gold somewhere between Ute Park and Cimarron, New Mexico in Colfax County. Only one of the men escaped the attack to tell the story, but severely wounded, he died just a few days later. The dying man said that the cache was buried in an area with three large rocks, one of which was “half as large as a house.”
Colfax County – Point of Rocks – In 1851 two pioneers were said to have buried $40,000 in gold coins near a campsite on the old Santa Fe Trail and near the Point of Rocks. The Point of Rocks in Colfax County is on private land, about 8 miles north and 2 miles east of a roadside park on US Highway 56. This landmark was a popular campsite with a nearby spring. There was considerable violence at this site, including the killing of the White Family in 1849. There are graves sites at the point that the money was supposedly buried.
Columbia – A cave, said to filled with a pile of gold Spanish coins literally knee deep, lies on a steep east canyon wall from a ravine on the exact Mexico-New Mexico border west of Columbia. Known to an Apache Indian, who removed several hundred coins in the 1950s, the exact location was lost when he was killed in an auto accident.
Cooney, Grant County – Long ago a stagecoach was robbed at outside of Cooney, in Grant County. The stolen loot was said to have been hidden near Cooney, but it has never been found.
Doubtful Canyon – Another cache from a held up stagecoach is believed to be hidden in Doubtful Canyon near Steins Peak, Hidalgo County.
Grants – Over $100,000 taken from several train robberies is believed to be hidden near the Lava Beds southeast of Grants in Valencia County.
Mount Dora – Devoy’s Peak near Mount Dora was a favorite hideout for outlaws in the late 1800’s. Much of their hidden loot is said to be hidden in the area.
Taos County – Gold bars have been missing for many decades at Tres Piedras in the San Juan Mountains, Taos County.
Tijeras Canyon – There are several treasure historians who believe that the huge Gran Quivera hoard, 1,600 burro loads of gold and silver, is located in the southern Manzano Mountains and possibly in the Hell’s Canyon of the Four Hills area, both near Tijeras Canyon on Highway I-40.
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The Lost Newton Gang Loot
By 1914 Willis Newton was fed up with being a dirt-poor cotton farmer in Uvalde County, Texas. To this, however, the town folks of Uvalde would probably have scoffed, questioning whether the man had ever really worked. By this time, Newton had already gained a reputation as a thief from a young age. Evidently, the Newton brothers had started breaking into stores when they were still kids, and before long, if something went missing, anywhere within hundreds of miles of Uvalde, it was quickly presumed to have been the fault of the Newton boys.
But breaking into stores would not meet the ambitions of four out of five of the Newton boys, as they soon progressed to robbing banks and trains.
Willis was the first to rob the railroad when he and a friend boarded a train at Cline, Texas. After taking everything of value from its passengers, they disembarked just short of Spofford in Kinney County, with some $4,700 in their pockets. Later, when Willis was in Durant, Oklahoma, he joined a gang who robbed a bank in Boswell, making off with some $10,000.
By 1919, four of the five Newton brothers – Willis, Willie “Doc,” Jess, and Joe, were serving time in different prisons for various crimes. However, Willis and Joe were released that year and Willis soon convinced his brother that they should form their own gang. The next year, “Doc” escaped from a prison in Texas and quickly joined his brothers, who were then residing in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The next spring, Jess was released, making up the final member of the gang.
Between 1919 and 1924, the Newton Gang would rob 87 banks and six trains, taking more loot than the Dalton boys, Butch Cassidy, and the James Gang, combined. Stretching all over the United States, the gang hit their home state of Texas, as well as Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, North Dakota, Illinois, Wisconsin, and even Canada.
Most of their bank heists were committed at night after they had cased the joint for several days. Using nitroglycerin, they would blow open the safes, take the cash, and quickly disappear. On one occasion, they robbed two banks in Hondo, Texas on the same night.
Though they preferred to do their “work” at night to avoid meeting anyone, they were known to commit robberies during the day on some occasions, where their victims described them as extremely polite. They went out of their way to make sure that the people in the bank or on the train were comfortable and not too upset, explaining that they would never hurt anyone. And, during these many escapades, they never did.
Amazingly, these many robberies were not connected nor were the Newton brothers ever suspected, that was until, their final robbery which, due to the large amount taken, brought down the combined forces of several law enforcement agencies.
On June 12, 1924, the Newton boys, joined up with two Chicago gangsters, a Chicago racketeer, and a postal inspector, and robbed a train at Rondout, Illinois, netting them more than three million dollars. It was the largest train robbery in history.
Boarding a mail train in Chicago, the Postal Inspector, named William J. Fahyand, along with Willis Newton, forced the train to stop at Rondout and demanded that the mail sacks containing some three million dollars in cash and securities be thrown from the train, enforcing their demands by firing bullets and tear gas into the mail car. In the confusion, Willie “Doc” Newton was hit in the leg by a stray bullet. With the cash, the Newton boys loaded the wounded Willie into a waiting car and took off. However, while they were loading him up, a bystander heard one of them call him “Willie,” which gave authorities a lead on the outlaws.
A few days later, when the police got a tip that a wounded man was being cared for in a north side Chicago house, they followed up and the gang’s plans began to unravel. Within days, Doc, Willis, and Joe Newton had been arrested. However, brother Jess had managed to get out of Chicago and headed towards Texas with about $35,000 in cash from the robbery.
But Jess made a mistake when he decided to get drunk in San Antonio. Sure that he needed to hide the stolen loot, he hired a cab that took him into the country, where he buried the cash. The very next day, he decided he should go to Mexico and returned to dig up the money. However, he couldn’t remember where he buried it. He even located the cab driver who had driven him the night before, but as it turned out, the cab driver had also been drinking and he wasn’t able to remember where they had gone either. After searching for some time, Jess finally abandoned the idea and headed to Mexico anyway. But his freedom was short-lived when a federal agent located him in Via Acuna and brought him back across the border.
All eight were eventually arrested and except for about $100,000 the stolen loot was returned in exchange for lighter sentences. All eight went to prison, with William J. Fahy, the postal official who had masterminded the robbery, receiving the longest sentence of 25 years in the Federal Penitentiary at Leavenworth, Kansas.
After serving their time, the Newton brothers were released from prison and returned to their home town of Uvalde, Texas. Jess Newton lived the remainder of his life as a cowboy in Uvalde. He died on March 4, 1960.
But old habits die hard. In 1968, in Rowena, Texas, Doc Newton, who was by then in his mid-70’s, made a bungled attempt at breaking into the bank. Because of his age, he was turned loose. Doc died in 1974 at the age of 83.
In 1973, Willis Newton was implicated in a bank robbery in Bracketville, Texas, but there wasn’t enough evidence to prove a case against him. Willis died in August of 1979.
Joe Newton became the owner of a cafe along with other small businesses in Uvalde. He died at age 88 in February of 1989.
As to the missing $100,000, it has never been found, even though the Newton brothers, themselves, hunted for it after their release from prison. Willis said that Jess buried the money on top of a hill, where he dug a hole and put a large rock over it. In court and under oath, Jess had testified that he buried the money somewhere along Fredericksburg Road but from what he told his brothers, Willis was convinced it was more likely on the road to Bandera.
updated March 2019.
“We never killed anybody and we never wanted to. All we wanted was the money… Robbing banks and trains was our way of getting it. That was our business.”
— Willis Newton, 1976
MMGYS
https://drloihjournal.blogspot.com/2017/01/the-largest-train-robbery-in-us-history.html
.jpg)
MMGYS
Great To Have You With Us Tonight
Texas Lost Treasure
Texas has more buried treasure than any other state, with 229 sites within the state’s borders, and a total value estimated at $340 million. Here are just some of the Treasure Tales from the Lone Star State; but be cautious, as some of these hidden caches are alleged to be cursed.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Caballo Mountains – Also called Horse Mountains, the peaks are located thirty-five miles north of Las Cruces. Gold bars, silver and jewels were reportedly buried by a spring under the big rocks of Cabello Canyon. The buried cache was said to have been stolen from the Chihauhua-Spanish by the Indians during the Indian uprisings. Having no need for the treasure, the Indians carted the goods by horses and mules to the hiding spot after their murderous raids.
Capitan Mountains – A huge store of Aztec Indian treasure in gold bars and rich ore, said to total some $25 million, is located in the Capitan Mountains, possibly in a cave or cavern.
Cimarron – While traveling along the Santa Fe Trail to Independence, Missouri a group of freighters were attacked just three days into their trip. The freighters were carrying 25 bags of gold coins worth about $150,000. Seeing the imminent attack the men buried the gold somewhere between Ute Park and Cimarron, New Mexico in Colfax County. Only one of the men escaped the attack to tell the story, but severely wounded, he died just a few days later. The dying man said that the cache was buried in an area with three large rocks, one of which was “half as large as a house.”
Colfax County – Point of Rocks – In 1851 two pioneers were said to have buried $40,000 in gold coins near a campsite on the old Santa Fe Trail and near the Point of Rocks. The Point of Rocks in Colfax County is on private land, about 8 miles north and 2 miles east of a roadside park on US Highway 56. This landmark was a popular campsite with a nearby spring. There was considerable violence at this site, including the killing of the White Family in 1849. There are graves sites at the point that the money was supposedly buried.
Columbia – A cave, said to filled with a pile of gold Spanish coins literally knee deep, lies on a steep east canyon wall from a ravine on the exact Mexico-New Mexico border west of Columbia. Known to an Apache Indian, who removed several hundred coins in the 1950s, the exact location was lost when he was killed in an auto accident.
Cooney, Grant County – Long ago a stagecoach was robbed at outside of Cooney, in Grant County. The stolen loot was said to have been hidden near Cooney, but it has never been found.
Doubtful Canyon – Another cache from a held up stagecoach is believed to be hidden in Doubtful Canyon near Steins Peak, Hidalgo County.
Grants – Over $100,000 taken from several train robberies is believed to be hidden near the Lava Beds southeast of Grants in Valencia County.
Mount Dora – Devoy’s Peak near Mount Dora was a favorite hideout for outlaws in the late 1800’s. Much of their hidden loot is said to be hidden in the area.
Taos County – Gold bars have been missing for many decades at Tres Piedras in the San Juan Mountains, Taos County.
Tijeras Canyon – There are several treasure historians who believe that the huge Gran Quivera hoard, 1,600 burro loads of gold and silver, is located in the southern Manzano Mountains and possibly in the Hell’s Canyon of the Four Hills area, both near Tijeras Canyon on Highway I-40.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The Lost Newton Gang Loot
By 1914 Willis Newton was fed up with being a dirt-poor cotton farmer in Uvalde County, Texas. To this, however, the town folks of Uvalde would probably have scoffed, questioning whether the man had ever really worked. By this time, Newton had already gained a reputation as a thief from a young age. Evidently, the Newton brothers had started breaking into stores when they were still kids, and before long, if something went missing, anywhere within hundreds of miles of Uvalde, it was quickly presumed to have been the fault of the Newton boys.
But breaking into stores would not meet the ambitions of four out of five of the Newton boys, as they soon progressed to robbing banks and trains.
Willis was the first to rob the railroad when he and a friend boarded a train at Cline, Texas. After taking everything of value from its passengers, they disembarked just short of Spofford in Kinney County, with some $4,700 in their pockets. Later, when Willis was in Durant, Oklahoma, he joined a gang who robbed a bank in Boswell, making off with some $10,000.
By 1919, four of the five Newton brothers – Willis, Willie “Doc,” Jess, and Joe, were serving time in different prisons for various crimes. However, Willis and Joe were released that year and Willis soon convinced his brother that they should form their own gang. The next year, “Doc” escaped from a prison in Texas and quickly joined his brothers, who were then residing in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The next spring, Jess was released, making up the final member of the gang.
Between 1919 and 1924, the Newton Gang would rob 87 banks and six trains, taking more loot than the Dalton boys, Butch Cassidy, and the James Gang, combined. Stretching all over the United States, the gang hit their home state of Texas, as well as Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, North Dakota, Illinois, Wisconsin, and even Canada.
Most of their bank heists were committed at night after they had cased the joint for several days. Using nitroglycerin, they would blow open the safes, take the cash, and quickly disappear. On one occasion, they robbed two banks in Hondo, Texas on the same night.
Though they preferred to do their “work” at night to avoid meeting anyone, they were known to commit robberies during the day on some occasions, where their victims described them as extremely polite. They went out of their way to make sure that the people in the bank or on the train were comfortable and not too upset, explaining that they would never hurt anyone. And, during these many escapades, they never did.
Amazingly, these many robberies were not connected nor were the Newton brothers ever suspected, that was until, their final robbery which, due to the large amount taken, brought down the combined forces of several law enforcement agencies.
On June 12, 1924, the Newton boys, joined up with two Chicago gangsters, a Chicago racketeer, and a postal inspector, and robbed a train at Rondout, Illinois, netting them more than three million dollars. It was the largest train robbery in history.
Boarding a mail train in Chicago, the Postal Inspector, named William J. Fahyand, along with Willis Newton, forced the train to stop at Rondout and demanded that the mail sacks containing some three million dollars in cash and securities be thrown from the train, enforcing their demands by firing bullets and tear gas into the mail car. In the confusion, Willie “Doc” Newton was hit in the leg by a stray bullet. With the cash, the Newton boys loaded the wounded Willie into a waiting car and took off. However, while they were loading him up, a bystander heard one of them call him “Willie,” which gave authorities a lead on the outlaws.
A few days later, when the police got a tip that a wounded man was being cared for in a north side Chicago house, they followed up and the gang’s plans began to unravel. Within days, Doc, Willis, and Joe Newton had been arrested. However, brother Jess had managed to get out of Chicago and headed towards Texas with about $35,000 in cash from the robbery.
But Jess made a mistake when he decided to get drunk in San Antonio. Sure that he needed to hide the stolen loot, he hired a cab that took him into the country, where he buried the cash. The very next day, he decided he should go to Mexico and returned to dig up the money. However, he couldn’t remember where he buried it. He even located the cab driver who had driven him the night before, but as it turned out, the cab driver had also been drinking and he wasn’t able to remember where they had gone either. After searching for some time, Jess finally abandoned the idea and headed to Mexico anyway. But his freedom was short-lived when a federal agent located him in Via Acuna and brought him back across the border.
All eight were eventually arrested and except for about $100,000 the stolen loot was returned in exchange for lighter sentences. All eight went to prison, with William J. Fahy, the postal official who had masterminded the robbery, receiving the longest sentence of 25 years in the Federal Penitentiary at Leavenworth, Kansas.
After serving their time, the Newton brothers were released from prison and returned to their home town of Uvalde, Texas. Jess Newton lived the remainder of his life as a cowboy in Uvalde. He died on March 4, 1960.
But old habits die hard. In 1968, in Rowena, Texas, Doc Newton, who was by then in his mid-70’s, made a bungled attempt at breaking into the bank. Because of his age, he was turned loose. Doc died in 1974 at the age of 83.
In 1973, Willis Newton was implicated in a bank robbery in Bracketville, Texas, but there wasn’t enough evidence to prove a case against him. Willis died in August of 1979.
Joe Newton became the owner of a cafe along with other small businesses in Uvalde. He died at age 88 in February of 1989.
As to the missing $100,000, it has never been found, even though the Newton brothers, themselves, hunted for it after their release from prison. Willis said that Jess buried the money on top of a hill, where he dug a hole and put a large rock over it. In court and under oath, Jess had testified that he buried the money somewhere along Fredericksburg Road but from what he told his brothers, Willis was convinced it was more likely on the road to Bandera.
updated March 2019.
“We never killed anybody and we never wanted to. All we wanted was the money… Robbing banks and trains was our way of getting it. That was our business.”
— Willis Newton, 1976
MMGYS
https://drloihjournal.blogspot.com/2017/01/the-largest-train-robbery-in-us-history.html
.jpg)
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