With just some old stories and legends, treasure hunters spend years toiling away in search of long-lost treasure that may or may not even exist. Not only are they attracted to the monetary value of the treasure, many treasure hunters long to find and be a part of history.
For years, a father and son from Pennsylvania have worked tirelessly to find a long-lost treasure from the Civil War. Yet, according to the FBI, all their hard work was for nothing as an excavation team came back empty-handed. However, the treasure hunters now believe the FBI isn’t being completely honest and are demanding answers.
A Treasure Hunter’s Dream
For decades, treasure hunters throughout the United States have heard stories of a shipment of gold. According to the legend, the gold got lost or stolen in Pennsylvania during the Civil War. Allegedly, the Union Army dispatched two wagons around the time of the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg.
A Fortune Worth Protecting
According to the legends, the shipment contained somewhere between 26 to 52 bars of gold – each bar allegedly weighing 50 pounds. Today, it has been estimated that the amount of gold would be worth around $50 million. While it wouldn’t have been worth that much back in 1863 because of inflation and the price of gold, it was still worth a fortune.
An Indirect Route
As a result, the Union Army took precautions to make sure it made it safely to the destination. Rather than take a main, more direct route, the Union Army ordered the shipment to be taken using an indirect route through the remote wilderness of northern Pennsylvania.
An Important Job
While it would take more time, they hoped it would keep the shipment from being intercepted by Confederate troops or thieves. The wagons were loaded with the gold and were ordered to deliver it from Wheeling, West Virginia to Philadelphia. According to stories, the wagons were operated by a man named Castleton, a Union lieutenant.
The Legend
Castleton had the help of a civilian guide named Connors and eight cavalrymen. Castleton was allegedly the only one involved in the shipment that knew what the wagons held. But what happened after the crew set out from West Virginia has been highly debated. Some claim that Castleton got sick with fever and revealed the treasure that was on board to the men. When Connors learned of the treasure, some believe he sent two of the cavalrymen to get medical help. By the time they got back, Connors and the six other men made off with all the gold.
The Other Version of The Story
In another version of the story, Connors was the lone survivor after the shipment was ambushed by backcountry bushwhackers. According to Connors, the men raided the wagons and stole all of the gold. However, many experts doubt if either version of the story is even real.
Up For Debate
According to Chris Novak, a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, no lost gold or proof of lost gold has ever been found in the area where the shipment allegedly traveled through. In addition, there’s no record of a Lieutenant Castleton. “There’s no documentation, description, letter, official report, no paper trail,” Allen C. Guelzo, a Gettysburg College history professor told the Pittsburgh Post Gazette in 2008.
A Captivating Tale
Despite questions over the legitimacy of the stories, treasure hunters have spent decades looking for the long-lost treasure. According to Dennis Parada, he first heard the legend of the treasure in 1975. The story inspired Parada, who had been working in a furniture store at the time, to become a treasure hunter. He dreamed of finally being the one to find the fabled treasure.
Searching For The Treasure
For the past five years, he and his son, Kem, spent countless hours searching the wilderness of northern Pennsylvania for any trace of the gold. After years searching, it seemed their hard work had paid off. The pair believed they had found the Civil War gold with the help of high-end tools like metal detectors drills, and scientific instruments that indicated there were precious metals buried on state-owned land. Rather than dig it up illegally, the father and son duo went straight to the FBI with their discovery.
A Second Opinion
After presenting their evidence, the FBI hired a contractor to go to the site and use a device called a gravimeter to scan the land to double check the Parada’s findings. However, the scan showed the pair had discovered a much bigger treasure than they ever imagined. The scan revealed there was a large metallic mass with the same density of gold under the ground.
The Plan
The mass was estimated to be somewhere between seven to nine tons. If the entire mass was gold, the treasure would be worth more than $250 million. At that point, a court-sanctioned excavation was planned to begin on March 13, 2018. During the planning, the Paradas reached an agreement with the FBI to allow them to watch the excavation.
The Dig Begins
However, when they showed up at the dig site on March 13, the pair were ordered to stay in a car out of sight of the excavation. At 3 p.m. that first day, the Paradas were brought up to the site where they were told digging for the day was over despite needing to dig just three feet more. The Paradas couldn’t understand how they could just stop with the treasure so close, but they were assured the dig would continue the next day.
A Witness Speaks Out
However, now the Paradas doubt that the FBI actually stopped working that day. According to Cheryl Elder, who lives near the excavation site, she heard the sound of jackhammers and machinery until 2 a.m. “It was just real loud all night,” Elder told the Associated Press. “It was driving me nuts.”
Walking Away Empty Handed
The following day, the Paradas were ordered to sit in the car again for a few hours. Eventually, they were brought up to the dig site and saw a giant, empty hole in the ground. There was no sign of gold or a metal mass anywhere. “We were embarrassed,” Parada said. “They walk us in, and they make us look like dummies. Like we messed up,” Parada added. The FBI agents claimed there was nothing buried in the ground and that they were packing up. However, Parada and Kem knew something didn’t feel right.
Demanding Answers
“After my years of experience here using equipment, there was something here, something here of value, some kind of precious metal. And whatever it is, it’s gone now. And that’s what I want to get to the bottom of, is what was in that hole,” Kem said.
A Bold Accusation
The Paradas aren’t the only ones who believe the FBI found something that day. “I know they found gold,” Elder said. “I know they found it, and they’re being sneaky.” According to Elder, she saw about six black SUVs at the excavation site after the Paradas left. Elder watched as the SUVs met up with several all-terrain vehicles at the site. Agents allegedly proceeded to transfer something from the ATVs to the SUVs. Elder explained she tried to see what was being transferred with binoculars, but couldn’t get a clear view.
The Other Witnesses
Heather Selle, who lives nearby, also claims she saw a convoy of FBI vehicles including two armored trucks on the second morning of the excavation. “There was too many people involved, there was too much hush-hush, and there’s been too much seen,” another resident, Garrett Osche, said.
A Sealed Investigation
“Why do you close the road down if you’re not loading something out? If you’re not sneaking something,” Osche added. “Why do you need to do what they did?” The Paradas are now determined to get answers about what the FBI took from the ground. Unfortunately, the court documents related to the dig are now sealed.
A Priceless Moment
“You can only dig the gold up once, and that’s a historical moment. And here we were robbed of all that,” Parada said. “I don’t understand why they played that game on us.” The FBI has since denied all allegations that they found the treasure, but the Paradas don’t believe them. One reason the FBI might be lying about the treasure is that there would likely be a court battle over who owns the treasure and if the Paradas are entitled to a portion of it.
The Fight For Answers Continues
The Paradas have since hired a lawyer, Bill Cluck, who has filed a Freedom of Information Act request for documents about the excavation. Recently, the Justice Department has ordered the FBI to review their documents and determine if any can be released. However, the Paradas might be years away from getting any answers. “There was definitely some kind of precious metal based on the readings of the instruments at the site,” Cluck told AP. “The fact they wouldn’t let them be there for the dig, it’s suspicious as hell and it doesn’t have to be.”
Treasure Hunters Demand Answers After Civil War Treasure Vanishes is an article from: LifeDaily