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The Victorio Peak treasure (also seen in print as the Treasure of Victorio Peak or Treasure of San Andres) describes a cache of gold reportedly found inside
The treasure was allegedly found in 1937 by American businessman and gold prospector Milton Ernest "Doc" Noss. While there have been multiple documented expeditions to the peak, no gold has been officially recorded as being recovered from the site. Noss was ultimately killed by an associate, Charley Ryan, in 1949 after Ryan accused Noss of fraud and Noss threatened to kill Ryan and his family.
A 1961 search by the
The Victorio Peak treasure (also seen in print as the Treasure of Victorio Peak or Treasure of San Andres) describes a cache of gold reportedly found inside Victorio Peak
Victorio Peak is a high rocky outcropping in the Hembrillo Basin in southern New Mexico. This was one of Chief Victorio's hideouts, and was the site of a battle in 1880 between Victorio's Apaches and the U.S. Army Ninth Cavalry "Buffalo Soldi ...
in 1937 in southern New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
.
History
The treasure was allegedly found in 1937 by American businessman and gold prospector Milton Ernest "Doc" Noss. While there have been multiple documented expeditions to the peak, no gold has been officially recorded as being recovered from the site. Noss was ultimately killed by an associate, Charley Ryan, in 1949 after Ryan accused Noss of fraud and Noss threatened to kill Ryan and his family.
A 1961 search by the U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
—the peak lies within White Sands Missile Range
White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) is a United States Army military testing area and firing range located in the US state of New Mexico. The range was originally established as the White Sands Proving Ground on 9July 1945. White Sands National P ...
—was stopped following a request to state officials by Noss's first wife, Ova. She later was part of an unsuccessful 1963 search. During the 1970s, lawyer F. Lee Bailey
Francis Lee Bailey Jr. (June 10, 1933 – June 3, 2021) was an American criminal defense attorney. Bailey's name first came to nationwide attention for his involvement in the second murder trial of Sam Sheppard, a surgeon accused of murdering ...
represented clients who claimed to know where the treasure was located. By 1992, a grandson of Ova formed the Ova Noss Family Partnership to finance additional searching. The partnership conducted unsuccessful searches until March 1996, when the Army suspended their access.
Theories abound on the origins of the alleged treasure, including that it was pilfered from Mexico during the reign of the Austrian puppet Emperor Maximilian, or through collusion between Pancho Villa
Francisco "Pancho" Villa (,"Villa"
''Collins English Dictionary''. ; ;
and Germany prior to World War I.
''Collins English Dictionary''. ; ;
In media
The reported treasure and efforts to find it have been covered in books and on television, including: * a September 1977 segment of ''60 Minutes
''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique styl ...
'' by Dan Rather
Daniel Irvin Rather Jr. (; born October 31, 1931) is an American journalist, commentator, and former national evening news anchor. Rather began his career in Texas, becoming a national name after his reporting saved thousands of lives during Hurr ...
, who also interviewed Ova Noss
* the 1978 book ''100 Tons of Gold
''100 Tons of Gold'' is a non-fiction book written by David Leon Chandler and published by Doubleday in 1978. It chronicles the search for gold treasure inside the Victorio Peak, New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexi ...
'' by David Leon Chandler David Leon Chandler (May 26, 1937 – January 23, 1994) was an American journalist who wrote several historical and biographical books during the 1970s and 1980s. He was associated with early coverage of the Kennedy Assassination and was mentioned i ...
* the television show ''Unsolved Mysteries
''Unsolved Mysteries'' is an American mystery documentary television show, created by John Cosgrove and Terry Dunn Meurer. Documenting cold cases and paranormal phenomena, it began as a series of seven specials, presented by Raymond Burr, Karl ...
''; originally on May 10, 1989, and an update on February 11, 1990
* a 2008 book co-authored by Robert Boswell {{Infobox person
, name = Robert Boswell
, image =
, caption =
, birth_name =
, birth_date = {{Birth date and age, 1953, 12, 08
, birth_place = Missouri, USA
, death_date =
, death_place =
, nationality = American
, ...
, titled '' What Men Call Treasure''
* a six-part television series titled ''Gold, Lies & Videotape'', which debuted on Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel (known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery) is an American cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav. , Discovery Channe ...
in January 2023
See also
*Battle of Hembrillo Basin
The Battle of Hembrillo Basin was fought April 5–8, 1880 between the United States Army against a combined band of Chiricahua and Mescalero Apaches led by Chief Victorio. Hembrillo Basin was the largest battle of Victorio's War, although casual ...
, an 1880 battle between the U.S. Army and Apaches led by Chief Victorio
* Executive Order 6102
Executive Order 6102 is an executive order signed on April 5, 1933, by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt "forbidding the hoarding of gold coin, gold bullion, and gold certificates within the continental United States." The executive order was ...
, a 1933 action that limited gold ownership in the United States
Notes
References
Further reading
* * *Jameson, W.C. (2014). ''Treasure Hunter: A Memoir of Caches, Curses, and Confrontations'' Taylor Trade Publishing, Lanham, MD. {{ISBN, 978-1-58979-992-9 New Mexico folklore Treasure of the United States