The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1892-02-06
"A BURIED TREASURE.
Stores of Ancient Coins Recently
Unearthed.
Buried for Century md Accidentally
Discovered by Dredgoru May
/ Iavo Belonged to Capt.
! Kidd.

In the huge buckets of mud dussout
OF the Lower and Windmill islands by
the dredgers' cndlcss-chain SCOOPS there
have come to the surface. quarts of
silver coins whose dates Indicate their
coinage long time prior to the rcvolu-
ton, says the Philadelphia Record. A
peculiarity of the coins is that some
are very large, even of greater diameter
lthan trade dollar, while others are
smaller than any denomination now in
circulation, almost the size of the
widows mite.
Several days ago the captain in charge
OF one of the scows noticed what he
thought to be bright, shining dollars
dropping from the scoops into the
scows and called the attention of the
engineer of the dredging machine, de-
claring that they were bringing up
gold and silver. The engineers reply
was that either the captains eyesirht
was defective or that he was demented.
After the days work had been COM
plcted the scow's master went down
into tho hold of the partially loaded
vessel and with lantern collected over
two hundred and fifty coins of all de-
nominations and sizes, and could have
recovered as many more had it not
been for the darkness and the impossi-
bility Of working while the vessel was
rolling about with the tides and winds.
United States Inspector Pearson, who
has charge of the spreading of the ma
'terial from the fnlsometer to the
grounds ut League island, had his at
tention called to the bright objects
shining through the material as it was
discharged, and in short time Sc
cured many specimens. Among those
found at the dumping grounds were a
4 silver coin issued in 1890, foreign sill
YER coin the size of q dollar marked
100 and another 1742, a small dark
coin marked 1T13, and numerous small
coins on which the dates cannot be dis
tinguishcd. All of the gold coins, which
are about the size of ten-dollar pold
piece, have been found on the island,
and none have yet come to light from
the dumping ground, and they are sup
posed TO have been separated from the
mud and sunk, the pumps not having
sufficient capacity to reach the bottom
of the river
The treasure hns been located at the
extreme southwcstcrly end, where the
sanitarium was formerly located, on
Windmill island, the only spot where
the drcdgcrs have done any work worth
speaking of. 1t is believed that there
is much more hidden treasure near the
same spot which will be recovered
when the dredges resume work in re-
moving the great harbor obstruction.
No one has yet been able to tell where
the coin came from. 1t must have been
buried there century or moro ago, but q
good many of those who have heard of
the discoveries believe that Capt. Kidd's
treasure is found at last. Many years
ago vessel arrived here from San Do
mingo consigned to Stephen Girard with
a cargo of coin which political refugees
had stolen from the treasury of San Do
mingo city and anchored directly off
Windmill island. Girard only received
about one-half of what was marked on
the vessels manifcsts, and up to the
present time nothing was known of the
whereabouts of the balance, and it is
supposed to have been stolen from the
vessel and buried on the island, where
1T lay until the drcdgers turned it up.