The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1903-11-20
the NEWEST
TREASURE SHIP
Silver Was Used as Ballast on
the Vessel Wrecked Off
Florida Coast.
WHERE COIN WAS HIDDEN
A Negro Sailor Was the Only Survivor
and He Couldn't Tell Except When
Drunk-Now Others Have
Found 1t.

After a search of years the wreck OF
the Spanish treasure ship reported to
have gone ashore in 1885 near Miami,
Fla, has at last been discovered. The
supposed cargo of silver bars in the
wreck has been libelled in the United
States court n a marshal put in
charge of digging the ancient vessel out
Of the sand.
According to the story told by old
inhabitants only one person, a negro
sailor, escaped when the vessel went
ashore. He sailed for New York soon
after the event, and later contided the
secret of the treasure-ship to O we'll
known sailor character called Uncle
Ned Pent," who was familiar with
Florida waters. He was an ignorant
man, but skillful as a BOAT builder and
sailor.
Unfortunately he was unable to or
gan1ze a company to search for the
treasure, for he drank to excess, and 1t
Would talk. During his spree he gave
away all the facts about the treasure
ship, but no n would believe him be-
cause he was drunk. When he became
sober and companions sought to verify
wha he had stated while in his cups
he had nothing to say, and 80 they
concluded that the story was a ro-
nance and unworthy Of investigation,
When not intoxicated on lane Uncle
Pent' was sailing the raging seas, and.
Of course, could not be interviewed.
Afterward he spent considerable time
securing the beach for ten miles in
search of the treasure ship, which had
been buried in sand, leaving only a
broken mast above the waste Of the
Florida coast.
Between paroxysms Of drinking and
cruising he continued his search, and
finally in 1859 located a wreck which
he was sure answered the description
he had received from the negro sur
V1vor. On examination he found sew
eral bars or ingots, which he decided.
after taking q few drinks, were only
lead, and, being short Of cash and anx-
1ous to make a cruise, he loaded his
GOAT with the metal, using it as much
needed ballast. Then he proceeded to
Key West, and, finding money plentiful
and liquor on every side, he spent his
money and sold his boat to get more.
n man who purchased the boat with
Its curious ballast was not long in discov-
er1ng the character OF the bars. The re-
suit was a handsome clean up" and the
assayer Of the bullion was sought to dis
cover whence 1t came. This made the
new owner of the boat wary. He kept
the secret to himself, and returned to Kew
West In search of the original owner for
particulars of where the silver came
from. But Uncle New Pent' had spent
AAAo SAbS " Iull dIlQ shipped as a, SAIL
or to South America before the man re-
turned.
About this time the Civil war came and
Uncle Ned was SO busy In blockade run
ming that he had no time to look for the
old wreck with Its silver bars. He had
heard of the great luck of the man who
bought his boat and sold the lead for
solid silver. After the war was over he
found that storms HAD destroyed the
wreck or covered 1t SO deeply with sand
that not a vestige could be found.
a New Search Began.
Meanwhile the negro sailC.' who had
fed to New York so impressed a citizen
of that city with the story of the treas
ure ship that he formed a company to
look for 1t. and spent thousands Of dol
lars in vain search. When he had ex-
hausted his funds he got a position in
the neighbeIhood and for years, after
every storm. he travelled UP and dow
the beach. hoping to find trace Of the an
cient ship. This searching was taken up
by different parties and continued for
years, in fact for half a century until the
beach and even back Of the trees for
miles became filled with picks and aban-
doned implements Of the men who had
vainly sought the precious cargo.
All this naturally tended to excite others
to take up the search. Men came with
long steel rods, sharpened to a point, with
which they prodded the sand. Recently,
something, evidently wood, was struck at
a point thirty or forty miles above Miami.
A squad of men with 'shovels dug way
the sand and finally came upon the wreck
OF a ship and then proceedings followed
In the courts. The wreck was libelled
and a force Of men then began the ex-
humation of the ship.
1t is said that she was used to carry
trp9 Sllra from havi1N To fE11rnna onI II:
was during one of these voyages that she
went ashore In a great storm. The treas
ure ships used In those days for carry
ing bullion were built in the strongest
manner. with a row of bunkers and lock-
ers constructed along each side of the
vessel of heavy oak timbers, strapped and
braced with iron. bolted and riveted to
the ship itself, that they could not be torn
away without destroying a part of TIE
vessel.
Where tho Treasure Was Hidden.
1t was in these lockers that TIE
precious metal was hidden-an equal
amount distributed on either side to trim
the ship and make her sail on even kc..-
During the recent search workmen used
suction pumps in removing the sand. IT
Is said that experts with augers bored
along one side of the vessel and found
the lockers and treasure Intact. This
they proved by finding a quantity of sill
yer SfaVlnSS mixed with the oak hor-
ings. These metallic shavings were sent
to an assayer and he reported 90 per cent.
of pure silver as the result. The vessel
appears to be about 100 feet long. Enough
Of her has been uncovered to show she
came ashore bow on. At high water her
bow Is several feet below the surface
while her stern drops off in water twice
as deep. On being libelled in the United
States court of Florida the lucky disccv-
erer was appointed wrecking master.
1t is thought that a cofferdam of iron
fence will have to be built around the hull
to keep out water and sand while the
ship is being pumped out preparatory 10
reaching her cargo of silver bars, AL OF
which will require much labor and time
AS to the exact value of the ingots--
whether a million or many millions, nc,
one knows.
Same Old Plant.
Chicago News: 'Drat the. iuci!.'