Gypsy Heart
Gold Member
Following 1937 Story of Buried Gold, Family Searches New Mexico's Sands
Published: July 29, 1992
The mystery boils down to a single question: Was Milton (Doc) Noss telling the truth, or just a tall tale?
The answer could be worth billions of dollars.
It is one of the most celebrated legends of buried treasure in the history of the American West, a thriller that includes a gunfight, nuclear weapons and the Watergate hearings.
It all started in 1937, when Mr. Noss, who practiced as a foot doctor though it was never clear if he had a medical license, returned from a hunting trip at New Mexico's Victorio Peak with startling news: he had glimpsed a hidden trove of riches, 16,000 gold bars. Decades of Searching
Ever since then, driven by a desire to become fabulously wealthy, Mr. Noss himself, his descendants, investors and soldiers at White Sands Missile Range, which includes Victorio Peak, have gone in time after time searching for treasure, but have always come up empty. Now, cleared to go by an act of Congress, the best-equipped search ever is under way with $1 million in backing from the descendants and some investors. It could finally solve the mystery.
"We have always believed that the gold was still there," said Terry Delonas, the 43-year-old son of one of Mr. Noss's stepdaughters who is directing the search.
In a hunt that began last Thursday, Mr. Delonas's group has been given one year to search for the gold.
The Army, which runs the missile range, required the searchers to put up $150,000 to cover the cost of environmental assessments, as well as increased security forces.
The family believes that as much as 100 tons of gold, which would be worth $1.25 billion at today's closing price of $358.90 an ounce on the Commodity Exchange in New York, remains hidden in the cavern. They believe that sophisticated equipment like devices to take soundings showing whether there are underground caves will help this search succeed where other ventures failed.
The initial soundings appear to indicate a cavern precisely where Mr. Noss described. Under the direction of Mr. Delonas, the searchers have been analyzing their findings in a temporary office at Las Cruces, about 25 miles south of Victoria Peak. Searching with 15 people at a time to try to determine the size of the cave, the group in a few weeks plans to start drilling 6-inch holes several hundred feet deep into the areas where the soundings show the cave is.
Mr. Noss, a traveling doctor who was known for a hot temper and an appetite for liquor, claimed that the cache consisted of Spanish artifacts and Wells Fargo chests, along with the gold.
He supposedly told his wife: "We can make John D. Rockefeller look like a tramp."
According to the family, Mr. Noss took some gold bars when he found the cavern in 1937, and planned to return for the rest. But while trying to blast his way to the gold in 1939, he accidentally closed the hole. A Partner and a Gunfight
For the next few years, Mr. Noss sought partners to help him find the gold. During World War II, he divorced his wife, Ova, and disappeared for several years.
Ova Noss took up the search, without success. Mr. Noss returned in the late 1940's with a new wife, and a business partner. He remained steadfast in his belief that the treasure remained, according to family members.
But in a dispute over the treasure in 1949, the business partner, Charlie Ryan, shot Mr. Noss to death. A jury ruled that Mr. Ryan had acted in self-defense.
Mr. Noss's ex-wife was barred from searching in the 1950's, when the Army extended the White Sands borders to include Victorio Peak. White Sands is the nation's largest military installation, about the size of Delaware and Rhode Island combined. The world's first atomic bomb was detonated here on July 16, 1945. Topic at Watergate Hearings
After some airmen from a nearby air force base claimed they found some gold at Victorio Peak, the Army and Secret Service began a secret search in 1961. Two local ranch workers stumbled upon the search and notified Mrs. Noss. She appealed to state officials, who forced the search to stop. The Army says the gold was never found.
In 1963, the Army allowed a group of searchers, including Mrs. Noss, to search for the gold. But the expedition soon went broke, and the Army declared that it would allow no more searches.
But the legend of the hidden gold was fueled again during the Watergate hearings in 1973. John Dean, the former lawyer for President Richard M. Nixon, mentioned that Attorney General John Mitchell had been asked to pull strings to allow some searchers to look for the gold.
Suddenly, a host of people surfaced to lay claims on the legendary gold treasure. The flamboyant lawyer F. Lee Bailey once said he represented 50 unnamed clients. Mr. Bailey claimed that given a helicopter and a half-hour, he could find 292 gold bars.
Mr. Bailey later dropped the matter. But in 1977, the Army agreed to allow some searchers with competing claims, including Mrs. Noss, to search the grounds. They found nothing.
Through the years, soldiers at White Sands have spent weekends looking for the gold. 'Like Any Other Client'
Parts of White Sands are sometimes leased by private corporations and foreign governments for experiments. American and foreign car makers have rented land at the installation to test new air bags.
"We're treating the gold searchers just like any other client," said Jim Eckles, a spokesman for the White Sands range.
Mr. Delonas said the legend of the buried treasure obsessed the family for generations. As a child, he said he remembered his grandmother, Ova Noss, talking about it ceaselessly.
He said he often grew angry that his grandmother was ignored or ridiculed for her efforts. In 1979, he sold a small mail-order business to devote full time to the search.
He has recruited friends and investors to form the Ova Noss Family Partnership, named for his late grandmother, that is financing the new search.
If nothing else, he said, an exhaustive search would lay to rest a question that has driven the family for more than 50 years.
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpa...93AA15754C0A964958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2
Published: July 29, 1992
The mystery boils down to a single question: Was Milton (Doc) Noss telling the truth, or just a tall tale?
The answer could be worth billions of dollars.
It is one of the most celebrated legends of buried treasure in the history of the American West, a thriller that includes a gunfight, nuclear weapons and the Watergate hearings.
It all started in 1937, when Mr. Noss, who practiced as a foot doctor though it was never clear if he had a medical license, returned from a hunting trip at New Mexico's Victorio Peak with startling news: he had glimpsed a hidden trove of riches, 16,000 gold bars. Decades of Searching
Ever since then, driven by a desire to become fabulously wealthy, Mr. Noss himself, his descendants, investors and soldiers at White Sands Missile Range, which includes Victorio Peak, have gone in time after time searching for treasure, but have always come up empty. Now, cleared to go by an act of Congress, the best-equipped search ever is under way with $1 million in backing from the descendants and some investors. It could finally solve the mystery.
"We have always believed that the gold was still there," said Terry Delonas, the 43-year-old son of one of Mr. Noss's stepdaughters who is directing the search.
In a hunt that began last Thursday, Mr. Delonas's group has been given one year to search for the gold.
The Army, which runs the missile range, required the searchers to put up $150,000 to cover the cost of environmental assessments, as well as increased security forces.
The family believes that as much as 100 tons of gold, which would be worth $1.25 billion at today's closing price of $358.90 an ounce on the Commodity Exchange in New York, remains hidden in the cavern. They believe that sophisticated equipment like devices to take soundings showing whether there are underground caves will help this search succeed where other ventures failed.
The initial soundings appear to indicate a cavern precisely where Mr. Noss described. Under the direction of Mr. Delonas, the searchers have been analyzing their findings in a temporary office at Las Cruces, about 25 miles south of Victoria Peak. Searching with 15 people at a time to try to determine the size of the cave, the group in a few weeks plans to start drilling 6-inch holes several hundred feet deep into the areas where the soundings show the cave is.
Mr. Noss, a traveling doctor who was known for a hot temper and an appetite for liquor, claimed that the cache consisted of Spanish artifacts and Wells Fargo chests, along with the gold.
He supposedly told his wife: "We can make John D. Rockefeller look like a tramp."
According to the family, Mr. Noss took some gold bars when he found the cavern in 1937, and planned to return for the rest. But while trying to blast his way to the gold in 1939, he accidentally closed the hole. A Partner and a Gunfight
For the next few years, Mr. Noss sought partners to help him find the gold. During World War II, he divorced his wife, Ova, and disappeared for several years.
Ova Noss took up the search, without success. Mr. Noss returned in the late 1940's with a new wife, and a business partner. He remained steadfast in his belief that the treasure remained, according to family members.
But in a dispute over the treasure in 1949, the business partner, Charlie Ryan, shot Mr. Noss to death. A jury ruled that Mr. Ryan had acted in self-defense.
Mr. Noss's ex-wife was barred from searching in the 1950's, when the Army extended the White Sands borders to include Victorio Peak. White Sands is the nation's largest military installation, about the size of Delaware and Rhode Island combined. The world's first atomic bomb was detonated here on July 16, 1945. Topic at Watergate Hearings
After some airmen from a nearby air force base claimed they found some gold at Victorio Peak, the Army and Secret Service began a secret search in 1961. Two local ranch workers stumbled upon the search and notified Mrs. Noss. She appealed to state officials, who forced the search to stop. The Army says the gold was never found.
In 1963, the Army allowed a group of searchers, including Mrs. Noss, to search for the gold. But the expedition soon went broke, and the Army declared that it would allow no more searches.
But the legend of the hidden gold was fueled again during the Watergate hearings in 1973. John Dean, the former lawyer for President Richard M. Nixon, mentioned that Attorney General John Mitchell had been asked to pull strings to allow some searchers to look for the gold.
Suddenly, a host of people surfaced to lay claims on the legendary gold treasure. The flamboyant lawyer F. Lee Bailey once said he represented 50 unnamed clients. Mr. Bailey claimed that given a helicopter and a half-hour, he could find 292 gold bars.
Mr. Bailey later dropped the matter. But in 1977, the Army agreed to allow some searchers with competing claims, including Mrs. Noss, to search the grounds. They found nothing.
Through the years, soldiers at White Sands have spent weekends looking for the gold. 'Like Any Other Client'
Parts of White Sands are sometimes leased by private corporations and foreign governments for experiments. American and foreign car makers have rented land at the installation to test new air bags.
"We're treating the gold searchers just like any other client," said Jim Eckles, a spokesman for the White Sands range.
Mr. Delonas said the legend of the buried treasure obsessed the family for generations. As a child, he said he remembered his grandmother, Ova Noss, talking about it ceaselessly.
He said he often grew angry that his grandmother was ignored or ridiculed for her efforts. In 1979, he sold a small mail-order business to devote full time to the search.
He has recruited friends and investors to form the Ova Noss Family Partnership, named for his late grandmother, that is financing the new search.
If nothing else, he said, an exhaustive search would lay to rest a question that has driven the family for more than 50 years.
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpa...93AA15754C0A964958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2
