Most of the families lived in Bedford and Botetourt counties.
The Risqué/Beale duel was fought in Fincastle.
The Lewis & Clark Expedition departed from Fincastle.
Pascal Buford came into contact with Thomas Beale during the Battle of New Orleans.
Both Kennerly and Hutter families has connections to St Louis.
William Clark married Julia Hancock, over whom the Risqué/Beale duel was fought.
Growing up, Ward and his Hutter cousins would have heard these family stories...
...stories that were adapted for the Beale Papers.
The Hutters both served the Confederacy, as well as friend, Max Guggenheimer, and were versed in CSA codes.
J P Risqué and party were massacred by Indians while inspecting gold/silver mines in Gold Gulch, Arizona.
Then will have Ward's cousin, John William Sherman, with a gift for the dramatic, who wrote plays for the local thespian group, and had a print shop, was a sub-editor for the LYNCHBURG VIRGINIAN, where the job pamphlet was advertised for sale, and eventually bought that newspaper.
Yes, this may well be a string of coincidences, but it is well beyond just happenstance, and could serve well as a foundation for a western treasure adventure dime novel that ends in Bedford county.
WHAT were the "illegally obtained priceless items"...? 
