Jessie james

I think it more likely stems from a bottle of Buzzard's Roost Whiskey.
 

Jesse James association to Buzzard's Roost is a place near the town of Cement Oklahoma which is about 30 miles from where I live. Back in the 1930's a man supposedly unearthed a copper pot with some items in it and if I remember correctly, there was some sort of treasure map etched on it. I've been by the place several times but it looks like private property to me and I have no clue who owns it.

 

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I think this might be the alleged bucket?

bucket found buzzard roost.jpg



Crow
 

The bucket story sounds fishy to me. They were outlaws. Why bother with a written contract at all, especially one carved into a bucket. It's as worthless as the bucket it's carved into. It's not like they're going to waltz into court with their bucket and demand someone return their share of stolen gold.
 

Of course. 1934 height of great depression people was desperate for money from some one richer then them. If you know the back story it rings many alarm bells.

Some thing does not quite add up.

Crow
 

One version of the story of the alleged story.

In March of 1934, Joe Hunter, an avid treasure hunter, was combing through the rugged granite boulders near Bear Springs in the Wichita Mountains of southwest Oklahoma. On that day, he discovered a brass bucket. The find would make history, due to its unique inscription. On the bottom of the bucket was a patent date of Dec. 16th, 1851, extended in 1873, and manufactured by E. Miller and Company. The bucket was a treasure in itself.

Chiseled deep into its sides fifty-eight years prior to Joe’s discovery was an outlaw contract which formed a bounty bank for all who would sign below. These outlaws had made their mark on a contract which stated, “This the V March 1876 in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy six. We the undersigned do this day organize a banty bank. We will go to the west side of the Keechi Hills which is about fifty yards from a crossed set of rifles. Follow the trail line coming through the mountains just east of lone hill where we buried Jack, his grave is east of a rock. This contract made and entered into this V day of March 1876. This gold shall belong to who signs below.” Carved into the bucket were the names: Jesse James, Frank Miller, George Overton, Rub Busse, Charlie Jones, Cole Younger, Will Overton, Uncle George Payne, Frank James, Roy Baxter, Bud Dalton, and Zack Smith.

Though many clues had been found, Hunter and his partners searched for more than a decade for the elusive treasure without success. The Lawton Constitution dated Sunday, February 29th, 1948, featured the story of Hunter and his long quest for hidden treasure. The story spread like wildfire across the nation. It was Hunters’ hope that, by coming forward with news of his discoveries, he might be given the final clues to unearth the long-sought treasure.

What Joe Hunter failed to realize was that the bucket contract itself was the map needed to find the gold. The bounty bank was hidden in an area some thirty miles to the northeast of where the James Gang had camped and hidden the bucket. Just a mile east of Cement, Oklahoma, stands a lone hill that has made a unique landmark for travelers throughout the ages. Known locally as Buzzard Roost, this hill is where Hunter unearthed a cast-iron tea kettle containing gold, coins, a pocket watch, and a copper treasure map, but that is another story altogether.

Buzzard Roost happens to lie in a set of limestone hills known as the Keechi Hills. This same lone hill happens to be the one mentioned in the brass bucket contract. On the north side of the Roost was carved a set of crossed rifles. Time and the elements have long since erased this important clue, but an aged photo taken in the late 1940’s shows a clue never reported by Joe Hunter.

I discovered this clue while looking through some old photos that had belonged to Hunter. The picture taken from the top of Buzzard Roost and looking toward the northeast clearly shows the name JACK spelled out using rocks. A rock with a carving of a pistol had been found by Joe just to the west of where JACK lay and due north of the Roost. This rock was another clue that had been mentioned in the contract code.

Having gone public with his story of the James gang brass bucket contract, Joe hoped to profit from his sudden celebrity status. He soon sold the brass bucket to a group of Texans, but upon their departure with the bucket they cancelled the check used as payment. Joe was forced to travel to Texas to recover his beloved bucket. After Hunter’s death, the brass bucket disappeared into history. It wasn’t until I was given a lead informing me that it was in the collection of Craig Fouts, a noted western memorabilia collector, that the bucket’s location was revealed.

It is still unknown how much of the bounty bank remains to be found. What is known is that part of the loot was uncovered in the early 1900’s by workers digging a pipeline northeast of the Roost. The value of the fortune they discovered in the ditch they were digging is anyone’s guess, but it was reportedly enough that they walked off the job never to return.

Crow
 

Jesse James association to Buzzard's Roost is a place near the town of Cement Oklahoma which is about 30 miles from where I live. Back in the 1930's a man supposedly unearthed a copper pot with some items in it and if I remember correctly, there was some sort of treasure map etched on it. I've been by the place several times but it looks like private property to me and I have no clue who owns it.


I'm curious why y'all keep going on our property without asking permission, we are the owners of Buzzard Roost..
 

I'm curious why y'all keep going on our property without asking permission, we are the owners of Buzzard Roost..
Good question. Some people aren't patient enough to search for the property owner.

I saw a tv program, several years ago, that showed a few guys at the hill. It was an interesting show. I seem to remember a wire fence between the road and the hill, and I wondered if one of them owned the property. It would be a very interesting property to own.

Sounds like an income opportunity for you and your family.
 

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I'm curious why y'all keep going on our property without asking permission, we are the owners of Buzzard Roost..

Since you quoted me, my response to you is that I've never stepped foot on the property so you can exclude me from "ya'll". I don't go on anyone's property without permission of the owner.
 

Good question. Some people aren't patient enough to search for the property owner.

I saw a tv program, several years ago, that showed a few guys at the hill. It was an interesting show. I seem to remember a wire fence between the road and the hill, and I wondered if one of them owned the property. It would be a very interesting property to own.

Sounds like an income opportunity for you and your family.
We have it rented out to a guy who will be hunting it this year and then we also have a few treasure hunters from Pennsylvania who are renting it, we now have the sheriff's who have agreed to keep an eye on it and also we have some cameras set up but we're still working on getting more cameras put up. Yeah I get that people don't have the patience to look for the owner but that just shows how people could care less about someone else's property. Again we don't mind people going out there I don't think we've ever told anyone that they could not we just think it's appropriate for them to ask for permission because that's how I was raised, I would never go on someone's property unless they gave me permission and I think it's only right they do the same with me.
 

Finding a property owner is as easy as buying a subscription to the phone app "OnX Hunt". You can find the name and address listed in the records office anywhere in the country for any parcel. That being said, I think it is wrong to disrespect any property owner by trespassing without permission. Good way to get shot in my area.
 

We have it rented out to a guy who will be hunting it this year and then we also have a few treasure hunters from Pennsylvania who are renting it, we now have the sheriff's who have agreed to keep an eye on it and also we have some cameras set up but we're still working on getting more cameras put up. Yeah I get that people don't have the patience to look for the owner but that just shows how people could care less about someone else's property. Again we don't mind people going out there I don't think we've ever told anyone that they could not we just think it's appropriate for them to ask for permission because that's how I was raised, I would never go on someone's property unless they gave me permission and I think it's only right they do the same with me.
I don't know if you have an interest in history or treasure legends, bit if you do, here's a story that might interest you. An Arkansas man named Bob Brewer wrote a book named Rebel Gold. In his book he wrote about a large treasure recovery made near Addington, Oklahoma, about fifty miles south of you. Unfortunately, the recovery was made on private property, without the consent of the landowner. Despite that, Brewer wrote about the research that led to the area with speculation about who put the treasure there and when. I thought it was a real interesting book.
 

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