Goldminer
Full Member
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The Josephine de Martinique is supported by tons of historical evidence, as referenced by church and civil archives. The earliest evidence that I have found dates to around 1630’s when Padre Posada was adventuring along the Old Spanish Trail.
The Spanish mentioned that the “Josephine” was the richest gold mine in the world, even richer than Tayopa. Indian labor was used in the mines, and many died as a result of harsh treatment by their masters.
In 1680, the pueblo revolt ended the Spanish occupation for about twenty years. All mines and their evidence were completely concealed.
Around 1868 a man known as John Burke arrived at the stage station at Desert Springs, and began telling Ben Bowen that he knew where “the lost Spanish mine of the Henry Mountains was hidden”. Bowen caught gold fever, and decided to join Burke. They went into Marysvale, Utah, and hired a third man named Blackburn to be camp tender and wrangler. They purchased supplies from a rancher at Blue Valley, and were warned against going into the Henrys. Some years before, an Indian who had worked for the rancher told him as they rode in the mountains, “There is plenty gold up there!”
The three men crossed the headwaters of Crescent Creek and made camp. Burke and Bowen climbed to an outcropping ledge of gold ore in which a shaft had been made long before. They left Blackburn down below with the stock.
The two men broke enough gold-laced quartz from the ledge to fill their pack sacks. When they returned to camp, Blackburn asked where the mine was, and was told, “You can see it from here”, but no further directions were given.
They left the mountains through Penn-Ellen Pass, heading northwest across an unknown desert. This was a mistake, as they thought the desert was flat, but as they began to cross it they discovered a maze of deep canyons. The men suffered from thirst, and ignoring Blackburn’s warning drank from a stagnant pool. Long story short, both Burke and Bowen died shortly afterwards. Blackburn returned many times, but was unable to locate the mine.
In 1900, Edgar T. Wolverton (who was a mining engineer) began to search for the Burke and Bowen diggings, which he assumed was the Lost Josephine. He lived alone in the Henrys for more than twenty years, and explored every inch of the terrain. He found old smelter sites and piles of slag so old that pine trees with more than 100 year rings were growing in them. He found one pit that he estimated to be 175 years old with pieces of melted gold. He also found the remains of a stone furnace and arrastras. Wolverton was an incredible man when it came to communication. In his daily journal which he kept for nearly 21 years, he wrote “Location work done, camp put up, trail opened, mill built. Problems make any work except the most necessary very diffi.” It took him 20 years to build that mill!! His last journal entry of July 21st, 1921 reads, “Found the old Mexican (Spanish) mill today while panning on the hill south of camp. Sack of ore brought down……(illegible)… a very hard day, tired and thirsty”. That was his last entry because he was thrown from his horse and fatally injured.
Before Wolverton, also in 1900, two men Frank Olgean and Al Hainey found in the church archives in Santa Fe, a waybill to a gold mine. Following the waybill, they were led into the lower Henry Mtns. Stone markers were found that led them to a cave where they found on a wall, another waybill to the Josephine. Upon arriving in the Henry’s, Olgean and Hainey found evidence of old mining activity. An old smelter still had slag and Hainey picked up a piece of phonolite, which he did not have assayed right away. Finding no sign of the mine, both men left the area with just samples and pretty colored rocks. Later, Al Hainey had the sample of phonolite assayed, and was astounded when the report came back $50,000 to the ton. Hainey returned to the Henry mtns, and spent considerable time searching, but to no avail. The Lost Josephine was still lost. The last anyone ever saw of Hainey, he was walking back towards Hanksville muttering to himself.
If interest warrants, I will post my own searches for the Josephine later.
The Josephine de Martinique is supported by tons of historical evidence, as referenced by church and civil archives. The earliest evidence that I have found dates to around 1630’s when Padre Posada was adventuring along the Old Spanish Trail.
The Spanish mentioned that the “Josephine” was the richest gold mine in the world, even richer than Tayopa. Indian labor was used in the mines, and many died as a result of harsh treatment by their masters.
In 1680, the pueblo revolt ended the Spanish occupation for about twenty years. All mines and their evidence were completely concealed.
Around 1868 a man known as John Burke arrived at the stage station at Desert Springs, and began telling Ben Bowen that he knew where “the lost Spanish mine of the Henry Mountains was hidden”. Bowen caught gold fever, and decided to join Burke. They went into Marysvale, Utah, and hired a third man named Blackburn to be camp tender and wrangler. They purchased supplies from a rancher at Blue Valley, and were warned against going into the Henrys. Some years before, an Indian who had worked for the rancher told him as they rode in the mountains, “There is plenty gold up there!”
The three men crossed the headwaters of Crescent Creek and made camp. Burke and Bowen climbed to an outcropping ledge of gold ore in which a shaft had been made long before. They left Blackburn down below with the stock.
The two men broke enough gold-laced quartz from the ledge to fill their pack sacks. When they returned to camp, Blackburn asked where the mine was, and was told, “You can see it from here”, but no further directions were given.
They left the mountains through Penn-Ellen Pass, heading northwest across an unknown desert. This was a mistake, as they thought the desert was flat, but as they began to cross it they discovered a maze of deep canyons. The men suffered from thirst, and ignoring Blackburn’s warning drank from a stagnant pool. Long story short, both Burke and Bowen died shortly afterwards. Blackburn returned many times, but was unable to locate the mine.
In 1900, Edgar T. Wolverton (who was a mining engineer) began to search for the Burke and Bowen diggings, which he assumed was the Lost Josephine. He lived alone in the Henrys for more than twenty years, and explored every inch of the terrain. He found old smelter sites and piles of slag so old that pine trees with more than 100 year rings were growing in them. He found one pit that he estimated to be 175 years old with pieces of melted gold. He also found the remains of a stone furnace and arrastras. Wolverton was an incredible man when it came to communication. In his daily journal which he kept for nearly 21 years, he wrote “Location work done, camp put up, trail opened, mill built. Problems make any work except the most necessary very diffi.” It took him 20 years to build that mill!! His last journal entry of July 21st, 1921 reads, “Found the old Mexican (Spanish) mill today while panning on the hill south of camp. Sack of ore brought down……(illegible)… a very hard day, tired and thirsty”. That was his last entry because he was thrown from his horse and fatally injured.
Before Wolverton, also in 1900, two men Frank Olgean and Al Hainey found in the church archives in Santa Fe, a waybill to a gold mine. Following the waybill, they were led into the lower Henry Mtns. Stone markers were found that led them to a cave where they found on a wall, another waybill to the Josephine. Upon arriving in the Henry’s, Olgean and Hainey found evidence of old mining activity. An old smelter still had slag and Hainey picked up a piece of phonolite, which he did not have assayed right away. Finding no sign of the mine, both men left the area with just samples and pretty colored rocks. Later, Al Hainey had the sample of phonolite assayed, and was astounded when the report came back $50,000 to the ton. Hainey returned to the Henry mtns, and spent considerable time searching, but to no avail. The Lost Josephine was still lost. The last anyone ever saw of Hainey, he was walking back towards Hanksville muttering to himself.
If interest warrants, I will post my own searches for the Josephine later.
