VICTORIO PEAK, located 40 miles north of White Sands Missile Range's headquarters, has been believed for many years to be the hiding place of a vast treasure. This photo was taken in 11X33 when the Gaddis Mining Company of Denver conducted a hunt for the treasure. The hunt turned up nothing. Noss Probate Is 'Mysterious' Contained in the vaults of the Dona Ana County Courthouse is due to probate action regarding the estate of Milton Ernest "Doc" Noss. Proceedings on the estate were begun a month after Noss' death. He was shot by Charles Ryan , a disgruntled partner of Noss. Ryan was later cleared of all charges. Contained in lengthy document is Noss's personal properly at the time of his death. In part, this includes: "One metal steamer trunk containing papers, documents, books, maps, and other miscellaneous items, held by United States Government, Secret Service Agent. Albuquerque, for investigation: "One metal strong box, containing documents, papers, and miscellaneous items, also being held by U.S. Government, Secret Service Agent. Albuquerque. Supposedly three bars of metal, believed to be held by the U.S. Mint in Denver, said to have been receipted for In M.E. Noss. in the amount of approximately $90.000.00 since 1,July of 1911. Supposedly, fifty-one (51 bars of metal of undetermined value or con) are also supposedly in the hands of the Albuquerque agent. "Two bars of metal, presumably in Del Rio, Tex., at the Val Verde National Bank, value not known. One bar of metal, said to be in Grand Junction. Colo., or Colorado Springs. Colo., probably now in the hands of United Stales Government. One suitcase not found, presumed to contain legal documents, metal bars. gems, and ore samples, trinkets, and other miscellaneous items, this may have been a metal strong box with two padlocks. These and other items are presumed to be in possession of K. W. Parr or Mrs. Violet Noss, now of Friona, TX. They may also be in the hands of U.S. Secret Service Department. "Two bars of metal, presumably in a bank in Phoenix, Arizona, with Al Goldstein having knowledge, since 1938 or 1939. "Due to circumstances of cause of death of said MILTON ERNEST NOSS, the United Stales Government, Secret Service Department, seized all personal property for the purpose of investigation. James W. Hirst, Albuquerque, N.M. Agent. The Noss probate remained open for 27 years. It was finally closed in a probate court action dated September 19.1972. When asked why the action had remain open for so many years, an official at the courthouse said. "I don't know, but it is very strange."
The Doc Noss Treasure Tale:,
The deer hunter had watched the rain clouds come across the Jornada del Muerto towards the Hembrillo Basin and now a light rain began. He looked around and spotted a horizontal flat rock near the summit of Victorio Peak. Cradling a rifle in his arms he squatted under the rock and waited for the rain to subside. The water began forming small rivulets at his feet. His eye followed the path of the water and he noticed it seemed to be draining below a small rock. Milton "Doc" Noss casually tugged at the rock and pulled it loose. The water was indeed draining somewhere into the mountain . He dislodged some more rocks until the packed earth around them gave way and revealed a small opening. It was large enough for him to slick his head in. What was left of the afternoon sun shown over his shoulder as he looked into a small cave. Noss could make out a single pole ladder leading down. It was too dark and he could not distinguish what the shadows were in the cave. The rain had stopped, Noss gathered his rifle and left the site. Later he met his fellow doer hunters at camp but he kept his discovery a secret. Except, when he got home he did tell his wife, Ova. Both returned a few days later. Noss handed his wife the rifle and he began to dig at the opening. He made the opening large enough so he could crawl in and put his feel on the rungs of the ladder As he was descending, a rung broke on the weathered ladder. Struggling back to the top. he tied ropes he had brought to a nearby rock and threw the lariat down into the cave. Noss slid down the rope about 60 feet before his feet hit solid ground. The cave was big enough for him to stand up. Taking a flashlight from his pocket he shined it on the rock walls. Ancient Indian paintings were on the walls as well as some crude carvings. As he was studying the paintings his feet pushed some small stones. They rolled near a larger rook, and fell into a hole. They landed with a peculiar hollow thud. The half-breed Oklahoma Cheyenne Indian, ex-con and self-proclaimed "fool doctor" pushed the heavy boulder to the side. Now he could see a shaft. over a 100 feet long and at a downward angle. Using the ropes again, he began his descent. The shaft broke into a huge room, big enough for a freight train, Noss later said. Along the side of the large cave smaller cavities could be seen with the flashlight. At his feet was a cold water stream and he began to follow it. Noss approached one of the smaller side rooms but stopped short of entering. His flashlight bounced off human skeletons lined up along 1 of the walls. horrified of them . He gave the grisly site a wide girth and entered one of the small caves. He found what he had half expected. There were dilapidated wooden chests, swords, guns and saddles. In the chests were a huge amounts of gold and silver coins. Noss was elated. jubilant, and he stuffed coins and jewels into his pockets, as much as he could hold. Noss was ready to start back up when he decided to look around some more. He explored more of the smaller caves, again avoiding the skeletons. In the farther reaches of the cavern he found another entrance. Peering in he shined his light on a strange site. Stacked like chord-wood were large bars. He reached in and grabbed one. He almost dropped it, he hadn't expected it to be that heavy. Hefting the bar in both hands he gauged it weighed about 40 pounds. Shining the light on the bar he inspected it very closely. The bar was a dirty grey. "PIG iron." Noss thought and a little disgusted, he tossed it back on the piles. Crawling back out he showed his wife the gold and silver coins with the ancient dates Noss was eating lunch, preparing for another descent, when he mentioned the pig iron Mrs. Noss suggested he bring at least one iron bar up to the surface. The prospector didn't favor the idea because of the bars' weight But she was persistant. He crawled down into the cavern again. Jamming more coins into his trousers he went for the bar of pig iron. Struggling and cursing with the heavy bar, he surfaced four hours later. Tossing the bar at his wife's feel he sat there to catch his breath. Ova Noss picked up the bar, looked at it indifferently, and tossed it on the ground too. She was going to go through the new collection of coins when she noticed her hands had been blackened by the bar. Curious, she picked up the bar again and rubbed. The grey color gave way lo a yellowish gleam. She rubbed harder and harder, then gasped. They grey had been oxidation and the bar was gold. Later Noss told friends, and treasure hunting partners, he removed 88 of the gold bars between 1917 and 1918. Then, he said, in trying to enlarge the cave opening he accidentally blasted it shut.
Estimates of the gold horde soon were at $25 billion. A SECURITY TRAILER is now located near the missile range, to discourage zealous treasure hunters from crossing the western boundary of the missile range the area is littered with potentially dangerous "dud shells."
Text By Ray Lopez
S U N D A Y , J ULY 25, 1976 LAS CRUCES, NEW MEXICO
Tipton Recalls Noss 'The Con Man'
THIS VERTICAL SHAFT is located legend.
This photo was taken in 1973, at the top of Victorio Peak and new timbers have now been placed over the shaft entrance.
Photos Courtesy White Sands Missile Range
"The first lime I met Doc Noss was in 1937. He was at our camp when I came down from Burbank Canyon. I'd been prospecting, searching and looking." William Tipton was 18-years-old at the time of the meeting. He had entered into an informal agreement with two other men. The agreement was that they would work together to look for a fabled treasure in the Caballo Mountains. They had already been camped on the west side of the mountains for a number of days when Noss happened onto their camp. "After due introductions with him and his wife, and somebody else who was there, we sat down to talk." Tipton recalled. "he stated his purpose." That purpose was his search for a fabled treasure located either in the Caballo Mountains or 50 miles east in the Jornada del Muerto. "he began to talk about how he had certain psychic powers and with this power he could for see. With this power he could visualize this thing the treasure and see where it was. He told us if we worked together we could take it. "Then Noss walked over lo one of our camp chairs." Tiplon said. "He placed the palms of his hands on the back of the chair. Then he lifted it off the ground. There was no way that I could see that he was holding onto the chair. "After that he walked over to a piece of lumber on the ground. As best as I can remember it was a 1 by 2 and about 10 feel long. "Again he put his palms on the board, and not holding onto it, he lifted that off the ground. I thought this guy was great. I stood there until midnight with my mouth open and my eyes bugged out listening to him. He kept coming back to the treasure trove." Fascination turned to doubts though as the young Tipton became more familiar with the strange man from Hatch. Today William Tipton is a geologist with the local office of the Bureau of Land Management. He had grown up around the area of the Caballo Mountains where he first met Noss. As a child he had been intrigued with rocks, stones and minerals. He carried this interest into his formative years and prior to entering New Mexico BLM he decided to become a geologist. The morning after that first meeting. Noss and the young Tipton went deer hunting. As they walked along the mountain range Tipton began to get an insight of the man who claimed "he could see." "Noss was a braggart." Tiplon said. "He was a very good story teller. he was good al it. And this, of course, impressed me. he attracted people. His bad point was that he was a braggart and he wanted to be tough. Even as a youngster I figured it was a bluff, a front. "He was a very intelligent man. no question about that. He might have been slightly nuts. 'Logically imbalanced' is another term we use today. Noss wasn't all that educated." Tipton continued, "he was not a doctor, although he called himself one." I was at his office in Truth or Consequences a time or two and there were lots of people there. He claims to be a foot doctor." The area where Noss had his office had formerly been known as Hot Springs, because of the natural warm pools of water in the vicinity. Tipton said Noss would prescribe warm mud treatments to his patients." And with a little rubbing of an ointment. the warm mud and his soothing psychological approach" he would claim a cure for aching feet. "He was one of a kind." Tipton said, "he had a tremendous personality. Being a youngster I was really impressed with him at first. He could convince you of almost anything and change your bad mood to a good one just when you came into his presence. It was the way he greeted you and I guess it was the way he put it, 'his magnetic personality', that's what he used to call it." Tipton goes on. "But he was merely trying to edge in on something, he was putting together information from earlier sources and our knowledge of the area so he could make a discovery. "And to me he became so obnoxious." The former prospector turned geologist quit the partnership with his two other friends shortly after his acquaintance with Noss. "The rest of the group quit soon afterward too. There were two reasons for quitting. First they ran out of money. Second, they began to see in Noss what I had seen before. I had spent a few days in the field with him and the more I talked to him the more convinced I became he was nothing more than a phony." Tipton doubts very much that Noss found the treasure he claims, at least not in the Victorio Peak area. "I think that at one time there was a treasure in the Caballo Mountains," Tipton stated. "But it has been moved by some unknowns. Then they transferred the site to Victorio Peak. "if the treasure." be emphasized. "They moved the site to Victorio Peak." This was done, he said, to divert attention from the Caballo Mountain region. As to the source of the treasure Tipton speculated it either came from placer mines in the area or was accumulated by robbers or renegade Indians. "There were limestone monuments in the Caballo Mountains and somehow they were related to the treasure." When Tipton was a young prospector with his two friends they had a map. "On this map there were five granite points and each one of these points had a limestone monument on it. Whoever built these things and what they mean I'll never know. But there they were. I saw them. "They were about five feel high and stood up prominent. Supposedly if you had the right information and the map' you could go from these monuments to the treasure trove. "The mistake me and my partners made was that we were looking for it all in one place. I believe now that it was buried in various locations in the Caballo Mountains. '"that's why I say somebody might have found it then they transferred the site to Victorio Peak, "that is why I don't think it exists anymore."
Las Cruces Sun-News from Las Cruces, New Mexico · Page 17
