The mysterious death of Adolph Ruth

[azdave35]

azdave35,

You make a good point, none of us were there when the clues, descriptions and directions were given. All any of us can do is take what has been given as directions by those who were closest to Waltz. Depending on who we get those directions from they could be word for word perfect or filtered down three or four times. We just don't know. It's up to everyone individually to listen to all the clues and decide what sounds right and what makes sense. No one has the golden key to unlock the mystery.

Once you have decided which clues have some merit there is nothing left to do but head out into the mountains and try to verify or follow up on your leads.
No one is guaranteed that what they read or hear is going to be a solid clue. Each one has to do a lot of homework and then wear out a lot of boot leather.

Not one of us can say with 100% certainty that any clue is not real, or that any clue is real for that matter.
If you ever have a conversation with someone and they boldly tell you this clue is no good and that clue is no good or this clue is good and that clue is good,..... just smile and let them rattle on, because every clue may have some small shread of truth even if it has been filtered by hundreds of tellings and re-tellings.

Matthew

matthew...we have both heard the few dozen clues that have floated around for years...there is only one that i put any stock in and it came from herman petrash....and it has not and will not lead me to the mine....it didn't help brownie either..and not because it is a bunk clue...no doubt in my mind that waltz told julia this clue...but the country is so rough in the supers just having a clue or two isn't going to lead you to the mine....and if you believe what waltz said about disguising the mine then it really gets impossible...clues aren't going to lead anyone to that mine....the only chance anyone has of finding that mine is to put in years of research and legwork...time in the mountains combing the hillsides

 

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[somehiker]

For me, the words "ravine" and "gulch" represent something less than 200 yards in this case.
And " shaft or incline that is not so steep but one can climb down" seems to suggest what I might call a trench, similar to those cut into ancient ruins by pot-hunters.

Regards:SH.

 

[OsbornCA]

I just want to thank Matthew Roberts for this thread about the mystery of Adolph Ruths death. And all the other posters who are posting their information. Ive learned more in this one thread then reading 3 or 4 dutchmen books on the subject that just reapete the same story over and over. really enjoy this history.
Robert T. Osborn

 

[deducer]

Well aware of all that, but meant that in looking out from the cave, or by careful examination of what lay on the opposite side, could it be that he observed the actual words on something about 200' away? Keeping in mind the description of the mine as being covered/concealed in some way, and that Waltz was not the first to work the deposit, it may have been marked or had a "marker" nearby with those words IMO.

Regards:SH.

What I intended in referencing the Bicknell article, is that not only the "200 feet" but also the majority of the directions that Ruth had written down in ink on the paper found on his body is also contained in that article also, is the question of whether Ruth was really onto something, or on a wild goose chase? Had he simply included quotes from the Bicknell article as ancillary research material? Or was it primary research material?

Some other things to think about: if I'm not mistaken, the region where Ruth's body was said to be found, has no caves nearby. In other words, Ruth wasn't near a cave when he died.

Was he then, on his way to the cave? On his way back?

And there are other things to think about, regarding the "veni vidi vici" statement:

I think it's quite important to remember that perhaps the most important word, the word "vici" is missing. As that Latin phrase was written in ink (as opposed, allegedly, to the "200 feet" quote), I think it makes it pretty obvious that Ruth didn't write down that last word, for whatever reason. This important detail is something that nearly all the major LDM researchers miss, and only Garry Cundiff pounced on it.

Page 307 of Helen Corbin's "Bible": It seems relevant that "veni, vidi, vici" was written by the early Spanish miners

Was Ruth then looking for those words, rather than being self-congratulatory?

 

[markmar]

deducer

I believe these words are not written anywhere . Maybe Ruth used that specific words for each different map .
For example :
VENI for Gonzalez map , VIDI for Perfil map and VICI for the Locator map .
Maybe he died when believed how had recognized the Perfil map and was in the way for the cave .

 

[deducer]

deducer

I believe these words are not written anywhere . Maybe Ruth used that specific words for each different map .
For example :
VENI for Gonzalez map , VIDI for Perfil map and VICI for the Locator map .
Maybe he died when believed how had recognized the Perfil map and was in the way for the cave .

Marius,

Please look at page 7 of Ruth's direction to the LDM

 

[markmar]

deducer

I looked at that page . If you mean the lines within the text , I believe Ruth tried maybe to fit that clue in his area of interest , or he wanted to show how knew something more than the others .
To use Waltz clues in combination with Peraltas maps , I believe is not a good idea .

 

[Matthew Roberts]

The story of how Adolph Ruth came to be in possession of three of the maps he brought with him to Arizona in 1931 was outlined in a Phoenix Gazette article in July 1931 after Adolph Ruth went missing in the Superstition Mountains.
At least one of these maps is known by most as the Peralta-Perfil map. This map could stand alone or it could be one of several maps it takes to lead to the mine or treasure.
The fact is, we don't know enough about this map or the supposed directions that go with it to make a 100% positive statement about it. Just about anyone's interpretation is as good as the next.
But here is what I have always wondered about Adolph Ruth, his maps and his association with the Morse family. Did he know something that others didn't and was he using information passed along by Morse that may have fit with the Peralta map(s) ? After all, several others have attempted to follow the map and failed. Did Ruth have a key that got him farther than anyone else ? I believe he very well might have.

Matthew



STORY OF MAPS

Two of these ancient maps related to a mine in San Diego county, California, and the other showed the location of a mine said to have been operated by the Peralta family in the Superstition range of Arizona which later was supposed to have been discovered and worked again by Jacob Waltz, a German, from whom the countless tales of the “Lost Dutchman mine” had their origin.

The son (Erwin Ruth) obtained these maps as a result of a weird and adventurous chain of circumstances. In 1913 Dr. Erwin Ruth was employed by a Texas firm engaged in promotion and of development of Mexican farming lands near the border. In this work Dr. Ruth became acquainted with the Gonzales family, a branch of the older Peralta lineage.

The murder of Francisco Madero in Mexico Feb. 22, 1913, and the subsequent successful revolution that placed Gen. Victoriano Huerto in power also caused the death of many followers of Madero. Dr. Ruth’s friend was one of these. He was thrown into prison and his family left to face the terrors of the revolutionists. The day before his execution Gonzales talked with Dr. Ruth and told him where to find three maps at his hacienda. Gonzales disclosed the hiding place of these maps providing Dr. Ruth conducted the Gonzales family to safety across the border into Texas.

SENT MAPS TO FATHER

Dr. Ruth found the maps and complied with the last request of Senor Gonzales. Although he believed the elaborately prepared drawings and Spanish instructions were authentic, Dr. Ruth had no desire to use them and sent the documents to his father (Adolph Ruth) in Washington. – and promptly forgot about them for many years.

The joy with which Mr. (Adolph) Ruth received them may only be imagined in view of the fact that for many years he had been collecting documents and keeping a scrapbook of western mining lore.

 

[somehiker]

What I intended in referencing the Bicknell article, is that not only the "200 feet" but also the majority of the directions that Ruth had written down in ink on the paper found on his body is also contained in that article also, is the question of whether Ruth was really onto something, or on a wild goose chase? Had he simply included quotes from the Bicknell article as ancillary research material? Or was it primary research material?

Some other things to think about: if I'm not mistaken, the region where Ruth's body was said to be found, has no caves nearby. In other words, Ruth wasn't near a cave when he died.

Was he then, on his way to the cave? On his way back?

And there are other things to think about, regarding the "veni vidi vici" statement:

I think it's quite important to remember that perhaps the most important word, the word "vici" is missing. As that Latin phrase was written in ink (as opposed, allegedly, to the "200 feet" quote), I think it makes it pretty obvious that Ruth didn't write down that last word, for whatever reason. This important detail is something that nearly all the major LDM researchers miss, and only Garry Cundiff pounced on it.

Page 307 of Helen Corbin's "Bible": It seems relevant that "veni, vidi, vici" was written by the early Spanish miners

Was Ruth then looking for those words, rather than being self-congratulatory?

Good points on questions with which I agree.
And why I referenced Gary's own research in my reply, and also to bring the information and possibly a few new ideas to the discussion.
It's assumed that Ruth was following the directions as given by Bicknell as he thought applied to his map(s), and it's mentioned in Gary's work that he also had a topo amongst his possessions, although I can't remember any other references to the topo, or whether it was marked in any fashion. If so, he may have chosen his last search area in part because he thought the Bicknell instructions fit the terrain as it appeared on the topo.
Was he coming from or on his way to the cave and mine ?
The supplementary note " about 200 feet " added to what was originally taken from the articles and written in ink, may have been recorded in pencil due to his pen running low on ink, perhaps due to the heat. The "Veni Vidi" line does look much less distinct, and lighter than the rest of what is visible on the Barkley photograph. Doesn't look to me though, that the writing..... beginning with the first letter "I" for example...is in Ruth's hand. And in the photo note, "Sombrero" is spelled "Sombre", same as Tom K. spelled it in his "Ride Through Time". A proof-reader/editor may not have noticed this in prepping the manuscript for publication, but I think Tom should have. For these and other reasons, I suspect the paper in the photo to be a forgery, possibly created by Tex Barkley himself. Are there any samples of his handwriting available for comparison ? Was he using Ruth's fountain pen initially, but ran it out of ink ?

Regards:SH.

 

[azdave35]

The story of how Adolph Ruth came to be in possession of three of the maps he brought with him to Arizona in 1931 was outlined in a Phoenix Gazette article in July 1931 after Adolph Ruth went missing in the Superstition Mountains.
At least one of these maps is known by most as the Peralta-Perfil map. This map could stand alone or it could be one of several maps it takes to lead to the mine or treasure.
The fact is, we don't know enough about this map or the supposed directions that go with it to make a 100% positive statement about it. Just about anyone's interpretation is as good as the next.
But here is what I have always wondered about Adolph Ruth, his maps and his association with the Morse family. Did he know something that others didn't and was he using information passed along by Morse that may have fit with the Peralta map(s) ? After all, several others have attempted to follow the map and failed. Did Ruth have a key that got him farther than anyone else ? I believe he very well might have.

Matthew



STORY OF MAPS

Two of these ancient maps related to a mine in San Diego county, California, and the other showed the location of a mine said to have been operated by the Peralta family in the Superstition range of Arizona which later was supposed to have been discovered and worked again by Jacob Waltz, a German, from whom the countless tales of the “Lost Dutchman mine” had their origin.

The son (Erwin Ruth) obtained these maps as a result of a weird and adventurous chain of circumstances. In 1913 Dr. Erwin Ruth was employed by a Texas firm engaged in promotion and of development of Mexican farming lands near the border. In this work Dr. Ruth became acquainted with the Gonzales family, a branch of the older Peralta lineage.

The murder of Francisco Madero in Mexico Feb. 22, 1913, and the subsequent successful revolution that placed Gen. Victoriano Huerto in power also caused the death of many followers of Madero. Dr. Ruth’s friend was one of these. He was thrown into prison and his family left to face the terrors of the revolutionists. The day before his execution Gonzales talked with Dr. Ruth and told him where to find three maps at his hacienda. Gonzales disclosed the hiding place of these maps providing Dr. Ruth conducted the Gonzales family to safety across the border into Texas.

SENT MAPS TO FATHER

Dr. Ruth found the maps and complied with the last request of Senor Gonzales. Although he believed the elaborately prepared drawings and Spanish instructions were authentic, Dr. Ruth had no desire to use them and sent the documents to his father (Adolph Ruth) in Washington. – and promptly forgot about them for many years.

The joy with which Mr. (Adolph) Ruth received them may only be imagined in view of the fact that for many years he had been collecting documents and keeping a scrapbook of western mining lore.

matthew....adolph ruth was probably like most treasure hunters...he bragged about some of the lesser important details but kept quiet about info that really mattered...those maps he had would probably not lead anyone to the mine unless you had verbal or written clues and directions..my guess is that ruth had those in his head and not written down...the idiots that killed him did so for the maps....if they had tortured and interrogated ruth before they killed him they might have been able to find the mine

 

[Matthew Roberts]

Quote Originally Posted by deducer

What I intended in referencing the Bicknell article, is that not only the "200 feet" but also the majority of the directions that Ruth had written down in ink on the paper found on his body is also contained in that article also, is the question of whether Ruth was really onto something, or on a wild goose chase? Had he simply included quotes from the Bicknell article as ancillary research material? Or was it primary research material?

Some other things to think about: if I'm not mistaken, the region where Ruth's body was said to be found, has no caves nearby. In other words, Ruth wasn't near a cave when he died.

Was he then, on his way to the cave? On his way back?

And there are other things to think about, regarding the "veni vidi vici" statement:

I think it's quite important to remember that perhaps the most important word, the word "vici" is missing. As that Latin phrase was written in ink (as opposed, allegedly, to the "200 feet" quote), I think it makes it pretty obvious that Ruth didn't write down that last word, for whatever reason. This important detail is something that nearly all the major LDM researchers miss, and only Garry Cundiff pounced on it.

Page 307 of Helen Corbin's "Bible": It seems relevant that "veni, vidi, vici" was written by the early Spanish miners

Was Ruth then looking for those words, rather than being self-congratulatory?


deducer, azdave35 and somehiker,

When Walter Gassler showed me the rock where Tex Barkley said he found Ruth's body we were standing at that rock.

From that rock Weavers Needle to the southwest was an awesome view, one of the most dramatic in all the Superstitions.
Also from that rock, looking to the north, up Peters Canyon I could see a cave about a mile away, a large cave with a wide opening in terribly rough country.
Walter said that was the cave Tex Barkley and Jeff Adams went to when they followed the map/directions they found on Adolph Ruth's body.

If Adolph Ruth was sitting on that rock just before he died he would have seen both the dramatic view of Weavers Needle AND the cave to the north. He couldn't have missed it.

If Ruth wrote vini - vidi (I came - I saw) he would have been exactly right, he had come and he had seen.
But he would have yet to write, vici ( I conquered).

Whoever was with Adolph Ruth at that rock would have seen the same thing, Weavers Needle and the cave to the north.
At that point they probably thought they had all needed to know and Adolph Ruth was no longer needed.
This is (my personal opinion) from having stood at that rock and taken in everything that Walter told me and Adolph Ruth would have seen.

Matthew

 

[deducer]

Good points on questions with which I agree.
And why I referenced Gary's own research in my reply, and also to bring the information and possibly a few new ideas to the discussion.
It's assumed that Ruth was following the directions as given by Bicknell as he thought applied to his map(s), and it's mentioned in Gary's work that he also had a topo amongst his possessions, although I can't remember any other references to the topo, or whether it was marked in any fashion. If so, he may have chosen his last search area in part because he thought the Bicknell instructions fit the terrain as it appeared on the topo.
Was he coming from or on his way to the cave and mine ?
The supplementary note " about 200 feet " added to what was originally taken from the articles and written in ink, may have been recorded in pencil due to his pen running low on ink, perhaps due to the heat. The "Veni Vidi" line does look much less distinct, and lighter than the rest of what is visible on the Barkley photograph. Doesn't look to me though, that the writing..... beginning with the first letter "I" for example...is in Ruth's hand. And in the photo note, "Sombrero" is spelled "Sombre", same as Tom K. spelled it in his "Ride Through Time". A proof-reader/editor may not have noticed this in prepping the manuscript for publication, but I think Tom should have. For these and other reasons, I suspect the paper in the photo to be a forgery, possibly created by Tex Barkley himself. Are there any samples of his handwriting available for comparison ? Was he using Ruth's fountain pen initially, but ran it out of ink ?

Regards:SH.

Now that you mention it, I think your suspicion of a forgery is spot on- comparing that note to a letter actually written by Adolph Ruth and of which is reproduced on the last page of Cundiff's link, I can see several discrepancies right off the bat. For instance, Ruth's "F" consistently has a sort of "trail off," as if to link to the next letter if necessary. All the f's on the Veni Vidi letter is a closed loop.

My question here is, why not simply "disappear" the letter? Why go to the trouble to reproduce a forgery?

 

[deducer]

deducer, azdave35 and somehiker,

When Walter Gassler showed me the rock where Tex Barkley said he found Ruth's body we were standing at that rock.

From that rock Weavers Needle to the southwest was an awesome view, one of the most dramatic in all the Superstitions.
Also from that rock, looking to the north, up Peters Canyon I could see a cave about a mile away, a large cave with a wide opening in terribly rough country.
Walter said that was the cave Tex Barkley and Jeff Adams went to when they followed the map/directions they found on Adolph Ruth's body.

If Adolph Ruth was sitting on that rock just before he died he would have seen both the dramatic view of Weavers Needle AND the cave to the north. He couldn't have missed it.

If Ruth wrote vini - vidi (I came - I saw) he would have been exactly right, he had come and he had seen.
But he would have yet to write, vici ( I conquered).

Whoever was with Adolph Ruth at that rock would have seen the same thing, Weavers Needle and the cave to the north.
At that point they probably thought they had all needed to know and Adolph Ruth was no longer needed.
This is (my personal opinion) from having stood at that rock and taken in everything that Walter told me and Adolph Ruth would have seen.

Matthew

Very interesting point. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Matthew Roberts]

The Superstition Mountains are no stranger to death and mysterious disappearances. Adolph Ruth was not the first to die in those mountains and certainly not the last. No one knows for sure how many prospectors and searchers for lost mines have lost their lives in the maze of rocks and canyons. At this date, over the past 50 years, there are some 25 persons known to have entered the Superstitions who have not come back out. Where they are and what happened to them is still an open issue.
The following is just a partial list of the more well known disappearances and deaths.

DEATH IN THE SUPERSTITION MOUNTAINS

1881 – A prospector by the name of Joe Deering, who was working as a part-time bartender in Pinal, heard the stories of the two dead soldiers gold and began to look for their lost mine. He soon returned to Pinal, saying that he had found an old mine, describing it as “the most god-awful rough place you can imagine… a ghostly place.” Deering continued to work as a bartender until he could save enough money for the excavation. To make even more money, he then went to work at the Silver King Mine. Just a week later he was killed in a cave-in without ever disclosing the location.

1896 – A prospector named Elisha Marcus Reavis, who was better known in the area as the “Madman of the Superstitions” or the “Old Hermit” because he never shaved or cut his hair; he seldom bathed and rumors said he was prone to running naked through the canyons, firing a pistol into the sky. Sure that he was “mad,” even the Apache left him alone. When Reavis hadn’t been seen in some time, one of his few friends William Knight went to check on him. The nearly 70 year-old man was found dead about four miles south of his home on a trail near Roger’s Canyon. His head had been severed from his body and was lying several feet away.

1896 – Later that year, two easterners from New York went looking for the Lost Dutchman mine in the Superstitions. They were never seen or heard from again.

1910 – The skeleton of a woman was found in a cave high up on Superstition Mountain. With the body were several gold nuggets. The Maricopa County coroner could tell that the woman’s death was recent, but the gold or where she got it was never explained.

1927 – A New Jersey man and his sons were hiking the mountain when rocks began to roll down on them from the cliffs above, as if someone had pushed the boulders. One of the boys’ legs was crushed. Just a year later, two deer hunters were driven off the mountain, when again rolling boulders appeared to have been pushed by someone or “something” down the mountain towards them.

1931 – Yet another event added to the legends of Superstition Mountain when Adolph Ruth, a Washington D.C. veterinarian and avid treasure hunting hobbyist went missing in a wilderness area of Willow Springs.
In his search, Ruth utilized a map that his son had obtained in Mexico several years previous, which dated back to the period of the Mexican Revolution (1909-1923), and was later referred to as the Ruth-Peralta map. Ruth was searching for lost Peralta Mines, especially that of the Lost Dutchman. Arriving in the area in May, Ruth convinced two local cowboys to pack him into the mountains where they left him to his exploring at a place called Willow Springs in West Boulder Canyon around June 13th, 1931. When nothing had been heard of Ruth for six days, a man named Cal Morse called the Sheriff who went looking for the treasure hunter. Upon arriving at Ruth’s camp, the searchers could tell that no one had been there in at least a day and reported Ruth missing. A reward was immediately offered by the family and searchers combed the mountain for the next 45 days but Ruth was not found.
Some months later, in December, however, a skull with a large hole in it was discovered near Black Top Mesa by an archaeological expedition. I turned out to be that of Adolph Ruth. The rest of the treasure hunter’s body would not be found until the next month, in another small tributary on the east slope of Black Top Mesa. Ruth’s treasure map was found at his original campsite.
The headlines were sensational – alleging that Ruth had been murdered for his map. Adolph Ruth’s son, Erwin, was convinced his father had been killed.
Some believed that Adolph Ruth may have died not from foul play, but from the extreme desert heat, and then his body was carried away in parts by wild animals.

1934 – The Superstition Mountains claimed the life of Adam Stewart at his claim in Peralta Canyon. The cause of death unknown.

1936 – Another life was claimed by the mountains when another hobbyist, Roman O’Hal, a broker from New York, died from a fall while he was searching for the Lost Dutchman. Weather he slipped and fell or was pushed was never determined.

1937 – An old prospector by the name of Guy “Hematite” Frink was lucky enough to return from the mountain with a number of rich gold samples. In November, he was found shot in the stomach on the side of a trail in or near La Barge Canyon. Next to his decomposing body was a small sack of gold ore.

1938 – A man named Jenkins, along with his wife and two children were having a picnic on the mountain. During their outing Jenkins found a heavy quartz rock that he later learned was heavily laden with gold. However, before he could return to the spot, he had a heart attack. His wife could not remember the location of the find.

In 1945 – A book about the Lost Dutchman Mine was written by Barry Storm, who claimed to have narrowly escaped from a mysterious sniper. Storm speculated that Adolph Ruth might have been a victim of the same sniper shooting at him.

1947 – A prospector name James A. Cravey made a much-publicized trip into the Superstition canyons by helicopter, searching for the Lost Dutchman Mine. The pilot set him down in La Barge Canyon, close to Weaver’s Needle. When Cravey failed to hike out as planned, a search was started and although his camp was found, Cravey was not.
The following February, Cravey’s headless skeleton was found in a canyon, a good distance from his camp. It was tied in a blanket and his skull was found about thirty feet away. The coroner’s jury ruled that there was “no evidence of foul play.”

1949 – A man named James Kidd disappeared in the Superstitions. Later a skeleton was found but it was never determined to be that of Kidd.

1951 – Dr. John Burns, a physician from Oregon, was found shot to death on Superstition Mountain. The “official” ruling was that the death was accidental even though there was no evidence to support the finding.

1952 – A man named Joseph Kelley of Dayton, Ohio was also searching for the Lost Dutchman gold mine. He vanished and was never seen alive again. His skeleton was discovered near Weaver’s Needle two years later. The bullet hole in his skull was ruled an accidental shooting incident. Once again, no evidence supported this finding.

1953 – Two California boys, who were hiking on Superstition Mountain, also vanished. Unfortunately, for these two, nothing was every found of them.

1955 – Charles Massey, who was hunting with a .22 rifle, was found shot between the eyes by a heavy-caliber rifle bullet. The coroner ruled it an accidental death resulting from a ricochet even though no one with a heavy-caliber firearm was ever identified.

1956 – A man from Brooklyn, New York reported to police that his brother, Martin Zywotho, who he believed was searching for the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine, had been missing for several weeks. A month later, the missing man’s body was found with a bullet hole above his right temple. Although his gun was found under the body, the death was ruled suicide.

1958 – A deserted campsite was discovered on the northern edge of Superstition Mountain. At the campsite was found a blood stained blanket, a Geiger counter, a gun-cleaning kit but no gun, cooking utensils, and some letters, from which the names and addresses had been torn from. No trace of the camp’s occupant was ever found.

1959 – Two men by the names of Stanley Hernandez and Benjamin Ferreira, thought they had found the Lost Dutchman Mine. However, what they actually discovered was a pyrite deposit, more often called “Fool’s Gold.” But, these two men were sure they had found the elusive mine. Whether out of greed or, some kind of dispute over how they would handle their new found wealth, Stanley Hernandez killed his friend Benjamin Ferreira.

1960 – Robert St. Marie, who was employed in a camp owned by Celeste Maria Jones was hired to drill a hole all the way into the heart of Weaver’s Needle. A rival prospector, Ed Piper met St. Marie on the trail near Weavers Needle. The two argued and both men pulled their pistols, Piper killed St. Marie. The inquest found Piper had acted in self-defense. Shortly afterward, Ed Piper died, the cause of death was found to have been a “perforated ulcer.”

1960 – Two more men who were hiking in the Superstitions that year became involved in some kind of dispute. Lavern Rowlee was shot by Ralph Thomas, who reported that he had been attacked by Rowlee and shot the other man in self-defense.

1960 – A group of hikers found a headless skeleton near the foot of a cliff on Superstition Mountain. Four days later, an investigation determined it belonged to an Austrian student named Franz Harrier.

1960 – Five days later, another skeleton was found, which was identified the next month to be that of William Richard Harvey, a painter from San Francisco. The cause of death was unknown.

1961 – A family picnicking near the edge of the mountain discovered the body of Hilmer Charles Bohen buried beneath the sand in a shallow grave. Bohen was a Utah prospector who had been shot in the back. No clues as to who committed the murder were found.

1961 – Two months later, another prospector from Denver named Walter J. Mowry was found in Needle Canyon. His bullet-riddled body was removed to the Pinal County coroner, who incredibly ruled it a suicide.

1961 – Police began searching for a prospector by the name of Jay Clapp, who had been working on Superstition Mountain on and off for a decade and a half. Clapp had been missing since July. After a thorough search, the hunt was called off. Three years later his headless skeleton was finally discovered.

1963 – A man named Vance Bacon, another employee of Celeste Jones was also working to tunnel into Weaver’s Needle. Climbing the Needle with a rope and pair of gloves he fell 500 feet to his death. Allegedly, there were rifle shots heard just before Bacon fell. No bullet wounds were found in his body however.

1964 – Brothers, Richard and Robert Kremis, were found dead at the bottom of a high cliff on Superstition Mountain. It was determined both men fell to their deaths although no explanation of how this could have occurred was ever offered.

1964 – An elderly couple was found murdered in an automobile at First Water. No suspects were ever found.

1970 – A seasoned prospector named Al Morrow was killed by a boulder that fell in a tunnel that he was digging during a heavy rain storm.

1973 – Charles Lewing was shot by Jesus Ladislas Guerrero at a remote mountain campsite owned by Crazy Jake Jacob. Guerrero killed Lewing then drug his body to a cliff and threw it down into a crevice and covered it with rocks and brush. Later when Sheriff’s deputies found the body Guerrero claimed self-defense. He was never charged with Lewing’s death.

1976 – A prospector named Howard Polling was found dead of a gunshot wound. The following year another man named Dennis Brown, was also found dead of a gunshot wound. No one was ever found to have murdered either man.

1978 – A man named Manuel Valdez was murdered in the Superstitions. His head was missing and no suspects were ever found.

1980 – The skeleton of a man named Rick Fenning was found. The official cause of death was natural causes even though Fenning was a young man who had plenty of food and water with him.

1984 – A prospector named Walter Gassler, who had been searching for the Lost Dutchman for most of his life, was found dead in the Superstitions. In his pack was gold ore some believe came from the Lost Dutchman Mine. The Pinal coroner said Gassler died of a heart attack but several men in the direct vicinity of where Gassler’s body was found were never questioned about their involvement or knowledge of the death.

An unidentified man’s remains were discovered on December 30, 1992 in the Superstition Wilderness area. Cause of death was a gun-shot wound. It is believed the man was searching for the Lost Dutchman gold mine. No suspect was ever identified.

In December 2009 Jesse Capen, a Colorado prospector disappeared in the Superstition Mountains looking for the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine. His remains were found 3 years later November 2012 at a cliff on Tortilla Mountain where he fell 150 feet to his death. Cappen was found only ½ mile from his camp.

In July 2010 Curtis Merworth, Malcom Meeks and Ardean Charles went into the Superstition Mountains from Salt Lake City, Utah looking for the Lost Dutchman Mine. They disappear and are not seen again. Six months later, on January 15, 2011 the skeletons of Meeks and Charles are found sitting on the west side of Yellow Peak Mountain by a prospector Rick Gwynn. A few days later the skeletal remains of Curtis Merworth were found about a mile away near Second Water, all three died of dehydration and heat stroke.

This list is by no means complete. Before 1920 most bones and skeletons found in the Superstitions were discounted as being Indian and of no consequence. Others have died in the Superstition Mountains since the bodies of Merworth, Meeks and Charles were found.

Heart attack, heat stroke, dehydration, snake bites and falls all have taken a toll of hikers and prospectors. The Sheriff’s offices of both Maricopa and Pinal Counties have lists of names of persons believed to have gone into the Superstitions and were never heard of again. Bones believed to be of human origin are found every year by hikers and prospectors.

The Superstition Mountains continue to be a favorite destination for hikers, campers, nature lovers and Lost Mine hunters in spite of the dangers and the reputation for death in the Superstitions.

 

[nobodie]

And that is why I don't show any pictures of my area.

 

[gollum]

markmar

No one can seriously hike the Superstitions in June-July-August. It is just too hot. When I was younger I could go in the Superstitions in those months but could move about only very early in the mornings and as the Sun was setting in the evening. Once the Sun was overhead you had to find shade and just rest up. If you could time your trip in the mountains with the full moon you could travel around, as when the full moon was directly overhead at midnight you could walk around as if it were daylight. Ruth however went into the Superstition Mountains during the dark of the moon.

I don't believe Ruth under his own power could possibly have hiked from Willow Spring to Peters Mesa or even to where he was eventually found at the NW end of Black Top Mesa.
He had to have help to have gotten to either one of those places, and by help I mean someone with horses.

Matthew

Hey Matthew,

I take issue with your statement that "No one can seriously hike the Superstitions in June-July-August". I have been in Az since the beginning of June, and have been all over Southern Superstition Mountain, Peters Mesa, and Tortilla. I am currently up near Prescott in the Bradshaws. I have been pack tent living since the beginning of May. I spent a few days camping at Davis Wash by Apache Lake, and sleeping by The Upper Dons Camp for the rest. Frank Augustine calls me crazy and Wayne Tuttle Stupid for going into the mountains this time of year. Hahaha I will be back down there in about a week. We've been digging up stream beds for panning in 106 degrees. After seeing my tanned hide right now, nobody would doubt my claims of Chickasaw and Black heritage!

I agree that Ruth could not have hiked much of anywhere in his "Camp Shoes" after being crippled for life in his unfortunate hunt for the Lost Gonzalez Mine in Anza Borrego Desert, which left him with silver pins, screws, and plates in his leg which assisted in his identification.


Another interesting "story" I have heard that ties in with Peters Mesa, is that Hermann Petrasch owned a .44 pistol that he said had been stolen not long after Ruth's Body turned up. Remind me, who is Peters Mesa named after? Old Pete.....................wait for it.................................Petrasch! It may be complete bull crap, but Quien Sabe?

 

[Gregory E. Davis]

Good evening all: I want to thank Mathew for this great thread and his series of posts. He has done a suburb job researching all of this new and original material plus putting it together in perspective with previously known facts and stories. I see where it has generated many good posts by others on this site with educated questions and none of the usual interrupted interjections. Keep up the good work. Cordially, Gregory E. Davis

 

[azdave35]

Hey Matthew,

I take issue with your statement that "No one can seriously hike the Superstitions in June-July-August". I have been in Az since the beginning of June, and have been all over Southern Superstition Mountain, Peters Mesa, and Tortilla. I am currently up near Prescott in the Bradshaws. I have been pack tent living since the beginning of May. I spent a few days camping at Davis Wash by Apache Lake, and sleeping by The Upper Dons Camp for the rest. Frank Augustine calls me crazy and Wayne Tuttle Stupid for going into the mountains this time of year. Hahaha I will be back down there in about a week. We've been digging up stream beds for panning in 106 degrees. After seeing my tanned hide right now, nobody would doubt my claims of Chickasaw and Black heritage!

I agree that Ruth could not have hiked much of anywhere in his "Camp Shoes" after being crippled for life in his unfortunate hunt for the Lost Gonzalez Mine in Anza Borrego Desert, which left him with silver pins, screws, and plates in his leg which assisted in his identification.


Another interesting "story" I have heard that ties in with Peters Mesa, is that Hermann Petrasch owned a .44 pistol that he said had been stolen not long after Ruth's Body turned up. Remind me, who is Peters Mesa named after? Old Pete.....................wait for it.................................Petrasch! It may be complete bull crap, but Quien Sabe?

mike...good seeing you on here again...

 

[gollum]

The Superstition Mountains are no stranger to death and mysterious disappearances. Adolph Ruth was not the first to die in those mountains and certainly not the last. No one knows for sure how many prospectors and searchers for lost mines have lost their lives in the maze of rocks and canyons. At this date, over the past 50 years, there are some 25 persons known to have entered the Superstitions who have not come back out. Where they are and what happened to them is still an open issue.
The following is just a partial list of the more well known disappearances and deaths.

DEATH IN THE SUPERSTITION MOUNTAINS

1881 – A prospector by the name of Joe Deering, who was working as a part-time bartender in Pinal, heard the stories of the two dead soldiers gold and began to look for their lost mine. He soon returned to Pinal, saying that he had found an old mine, describing it as “the most god-awful rough place you can imagine… a ghostly place.” Deering continued to work as a bartender until he could save enough money for the excavation. To make even more money, he then went to work at the Silver King Mine. Just a week later he was killed in a cave-in without ever disclosing the location.

1896 – A prospector named Elisha Marcus Reavis, who was better known in the area as the “Madman of the Superstitions” or the “Old Hermit” because he never shaved or cut his hair; he seldom bathed and rumors said he was prone to running naked through the canyons, firing a pistol into the sky. Sure that he was “mad,” even the Apache left him alone. When Reavis hadn’t been seen in some time, one of his few friends William Knight went to check on him. The nearly 70 year-old man was found dead about four miles south of his home on a trail near Roger’s Canyon. His head had been severed from his body and was lying several feet away.

1896 – Later that year, two easterners from New York went looking for the Lost Dutchman mine in the Superstitions. They were never seen or heard from again.

1910 – The skeleton of a woman was found in a cave high up on Superstition Mountain. With the body were several gold nuggets. The Maricopa County coroner could tell that the woman’s death was recent, but the gold or where she got it was never explained.

1927 – A New Jersey man and his sons were hiking the mountain when rocks began to roll down on them from the cliffs above, as if someone had pushed the boulders. One of the boys’ legs was crushed. Just a year later, two deer hunters were driven off the mountain, when again rolling boulders appeared to have been pushed by someone or “something” down the mountain towards them.

1931 – Yet another event added to the legends of Superstition Mountain when Adolph Ruth, a Washington D.C. veterinarian and avid treasure hunting hobbyist went missing in a wilderness area of Willow Springs.
In his search, Ruth utilized a map that his son had obtained in Mexico several years previous, which dated back to the period of the Mexican Revolution (1909-1923), and was later referred to as the Ruth-Peralta map. Ruth was searching for lost Peralta Mines, especially that of the Lost Dutchman. Arriving in the area in May, Ruth convinced two local cowboys to pack him into the mountains where they left him to his exploring at a place called Willow Springs in West Boulder Canyon around June 13th, 1931. When nothing had been heard of Ruth for six days, a man named Cal Morse called the Sheriff who went looking for the treasure hunter. Upon arriving at Ruth’s camp, the searchers could tell that no one had been there in at least a day and reported Ruth missing. A reward was immediately offered by the family and searchers combed the mountain for the next 45 days but Ruth was not found.
Some months later, in December, however, a skull with a large hole in it was discovered near Black Top Mesa by an archaeological expedition. I turned out to be that of Adolph Ruth. The rest of the treasure hunter’s body would not be found until the next month, in another small tributary on the east slope of Black Top Mesa. Ruth’s treasure map was found at his original campsite.
The headlines were sensational – alleging that Ruth had been murdered for his map. Adolph Ruth’s son, Erwin, was convinced his father had been killed.
Some believed that Adolph Ruth may have died not from foul play, but from the extreme desert heat, and then his body was carried away in parts by wild animals.

1934 – The Superstition Mountains claimed the life of Adam Stewart at his claim in Peralta Canyon. The cause of death unknown.

1936 – Another life was claimed by the mountains when another hobbyist, Roman O’Hal, a broker from New York, died from a fall while he was searching for the Lost Dutchman. Weather he slipped and fell or was pushed was never determined.

1937 – An old prospector by the name of Guy “Hematite” Frink was lucky enough to return from the mountain with a number of rich gold samples. In November, he was found shot in the stomach on the side of a trail in or near La Barge Canyon. Next to his decomposing body was a small sack of gold ore.

1938 – A man named Jenkins, along with his wife and two children were having a picnic on the mountain. During their outing Jenkins found a heavy quartz rock that he later learned was heavily laden with gold. However, before he could return to the spot, he had a heart attack. His wife could not remember the location of the find.

In 1945 – A book about the Lost Dutchman Mine was written by Barry Storm, who claimed to have narrowly escaped from a mysterious sniper. Storm speculated that Adolph Ruth might have been a victim of the same sniper shooting at him.

1947 – A prospector name James A. Cravey made a much-publicized trip into the Superstition canyons by helicopter, searching for the Lost Dutchman Mine. The pilot set him down in La Barge Canyon, close to Weaver’s Needle. When Cravey failed to hike out as planned, a search was started and although his camp was found, Cravey was not.
The following February, Cravey’s headless skeleton was found in a canyon, a good distance from his camp. It was tied in a blanket and his skull was found about thirty feet away. The coroner’s jury ruled that there was “no evidence of foul play.”

1949 – A man named James Kidd disappeared in the Superstitions. Later a skeleton was found but it was never determined to be that of Kidd.

1951 – Dr. John Burns, a physician from Oregon, was found shot to death on Superstition Mountain. The “official” ruling was that the death was accidental even though there was no evidence to support the finding.

1952 – A man named Joseph Kelley of Dayton, Ohio was also searching for the Lost Dutchman gold mine. He vanished and was never seen alive again. His skeleton was discovered near Weaver’s Needle two years later. The bullet hole in his skull was ruled an accidental shooting incident. Once again, no evidence supported this finding.

1953 – Two California boys, who were hiking on Superstition Mountain, also vanished. Unfortunately, for these two, nothing was every found of them.

1955 – Charles Massey, who was hunting with a .22 rifle, was found shot between the eyes by a heavy-caliber rifle bullet. The coroner ruled it an accidental death resulting from a ricochet even though no one with a heavy-caliber firearm was ever identified.

1956 – A man from Brooklyn, New York reported to police that his brother, Martin Zywotho, who he believed was searching for the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine, had been missing for several weeks. A month later, the missing man’s body was found with a bullet hole above his right temple. Although his gun was found under the body, the death was ruled suicide.

1958 – A deserted campsite was discovered on the northern edge of Superstition Mountain. At the campsite was found a blood stained blanket, a Geiger counter, a gun-cleaning kit but no gun, cooking utensils, and some letters, from which the names and addresses had been torn from. No trace of the camp’s occupant was ever found.

1959 – Two men by the names of Stanley Hernandez and Benjamin Ferreira, thought they had found the Lost Dutchman Mine. However, what they actually discovered was a pyrite deposit, more often called “Fool’s Gold.” But, these two men were sure they had found the elusive mine. Whether out of greed or, some kind of dispute over how they would handle their new found wealth, Stanley Hernandez killed his friend Benjamin Ferreira.

1960 – Robert St. Marie, who was employed in a camp owned by Celeste Maria Jones was hired to drill a hole all the way into the heart of Weaver’s Needle. A rival prospector, Ed Piper met St. Marie on the trail near Weavers Needle. The two argued and both men pulled their pistols, Piper killed St. Marie. The inquest found Piper had acted in self-defense. Shortly afterward, Ed Piper died, the cause of death was found to have been a “perforated ulcer.”

1960 – Two more men who were hiking in the Superstitions that year became involved in some kind of dispute. Lavern Rowlee was shot by Ralph Thomas, who reported that he had been attacked by Rowlee and shot the other man in self-defense.

1960 – A group of hikers found a headless skeleton near the foot of a cliff on Superstition Mountain. Four days later, an investigation determined it belonged to an Austrian student named Franz Harrier.

1960 – Five days later, another skeleton was found, which was identified the next month to be that of William Richard Harvey, a painter from San Francisco. The cause of death was unknown.

1961 – A family picnicking near the edge of the mountain discovered the body of Hilmer Charles Bohen buried beneath the sand in a shallow grave. Bohen was a Utah prospector who had been shot in the back. No clues as to who committed the murder were found.

1961 – Two months later, another prospector from Denver named Walter J. Mowry was found in Needle Canyon. His bullet-riddled body was removed to the Pinal County coroner, who incredibly ruled it a suicide.

1961 – Police began searching for a prospector by the name of Jay Clapp, who had been working on Superstition Mountain on and off for a decade and a half. Clapp had been missing since July. After a thorough search, the hunt was called off. Three years later his headless skeleton was finally discovered.

1963 – A man named Vance Bacon, another employee of Celeste Jones was also working to tunnel into Weaver’s Needle. Climbing the Needle with a rope and pair of gloves he fell 500 feet to his death. Allegedly, there were rifle shots heard just before Bacon fell. No bullet wounds were found in his body however.

1964 – Brothers, Richard and Robert Kremis, were found dead at the bottom of a high cliff on Superstition Mountain. It was determined both men fell to their deaths although no explanation of how this could have occurred was ever offered.

1964 – An elderly couple was found murdered in an automobile at First Water. No suspects were ever found.

1970 – A seasoned prospector named Al Morrow was killed by a boulder that fell in a tunnel that he was digging during a heavy rain storm.

1973 – Charles Lewing was shot by Jesus Ladislas Guerrero at a remote mountain campsite owned by Crazy Jake Jacob. Guerrero killed Lewing then drug his body to a cliff and threw it down into a crevice and covered it with rocks and brush. Later when Sheriff’s deputies found the body Guerrero claimed self-defense. He was never charged with Lewing’s death.

1976 – A prospector named Howard Polling was found dead of a gunshot wound. The following year another man named Dennis Brown, was also found dead of a gunshot wound. No one was ever found to have murdered either man.

1978 – A man named Manuel Valdez was murdered in the Superstitions. His head was missing and no suspects were ever found.

1980 – The skeleton of a man named Rick Fenning was found. The official cause of death was natural causes even though Fenning was a young man who had plenty of food and water with him.

1984 – A prospector named Walter Gassler, who had been searching for the Lost Dutchman for most of his life, was found dead in the Superstitions. In his pack was gold ore some believe came from the Lost Dutchman Mine. The Pinal coroner said Gassler died of a heart attack but several men in the direct vicinity of where Gassler’s body was found were never questioned about their involvement or knowledge of the death.

An unidentified man’s remains were discovered on December 30, 1992 in the Superstition Wilderness area. Cause of death was a gun-shot wound. It is believed the man was searching for the Lost Dutchman gold mine. No suspect was ever identified.

In December 2009 Jesse Capen, a Colorado prospector disappeared in the Superstition Mountains looking for the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine. His remains were found 3 years later November 2012 at a cliff on Tortilla Mountain where he fell 150 feet to his death. Cappen was found only ½ mile from his camp.

In July 2010 Curtis Merworth, Malcom Meeks and Ardean Charles went into the Superstition Mountains from Salt Lake City, Utah looking for the Lost Dutchman Mine. They disappear and are not seen again. Six months later, on January 15, 2011 the skeletons of Meeks and Charles are found sitting on the west side of Yellow Peak Mountain by a prospector Rick Gwynn. A few days later the skeletal remains of Curtis Merworth were found about a mile away near Second Water, all three died of dehydration and heat stroke.

This list is by no means complete. Before 1920 most bones and skeletons found in the Superstitions were discounted as being Indian and of no consequence. Others have died in the Superstition Mountains since the bodies of Merworth, Meeks and Charles were found.

Heart attack, heat stroke, dehydration, snake bites and falls all have taken a toll of hikers and prospectors. The Sheriff’s offices of both Maricopa and Pinal Counties have lists of names of persons believed to have gone into the Superstitions and were never heard of again. Bones believed to be of human origin are found every year by hikers and prospectors.

The Superstition Mountains continue to be a favorite destination for hikers, campers, nature lovers and Lost Mine hunters in spite of the dangers and the reputation for death in the Superstitions.

And two years ago, someone tried adding me to the list when they took a shot at me about an eighth of a mile up Superstition Mountain from the Peralta Trailhead on the mountain not the trail. No second shot after I sent thirty back at him. guess he wasn't expecting return fire.

 

[deducer]

1984 – A prospector named Walter Gassler, who had been searching for the Lost Dutchman for most of his life, was found dead in the Superstitions. In his pack was gold ore some believe came from the Lost Dutchman Mine. The Pinal coroner said Gassler died of a heart attack but several men in the direct vicinity of where Gassler’s body was found were never questioned about their involvement or knowledge of the death.

From what I've read, the gold ore found in Gassler's backpack, was specimen ore from the LDM that Gassler brought with him for comparison/identification purpose. He didn't find it in the Superstitions, correct?