Search for an estimated $340 million in buried Texas treasure

Legends of buried booty are common in Lone Star State

SAN ANTONIO – You could find buried treasure in the Texas Hill Country -- an estimated $340 million worth.

Texas is estimated to have $340 million in buried treasure, more than another other state in the U.S., according to TexasHillCountry.com.

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About 229 treasure sites are spread across the Lone Star State, and some are accessible to the public with permission from the landowners.

There's a cache of silver said to be buried outside Leander. According to the story, Comanche Indians were chasing a train of pack mules carrying hefty loads of silver and the men in charge of the bounty buried the silver to keep it from being stolen. The silver has yet to be discovered.

Legendary outlaw Sam Bass is said to have buried his bounty from stagecoach, train and bank robberies near Round Rock. The treasure has never been recovered and is said to be in a hollow tree somewhere about 2 miles west of Round Rock.

Bass is tied to several legends of treasure being buried in Texas, including one that involves Burnet County. The legend says Bass used Longhorn Caverns as a hideout after some of his robberies although treasure seekers have yet to find any loot there.

Packsaddle Mountain in eastern Llano County is another alleged Bass treasure location. Rumor has it the outlaw hid gold in canvas sacks on Packsaddle Mountain and that some of it could still be there.

Another Bass treasure location, if the rumors are true, is Cove Hollow, near Denton. Bass reportedly stole 3,000 gold bars from Union Pacific Railroad, some of which have been recovered, but there are gold bars that have still not been recovered, according to OnlyInYourState.com.

Legend says there’s close to $3 million buried in Austin. The stolen bounty was part of the Mexican payroll in 1836 and it’s allegedly buried 5 feet deep, near an oak tree with a carving of two eagle wings on it, according to TexasHillCountry.com.

The Sabine River could potentially hold a $2 million fortune in stolen silver. "Oil workers actually picked up readings that metal was to be found at the bottom of the lake. They send a probe down and it hit metal just before a giant storm hit, destroying the raft and any other evidence,” according to OnlyInYourState.com.

Hispanic conquistadors reportedly hid a massive cache of gold and jewels in a mine shaft in the Franklin Mountains near El Paso’s Guadalupe Mission. The conquistadors are said to have filled in the mine so nobody else could discover the hoard. Supposedly, it still lies buried beneath the dirt.

Have you ever heard of Money Hill near South Padre Island? It’s said that John Singer discovered a wooden chest containing $80,000 in Spanish coins and jewelry on the Texas coast and buried it in the sand dunes to protect his treasure from looters. Read the full story of Money Hill on LegendsOfAmerica.com.

Nathan Smith thinks he’s found a sunken ship just north of Corpus Christi, according to OnlyInYourState.com. His metal detector indicated there is gold and silver buried at the site but the owners of the land won’t allow him to dig unless a federal court rules in Smith’s favor.

Think you can find some of the legendary hidden booty? May the odds be ever in your favor.


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