Buried treasure: Seiad woman unearths 41 gold coins in her gardenhttp://www.siskiyoudaily.com/news/x740673767/Buried-treasure-Seiad-woman-unearths-41-gold-coins-in-her-gardenFeb. 17, 2012
Seiad Valley, Calif. — It is not often that a person stumbles upon a stack of 19th century gold coins while digging a hole in the garden to plant a fruit tree, but this extraordinary discovery was recently made by Seiad resident Kathy Bishop at her Lowden Ranch home.
“I was surprised, excited and stunned,” Bishop said. “My first thought was that they were gold-colored foiled chocolate candies.”
Surrounding a broken glass jar where the coins were once placed for safe keeping, Bishop said she unearthed 41 gold Liberty Head Double Eagle $20 coins with dates ranging from 1875 to 1896. Each coin weighs one ounce.
According to Bishop, 40 of the coins were minted in San Francisco, and one was minted in Carson City, Nev. While Bishop tried to keep the unearthed treasure a secret, she said that the occurrence was so exciting that she had to tell a few people. It was not long before the news began spreading throughout the county.
The discovery occurred on Jan. 5, when Bishop and her friend were preparing her garden to plant fruit trees. She had placed seven stakes in the areas of her garden where she wanted to plant the trees.
Having second thoughts about the location of the seventh tree, she decided to move its stake, and that was when she dug the new hole and discovered the gold coins.
“If I hadn’t moved that stake, I would have missed the gold,” Bishop said.
Bishop commented that she has walked over the spot where the gold was buried more times than she can count. Lowden Ranch was once occupied by John Lowden, who died in 1905, Bishop said.
“We are surmising that John buried these coins. Apparently the old timers buried their money often,” she said, adding that she has heard of other property owners finding gold hidden on their properties.
The current value of gold is $1,765 per ounce, although Bishop said that she is not in a rush to have the coins appraised.
“Right now we just think gold is a good thing to have around,” Bishop said. “We have no plans for it yet.”
The coins are being stored in a safety deposit box at a bank, where they will stay.
PHOTO: Seiad resident Kathy Bishop unearthed 41 gold Liberty Head Double Eagle $20 coins while she was digging a hole to plant a fruit tree at her Lowden Ranch home. Each coin weighs 1 ounce. The coins are being kept in a safety deposit box at a bank.
