The treasure of Tayopa

I have always loved the idea of lost treasures since i was about ankle high. This legend of Tayopa, seems more than just a legend though. It is said that over 16 tons of gold and silver is still out there, just waiting to be found! Now what a discovery that would be.

Let's look at this story a bit more.

The Jesuits in the 1600's were doing more than just bringing the gospel to the natives, they were also enriching the church, as was the norm back then. Now in 1592 the Spanish Goverment passed a law that prohibited priests from owning any mines, however this law was retracted in 1621. The Jesuits kept mining though, and in 1703 the Spanish Goverment issued a royal degree that reproved those that were breaking the law. Now because of this, and the fact that the goverment took 20% of all the ore that was mined, many of these mines were and still are, secret.

In 1603 the mines known as Tayopa was discovered, somewhere in Sonara, Mexico, near the Yaqui River. How it was discovered, and who discovered it, nobody knows. It is known however that there were 17 mines discovered in total in this area, and they were all very very rich in silver deposits. And so in 1632 the Village of Guadalupe de Tayopa was established. So in 1646 a reverend with the elaborate name of Francisco Villegas Garsina y Orosco, did an inventory at the church, and a huge amount of silver and gold, and other valluables have been accumalated.

In 1646 there was an Apache uprising wich seems to have led to the partial evacuation of the village, but church records found in nearby areas suggested that marriages and baptisms were performed up until the 1700's.

In the mid 1700's the village was abandoned, there is no idea why, but there is some speculation. One possible cause was either they were destroyed by the Apache's, or because in 1767 the Jesuits were expelled from Mexico, leading to a desertion of the village.

Now because this village was so important, it means that a permant church was buildt there, and that there should even be proof today of this church in that area.

There has been people looking for the church and the treasure, but the reports seem to be conflicting to say the least.

In 1842 a Captain James Hobbs, discovered some ruins near the Yaqui River, presumed to be that of Tayopa.
He wrote the following:

"In wonderfully rich country we found some ancient ruins, the cement walls and foundation stones of a church and a lignum vitae cross, which seemed as sound as it had ever been. We also found remains of a smelting furnace… and some drops of silver and copper. From the appearance of the ruins, it seemed as if there had been a considerable town there. The lake was the headwater of the river Yaqui… Beside the remains of the furnaces, we saw old mine shafts that had been worked, apparently long before."

In 1885 Britton Davies, an officer in the Us army, spoke to some locals in a village called Nacori, and they told him about the Tayopa mines. They said the Apache's attack the town, destroyed it, burned it to the ground, and blew up the mind entrance, and destroyed the church too. He also added that on some nights you can hear the dogs, and bells ringing from the village of Tayopa.

In 1927, Carl Sauer of the University of California found church records in Arizpe, Sonora that came from Tayopa. He also found records at Bacadeguachi. He speculates that Tayopa is somewhere between Nacori Chico and Guaynopa.

Henry O. Flipper, was the first black graduate from West Point, and a hardcore searcher for Tayoba. Now in 1911 when Flipper was in Spain, he came across some directions for Tayopa. This is what it said :

"On the 7th day of March stand on the summit of Cerrro de la Campana, near the Villa de la Concepcion, and look at the sun as it sets. It will be setting directly over Tayopa. Travel eight days from Cerro de la Campana toward the sunset of March 7th and you will come to Tayopa."

Now, if i had a whip, a hat and the time and resources, i would like to go look for this treasure, but it might only be a legend too.

vvv

I have heard all of this before. As an armchair treasure hunter and desert gold prospector I had to give you a star and a flag. Here is a story I remember from one of the lost treasure books that I read ages ago.

A prospector was sitting by his fire one night when he noticed in the distance an indian warrior riding a horse led by his woman. He put extra grub on the skillet and some more water in the coffee pot and waited for them to get closer so he could invite them to join him. When they got closer, he called to them to join him for some grub and coffee which they did. They did not talk throughout the meal and when they went to leave, the warrior mounted the horse and the woman took the lead and started to walk away. The prospector called out that he wanted to ask a question. The warrior nodded it was OK and the prospector asked "How come the woman must walk while the warrior rides the horse?" and the warrior replied "Because she does not own a horse."

And now a prospecting story of my own.

I used to do a lot of prospecting and drywashing for Gold out here in the Superstition mountains and the surrounding territory. This was Apache territory back in the day and when the federal troops were withdrawn to fight in the Civil War the Apaches really tore the territory apart. After the war the troops started coming back to restore order and used Pima Indian Scouts to root out the Apaches. Near a place called Picketpost Mountain a large group of men, women, and children were caught in a cave by the cavalry and their Pima Indian Scouts. No Apaches came out of the cave alive.
This area was one of my favorite prospecting haunts. You could still watch the cowboys bringing the range cattle up the dry washes to get a drink at the windmills and watering holes. I was always turning up bits and pieces of broken Indian pottery as I dug the dry washes to feed my dry washer. I found no appreciable Gold, but put in a lot of hard work and learned some History and Geology while I was at it.
One time I had been there three or four days and my water and my spirits were running low. It was the middle of summer and I found it very hard to get any sleep because it stays hot all night long. It only cools off at night in the Winter. That night I drifted off to a fitful sleep. All night long I dreamed the Apaches were torturing me with Cholla cactus. They would drag me through the cactus fields with rope on horse back and use their long lances to force me into the worst thickets of it. I had cactus in my eyes, mouth, and everywhere else and it was very painful and I was afraid and lonely. Well when I finally woke up the sun was already up and making life miserable and I got up and dressed and went outside. When I stepped outside the tent, I noticed a red arrowhead sitting on the ground in front of my tent. To this very day I believe that I had a supernatural experience that night.

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Those are both really cool stories, thanks for posting as I enjoy reading about lost treasures myself.

Pretty cool story! The interesting thing is, this IS one legend you could "poke into" looking at Google Earth. You would first have to find archaeological sites of towns built during that period and then start looking for similar patterns in the Earth. Don't know if you'd find anything but it's certainly an opportunity for a little armchair research here.

I'm betting it's fabricated but some elements may be true.

reply to post by VreemdeVlieendeVoorwep


Good afternoon. I found Tayopa 12 years ago and had it titled. Want to talk?

Joseph curry

reply to post by groingrinder


i lived on Superstition Mountain in1969-70.

i had visited for years, but finaly lived there for 6 months.

i saw and experienced many occasions where a variety of spirits would visit.
also seen by other people and cats and dogs.

day or night, made no diference.

i left knowing we are not alone.

reply to post by Tayopa


How much do you want for the title?
Seriously, I lived on a large ranch in Southern Colorado and spent my free time panning for gold and finding "things".Found a wood cross with Jesus made of pottery but gave it to the Catholic church.
Also found an old gold mine. The entrance to the mine glittered with gold! There had even been a tent city built there in the 1800's for the miners. They gave up after a few years and moved away but I found the mine!!!
Learned it was flour gold. So fine it couldn't be panned. But I tried for five years. We moved away and then I found out that it can be panned with water and Dawn dish soap!!! Extreme Cusswords! But do have a pint jar of the stuff.