In Bob Lee's book he had 3 maps that he had received from Lee Kessler. These maps supposedly impressed Ed Piper. One map showed a mine on Black Top Mesa.
I've searched this site and several books and I can't find any other reference to Kessler, who was supposed to be a long time prospector.
Does anyone have any history on Kessler and what became of the three maps Bob Lee had?
Lee Kessler
I found nothing on Lee Kessler as pertaining to prospecting in the Superstitions but did look at his maps. There were 18 maps and the three you speak of are in the Bob Lee collection. They are large fold out maps, so I was unable to copy for the site. The Black Top Mesa site seemed more like a mining claim map than a LDM treasure map.
Next trip I will try and photograph them if I remember or perhaps Randy can mention it to Greg and get pictures next week?
Next trip I will try and photograph them if I remember or perhaps Randy can mention it to Greg and get pictures next week?
"Be Careful of What You Do Before A Lie Becomes The Truth"
Lee Kessler's Maps
I first read about Lee H. Kessler's maps in Robert E. Lee's book "The Lost Dutchman Mine" (mid 70's) in 1992. He said that Kessler called him on 3/3/62 and agreed to send Robert 3 maps with no conditions attached and Robert received the maps on 3/14/62. He said that Kessler was an old German prospector and that he died not too long after sending him the maps.
Map #1 that Robert received was supposed to show the place where Don Miguel's miners dug gold from the richest vein ever seen in AZ. Map #2 pointed out where the Peralta's did gold smelting and the cave where raw gold was turned into gold bars or ingots. Map #3 was where a gold cache was buried by the Apache and was supposedly where Jacob Waltz got his gold - aka the LDM.
I later purchased the video tape that Robert made and on it he has some fairly good close-up shots of the 3 maps filmed while he was visiting Ed Piper on March 26, 1962. I spent more time that it was worth trying to plot the video maps onto a hard copy in attempt to make a version of them. I later met Greg Davis and did some research in his massive collection. I did find the 3 maps Robert had received in the Robert Lee collection and they were dated September 27, 1948. These 3 maps are called "Sheet number Twelve" out of eighteen and each of the 3 have different markings on them. One shows the Peralta mine locations to be North of Black Top Mesa and on the South side of LaBarge Canyon. There is a close resemblance between Lee's maps and the Salazar Survey that Clay Worst wrote of in the SMHS Journal.
The most interesting item on Map #1 is the location marked for a "LaBarge Light sign" that is also on the South side of LaBarge and North of Black Top Mesa. Lee shows the sign to look like the number "1" without the bottom bar. It reminds me of the "weedhook sign" from Charles Kenworthy's book.
Barry Storm in "Thunder God's Gold" (1946) has the following in the appendix of NOTES OF AUTHENTICITY on Page 163:
31. The only light or reflection sign which I have seen so far in the Superstitions was that of a triangle sign reflected onto a cliff face in LaBarge Canyon about three miles above its Boulder Canyon junction. This occurred on August 6, 1937, at about 2:00pm and shown for approximately ten minutes.
Three miles above the Boulder Canyon junction would put one exactly in the area of where Lee's Map #1 shows a light sign to be located. And Storm's light sign would have to be on the South side of LaBarge for it to show at 2:00pm. Interesting that two different sources that do not seem to be connected document the same light sign - one for an actual sighting and one from a treasure map.
I do think the Peralta's had several mines in the Superstitions from Bluff Springs Mtn to the North and Lee's map may well show the location of one of the covered mines. I don't think this is the LDM.
I searched the internet and could not find anything on Lee H. Kessler's history. His map has two addresses for him -- the first one crossed out: 3 South Buffalo St, Springville, N.Y., and 253 Second Ave, Chula Vista, CA. Lee sent the maps to Robert from Buffalo, NY, and it may be that he was in the process of moving to CA at the time. He had apparently seen Robert's TV show about the LDM that was shown in the CA and it triggered him to contact Robert - he would have had to be in CA or the western states to have seen that show.
Interesting set of maps.
Roger
Map #1 that Robert received was supposed to show the place where Don Miguel's miners dug gold from the richest vein ever seen in AZ. Map #2 pointed out where the Peralta's did gold smelting and the cave where raw gold was turned into gold bars or ingots. Map #3 was where a gold cache was buried by the Apache and was supposedly where Jacob Waltz got his gold - aka the LDM.
I later purchased the video tape that Robert made and on it he has some fairly good close-up shots of the 3 maps filmed while he was visiting Ed Piper on March 26, 1962. I spent more time that it was worth trying to plot the video maps onto a hard copy in attempt to make a version of them. I later met Greg Davis and did some research in his massive collection. I did find the 3 maps Robert had received in the Robert Lee collection and they were dated September 27, 1948. These 3 maps are called "Sheet number Twelve" out of eighteen and each of the 3 have different markings on them. One shows the Peralta mine locations to be North of Black Top Mesa and on the South side of LaBarge Canyon. There is a close resemblance between Lee's maps and the Salazar Survey that Clay Worst wrote of in the SMHS Journal.
The most interesting item on Map #1 is the location marked for a "LaBarge Light sign" that is also on the South side of LaBarge and North of Black Top Mesa. Lee shows the sign to look like the number "1" without the bottom bar. It reminds me of the "weedhook sign" from Charles Kenworthy's book.
Barry Storm in "Thunder God's Gold" (1946) has the following in the appendix of NOTES OF AUTHENTICITY on Page 163:
31. The only light or reflection sign which I have seen so far in the Superstitions was that of a triangle sign reflected onto a cliff face in LaBarge Canyon about three miles above its Boulder Canyon junction. This occurred on August 6, 1937, at about 2:00pm and shown for approximately ten minutes.
Three miles above the Boulder Canyon junction would put one exactly in the area of where Lee's Map #1 shows a light sign to be located. And Storm's light sign would have to be on the South side of LaBarge for it to show at 2:00pm. Interesting that two different sources that do not seem to be connected document the same light sign - one for an actual sighting and one from a treasure map.
I do think the Peralta's had several mines in the Superstitions from Bluff Springs Mtn to the North and Lee's map may well show the location of one of the covered mines. I don't think this is the LDM.
I searched the internet and could not find anything on Lee H. Kessler's history. His map has two addresses for him -- the first one crossed out: 3 South Buffalo St, Springville, N.Y., and 253 Second Ave, Chula Vista, CA. Lee sent the maps to Robert from Buffalo, NY, and it may be that he was in the process of moving to CA at the time. He had apparently seen Robert's TV show about the LDM that was shown in the CA and it triggered him to contact Robert - he would have had to be in CA or the western states to have seen that show.
Interesting set of maps.
Roger
Kessler Maps
Those are interesting posts. Perhaps Kessler made his maps just from the books and articles he read? He could have gotten the light sign and the Black Top mine from Storm's book. Didn't Storm also talk about a placer in the Peralta story? He could have gotten the smelter from the article on Charles William's find.
Were the other 15 maps also to places in the Superstitions?
In the LDS geaneology search there is a listing for Al Kessler which seems it may fit the information you gave:
Lee Kessler
Birth: Nov 8 1889
Death: Aug 1964
SS Card issued: New York
Died: California
Were the other 15 maps also to places in the Superstitions?
In the LDS geaneology search there is a listing for Al Kessler which seems it may fit the information you gave:
Lee Kessler
Birth: Nov 8 1889
Death: Aug 1964
SS Card issued: New York
Died: California
Lee Kessler's Maps
Zentull,
Did you find all 18 of Kessler's maps in Greg Davis' collection or just the 3 that were in the Robert Lee collection? I only saw the three. Made a series of 8.5x11 inch copies of sections of each and then taped them together to make a single copy of each map.
The markings Kessler made on the maps looked like they were done by geometric triangulation starting at a point just South of Black Top Mesa. This is what made me think of the Salazar Survey and the work that Clay Worst had done on it. Clay's running of the Salazar Survey lines using Spanish markers on Black Top Mesa led him Northward to an area on the North side of LaBarge canyon above (NW) the Squaw Box (think this is correct). This would be roughly in agreement with Kessler's maps but just further North along the same survey line. The difference in end points might have resulted from Kessler having his starting point somewhat South of Black Top Mesa and Clay shooting from the top of Black Top Mesa. I really wonder if Kessler had somehow obtained the Salazar Survey maps from some source.
Might be interesting to show Kessler's maps to Clay at the Rendezvous and see what he thinks of them if he has not already seen them.
Roger
Did you find all 18 of Kessler's maps in Greg Davis' collection or just the 3 that were in the Robert Lee collection? I only saw the three. Made a series of 8.5x11 inch copies of sections of each and then taped them together to make a single copy of each map.
The markings Kessler made on the maps looked like they were done by geometric triangulation starting at a point just South of Black Top Mesa. This is what made me think of the Salazar Survey and the work that Clay Worst had done on it. Clay's running of the Salazar Survey lines using Spanish markers on Black Top Mesa led him Northward to an area on the North side of LaBarge canyon above (NW) the Squaw Box (think this is correct). This would be roughly in agreement with Kessler's maps but just further North along the same survey line. The difference in end points might have resulted from Kessler having his starting point somewhat South of Black Top Mesa and Clay shooting from the top of Black Top Mesa. I really wonder if Kessler had somehow obtained the Salazar Survey maps from some source.
Might be interesting to show Kessler's maps to Clay at the Rendezvous and see what he thinks of them if he has not already seen them.
Roger
Greg only has the 3 we could find. I wonder if someone involved with the survey passed al;ong information? I have part of Aylors manuscript about the survey, it would be interesting if one of those who passed the info along was the real source of the maps?
"Be Careful of What You Do Before A Lie Becomes The Truth"