Black Top Mesa

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Black Top Mesa

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To All, <br> Here's another one that really has had my imagination fired up. Robert E. Lee (what a great name) wrote a book several years back "The Lost Dutchman Mine" where he claims the mine was on the east slope of upper blacktop mesa and that Crazy Jake had dynamited about 100 tons of rock over the site from formations above. Lee also claims to have seen Spanish "signs" above where the mine is supposed to be. He did not <br>publish photo's of those "sign" markers but did on a lot of other photo's. Anyone know about this? Anyone ever see these "sign" markers.
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Post by count »

Hi ES, <br>Robert Lee's book is one of my favorites, he really seems to have enjoyed writing it! I believe it was Ed Piper that dynamited Black Top. The Spanish "sign" markers he's talking about are, I believe, the good old "Spanish Heiroglyphics" that are noted on the USGS quad map. I just looked at my copy of Lee's book, and there are pictures in it. There is a cracked rock with "ORO" on it. Lots of people think Barry Storm faked this sign, but I'm not so sure. There is at least one other instance of the word "ORO" scratched on a rock on Black Top, and Storm never mentioned that one, suggesting he didn't know about it. So, what do they mean? People have searched Black Top from top to bottom and never found gold. But all of us know that doesn't mean a thing - gold is, after all, where you find it, and maybe we just haven't found it. <br>I'm guessing you haven't been up on Black Top to see the signs. They're fun, and the view is terrific. If you go, also look for: A cross scratched into a flat rock on the ground; the additional signs just over the cliff from the Heiroglyphics; and, on the other side of the ORO rock, you will find "J WALTZ 1888". Someone's idea of a joke, no doubt, as Waltz would have been 78 and probably not inclined to hang over a cliff and scratch his name. <br>There are other signs: "STORM 1938" is there somewhere, but I haven't found it; there is also the other ORO rock which I also haven't found but have seen pictures of. <br>Have fun! Black Top is a beautiful place!
count
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Post by count »

To Hiker, <br> You are absolutely right on both points re piper and the photo's. It's been awhile since I read the book and here I am misspeaking. I'll try and be more careful in the future. <br> It seems to me that if there was a mine on the east face of upper blacktop it would be a chimney formation. If Lee was right though it's lost forever under all the overburden blasted down. I doubt the Forest Service would ever let anyone do any excavation even if it could be proved it is down there. <br> Thanks for setting me straight and filling all of us in. Talk to ya soon.
count
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Post by count »

Well, who says the Forest Service has to know? They won't hear it from me, heh heh!
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Post by count »

By the way, in the Maps section of this web site there is one labeled "Harrish" map (I think they mean Harnish). It shows lots of locations on Black Top Mesa. Lee mentions the Harnish's in his book, so this map might be a useful companion piece to the book. <br> <br>The sunburst on the broken rock and J Waltz 1888 are pretty easy to find. Nearby is the other rock shown in Lee's book (I guess its supposed to look like a map?) to which someone has added the inscription "Dutch Mine Here" Also a rock with the inscription Fay Ward 1945, or at least that's what it looked like to me. Not sure if there is some significance to that one, but its locatin is on Tom Kollenborn's topo in Corbins book.
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