The Lost Treasures of Padre Benevidies

  I don’t know if this story should be told or not. It may seem too fantastic, or hard to believe but it is true. I’ve held the secret to a fabulous Lost Treasure and the hunt for that Treasure that took place back in the 1980’s. The timing had to be just right if I was to go back and fulfill this goal this quest. This is My story my curse you could say. Back when I was in the Navy I must have been 18 or so, I was able to travel the world. I would spend my shore time metal detecting the beaches and diving for Treasure as a hobby. I read everything I could on Pirates, the Conquistadors, the Outlaws and the 49ers. By the time I was 23 I had a pretty good idea of what was out there to be had. I ended up in El Paso Tx., my mom was ill and needed my help, and my stepfather was stationed there in the military. I had read about the Southwest for years and was looking forward to moving there. My mom had some medical problems and I helped out the best I could. I attended business school during the week, and on the weekends I would be off roading Treasure Hunting and Mining all over the Southwest. I’ve always loved the outdoors, and I soon fell in love with the desert and all its history. By the time I finished Business school I had degree and a degree in Desertology. I read every piece of history I could get a hold of, and had amassed an incredible amount of knowledge at a young age. I was having a pretty good time back then, but I had no idea how my life was about to change. It was a beautiful sunny day I remember it very well. We were having a garage sale trying to get rid of some junk, most of the customers had come and gone. I was relaxing in the shade and watched as an old man drove up in a Chevy truck. I said take a load off old timer and we sat in the shade drinking some iced tea.  He introduced himself as well we’ll call him Bill and I introduced myself. As he looked around the garage he noticed the metal detectors, backpacks, and shovels and asked Frank what kind of work do you do? Well Bill I’ve just received my business degree and during the weekends I’m out Treasure Hunting and Mining all over the place. His whole demeaner and tone changed he was a little excited to say the least. He started telling me about the Conquistadors, and a certain Padre that was in charge of a number of Missions. He was anxious to talk about what he knew. He rambled  about Lost Treasure, gold, silver and other things, but it seemed a little confusing then  he remembered he had to be North of Las Cruces NM in a couple hours, so he left but promised he would return. Later on he said he had no idea why he drove down my road that day, but was glad he did. For the next couple months he came by off and on and we became pretty good friends. My family being from the South and half Cajun love to cook, and Bill really loved to eat. We would sit around the dinner table for hours and he would tell us many stories and legends of old. But I always felt he was holding something back, something he just couldn’t say. One day I was getting ready to go off roading and Bill drove up. I asked if he wanted to tag along and he said shure. He grabbed his backpack , which looked a little heavy and we headed out to the Franklin Mountains in El Paso. We were having a pretty good time, and we headed for some old ruins of a Copper mining operation. We were sitting on the tailgate of my Chevy a little later and old Bill looked at me and said Frank I feel I can trust you. I’ve gotten to know you and your family and you seem like good people. I said thanks of course and as we sat there Bill told me an amazing story. Frank when I was about 10 years older than you are now about 34 I’m 78 now, I was a lot like you. I loved the outdoors too, and loved reading about Adventure and Treasure Hunting. One day I was in a library in Sante Fe NM, I was in the archive section reading a book on Spanish Missions of the Southwest. The book appeared to be very old middle 1800’s and as I turned a page an old folded paper fell into my lap. I put down the book and examined the old document, it was written in some kind of Spanish and had dates from the 1600 to 1700’s. I felt it was an important piece of paper, and I know I shouldn’t have but I took it. I kept it for ten years trying to get someone to translate it, but knowone would help me. Then I met a lady from New Mexico State Univ. she said she could translate it, but it would take her about a month. Well a few weeks later she called me sounding very excited. Bill you have to come and see me” I’ve finished translating the document, you have a Treasure Map”! Well I was pretty excited and the next day went to see her. She explained the document was written in an old dialect of Castillian Spanish and Aztec this is truly amazing. It tells of a certain Fransiscan Priest by the name of Benividies, and how he was in charge of a number of Spanish Missions. Apparently he used a certain Mission as a base of operations, and they hid buried and warehoused Gold and Silver to transport overland and then on to Spain. Their Mining operations were vast and they brought Treasures from all over the country to be stored. The Indians showed the Padre a massive Cavern system with seven entrances, where they stored the bulk of the Treasure, and hid the rest in the foothills and desert areas around the mountains. Bill you have the directions to the cavern and it tells where to find the signs and symbols that lead to the Treasure Cavern and in the desert areas where they buried tons more. Well Frank I found the mission and searched the mountains to the North for many years searching for the clues that would lead me to a great Treasure Trove. I found many of the signs and symbols which would be accompanied by an arrow pointing in a certain direction.” I would follow the arrows but would end up lost, those Spaniards were tricky Bastards”. Finially I got smart and started using USGS government topo maps. I retraced my steps and found even more signs and symbols. Using a compass and my maps I drew a line on the map from all the arrows and all the lines came to a point, one place. So that’s where I went. It was in a big canyon on top of the mountains, it took a while to get there, but we eventually found a road going right to it. I found a large cross on a rock as big as a house in the canyon. After examining the area I started digging a tunnel behind the rock. I had an old couple, some friends of mine help dig and together we dug a twenty foot tunnel, but found nothing. Well I gave up for a month or so, and decided to go back one day to see what I could do. I was shoring up the tunnel and digging inside when I came across a rock in the back of the tunnel that was pretty big. I was finially able to pry it out, and when it was removed cool air hit my face, I had found the cavern. After widening the hole I grabbed my lantern and entered a winding cave, I kept moving forward and the cave started to widen up a little. On the left I saw a pile of bodies now skeletons stacked like cordwood, I could still see hair on one of the bodies. I moved foreward and noticed what looked like powder kegs, I examined one that was busted and Gold coins spilled out everywhere. As I shined my lantern I could see the floor was littered with gold and silver coins literally carpeting the floor, there were several hundred kegs. As I walked past the kegs the room opened up to a larger cavern. To my left was a wall about 5-6 feet high by 5-6 feet wide of Gold and Silver bars as far as I could see, I peed my pants right there. I noticed other things like rotten old furs, more kegs filled with gemstones, crates of old documents, chunks of jade and other minerals and many other things. Was this a dream, am I awake I wasn’t shure. By then my lantern was going out so I grabbed a gold bar and some coins and headed out of the tunnel. I sat in my truck contemplating what I had just seen, I cried and kept thinking this was just too big, too much gold. People would kill for a whole lot less, if people found out theres no telling what would happen. So I went back in and took out seven more bars of Gold and filled my pockets with more coins and a gems. I took eight sticks of dynamite lit the fuse and destroyed the entrance Later I would regret that, but hey we make a lot of mistakes in life hopefully we learn from them. Later on Bill said the government took seven of the bars of gold and literally ripped me off, it’s hard for me to trust anyone now, I’ve had to keep this secret for years. So Bill what happened to the eigth gold bar? Well he grabbed is backpack, struggling a little and pulled out a two inch thick by three by nine inch gold bar and sat it in my lap. You could see it was authentic it was very weathered and had been stamped with various Spanish symbols, it was very very heavy. Frank he said I‘m getting old and I just want to retire, I want to go back and get more, but I need help. I’ll tell you everything I know and we’ll split it 50/50 what do you say? Well at that moment my life would change forever, so the adventure began. The next week old Bill took me on a tour of the mission and the mountains where the Treasure was buried. He really did blow up the entrance, but in the old document it said there were seven entrances into the cavern.. Man we dug hole after hole after hole without any success. I sat one day watching an eagle fly by one day and wishing I could see underground. Well I started learning everything I could on GPR (ground penetrating radar) and other technologies. I got involved with some professionals in the business and over the next year began mapping the area underground with some advanced technology. We began to see that there was a cavern system and began trying to locate the other entrances. By this time old Bill had gotten some other people involved and the whole thing got really crazy, man what Gold fever will do to men. I was pushed out of the game altogether, Bill didn’t really want that and he could see that it was getting out of hand. So instead of leading them in and to the left he led them to the right, they didn’t find a thing, a short time later they gave up and haven’t been back since. Well over the next six months Bill would give me clues about how to enter the cavern, he knew a whole lot more than I thought, he told me how to enter two other ways. One way under a bedrock waterfall or overhang and the other a two inch by 75 inch crack with a constant flow of air coming from inside he showed me exactly where these two spots are. He took me to the desert and showed me where they buried tons of stuff, there are turtle signs with diamonds on there backs, arrows and crosses of different types. There are multiple locations 16 in all and I know where there all at, I ended up spending four years altogether with old Bill tracking down all of the signs and symbols he found. I first met Bill when I was 24 and now I’m 40, old Bill and my Mom have passed on, they are in a much better place, I know there looking down on us and guiding us. Since that time I’ve become an expert in Mining, Geology, and Treasure Hunting enough to call myself a professional I have the knowledge to make this happen and have trained my whole life for this moment. I feel it is time to go after these Treasures and I can be ready to go asap. I would like to do this legally and there is a way to do that, I don’t like breaking the law and don’t care for people who do. I haven’t been looking for investors until now I’m not looking to get a bunch of people involved, just a couple of people. And I would need to relocate to either New Mexico Or West Tx. Total investment I would need would be between $15,000 and $50,000. I have a lot of time and research involved plus many years of research and can prove EVERYTHING I have said, I only deal in facts no fantasy here folks. Anyone involved in the recovery effort will receive an equal share, someone has a problem with, bad attitude, or negative individuals will have to go. I am putting my team together including Mr. Floyd Mann Treasure Adventurer and can be ready go anytime. I have access to the most advanced technology on the market at the best price and state of the art gear. I am ex-Special Forces and highly trained in outdoor and desert survival. The timing is right, any people involved there have been gone for 15 years or are dead, the gold price is near $650. an ounce and I’m almost ready to go.  So there you have it The Lost Treasures Of Padre Benavidies. Don’t really care who believes this story or doesn’t it doesn’t matter I know without a doubt its there, and I’ll probably get the chance to go after it sooner or later, but sooner sounds better anyone interested? God bless and may all your dreams come true, I KNOW MINE WILL! 

Frank Edwards, Treasure Hunter, Adventurer, Mining Consultant

COPYRIGHT :   This LOST TREASURE USA newsletter, and my website at www.LostTreasureUSA.com   are copyrighted 2003-2006 by FLOYD MANN ( D.B.A. Lost Treasure USA ).  But, you may ( please ! ) forward it to as many people as you like.

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