In this article, you will discover 12 lost treasures of Montana that are waiting to be recovered. There’s no wonder that Montana has many lost treasure tales to tell. Gold was first discovered in Montana in 1858 with a massive gold rush that took place in the years following there are many buried treasure reports of gold bullion that miners had buried and never returned to reclaim.
There are stories of buried gold from miners to buried loot from gangs that once roomed the state of Montana. With its wide-open spaces and mountainous areas, there are many places to hide treasure in Montana. Montana is actually known amongst other names as the “Treasure State” because of its vast beauty and of course the lost treasure that’s buried here. So without further adieu, I introduce you to the 12 lost treasures of Montana. Enjoy!
12 Lost Treasures of Montana
| TREASURE | AMOUNT | LOCATION |
|---|---|---|
| The Innocents Robberies | Over $100,000 in gold and treasury notes | In the hills between Virginia City and Bannack Montana |
| Plummer Gangs Buried Gold at Hell Gate Ronde | A cache of gold coins and nuggets | Near the ruins of Hell Gate Ronde |
| Henry Plummer’s Buried Gold Bullion | $650,000 worth of gold bullion | Near Haystack Butte, Montana along the Missouri River |
| Plummer Gang’s Buried Gold On Hollow Top Mountain | $800,000 worth of gold bullion and coins | In a cave on Hollow Top Mountain near Waterloo, Montana |
| Buried Gold Near Clear Fork River | Unknown amounts of buried gold bullion | On a ravine called China Grade near Clear Fork River between Drummond and Bearmouth, Montana |
| Flint River Treasure | 50 pounds of his gold dust and nuggets | Near the Flint River two miles south of Philipsburg, Montana |
| Butch Cassidy’s Buried Gold | $50,000 to $100,000 worth of gold | In the hills near Malta Montana |
| Gambler’s Buried Winnings | $40,000 in gold coins | Bell River about a mile northwest of Monarch, Montana |
| Buried Gold Near Fort Missoula Military Post | 200 pounds of gold bullion | Fort Missoula is located about 3 miles south of Missoula, Montana off of State Highway 93 |
| William Kittering’s Buried Gold Coins | $35,000 in gold coins | Fort Peck is located along the Missouri River in Valley County Montana |
| The Curry Gang’s Buried Loot | $40,000 in paper currency and $80,000 in gold and silver coins | Near Malta Montana |
| Raw Gold Buried Near Holler Lake | $50,000 worth of raw gold | near the northern tip of Holler Lake about 3 miles from Wolf Creek Montana |
Henry Plummer Gangs Buried Treasure’s
There are actually four stories of lost treasure that was buried by Henry Plummer and his gangs. You will find them below.
The Innocents Robberies
Henry Plummer the leader of the Henry Plummer gang and a gang called the Innocents was actually the Sheriff of Bannack, Montana in the mid-1800s. Henry and his gang would hijack shipments of gold and valuables that came out of Virginia City, Montana. They would also rob miners of their mined assets.
The Innocents allegedly stole a considerable sum of gold in the area of Alder Gulch during a short period from October to December 1863. Rumor had it that the Innocents buried their stolen gold in the hills outside of Bannack, Montana.
Henry Plummer was finally caught by vigilantes on January 10, 1864, and hanged. At least 20 of the Innocents were also tried and hanged. This left the speculation of where was the gold that the gang had stolen? Many believe the gold is still buried somewhere between Virginia City and Bannack Montana up in the hills there.
Here’s a list of some of the treasure that might still be buried in Montana by Henry Plummer and his gang:
- $12,000 in gold dust stolen on October 13, 1863
- $2,800 in gold stolen on October 26, 1863
- $1,000 in gold and treasury notes stolen on November 22, 1863
- $5,000 in gold dust stolen in November 1863
- $80,000 in gold dust and $1500 in treasury notes stolen in December 1863
Plummer Gangs Buried Gold at Hell Gate Ronde
Another reported story of buried treasure by the Plummer gang at the ruins of an old town named Hell Gate Ronde that’s located 2 miles northwest of Missoula, Montana. In 1850 Hell Gate Ronde had a population of 2,000 residents and was the first town in Montana to have a mercantile store.
Before the demise of the Plummer gang in 1864, it’s said that Henry and 6 of his men buried a cache of gold coins and nuggets somewhere near the town. As a matter of fact, Hell Gate Ronde is the town where the vigilante group caught up with Henry Plummer and he was hanged in Hell Gate Ronde.
The town is now a ghost town with the ruins of some buildings that still stand to this day. There could be valuable gold coins and nuggets still waiting for discovery near this town. It would be well worth someone’s time to check out Hell Gate Ronde and bring along a metal detector that specializes in gold detection like the Garrett AT Gold metal detector.
Henry Plummer’s Buried Gold Bullion
Before Henry Plummer was hung in Hell Gate Ronde he claimed that he buried $650,000 worth of gold bullion near Haystack Butte, Montana along the Missouri River. This gold has never been found although many have searched for it over the years. Haystack Butte is located off of State Highway 89 in Teton County.
Plummer Gang’s Buried Gold On Hollow Top Mountain
The Plummer gang sure got around in the early half of the 1860s! This story states that Henry and his gang buried $800,000 worth of gold bullion and coins in a cave on Hollow Top Mountain. This mountain is located about 7 miles northeast of the city of Waterloo, Montana. What a find that would be!
Buried Gold Near Clear Fork River
The gold mining town of Beartown which is now a ghost town was booming in the mid-1800s. This town is located on the Clear Fork River between Drummond and Bearmouth, Montana. It is said that a group called the Beartown Roughs terrorized and stole from the local miners there. Close to Beartown is a ravine called Chinese Grade where miners were reported to have buried their strikes of gold there for safekeeping.
One particular story states that a Chinese miner buried what was called a “five-pound baking powder tin” presumably five pounds of gold close to his gold mine on China Grade. Is the gold from that Chinese miner and perhaps others still buried on China Grade? Who knows? But a trip to Beartown and a look around China Grade would be well worth someone’s time.
Flint River Treasure
In 1873 a gold prospector was attacked by Indians near the Flint River that flows about two miles south of Philipsburg, Montana. During the raid or maybe before he successfully was able to bury 50 pounds of his gold dust and nuggets in a muddy area there. He successfully fought off the attackers but was unable to recover his treasure.
Since the dust and nuggets were buried on the banks of the river it has probably washed away by now but I would be interested in doing some gold panning in the Flint River. That might be a lucrative endeavor.
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Butch Cassidy’s Buried Gold
The famous Butch Cassidy of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is said to have done numerous robberies in Utah, Wyoming, Montana, and Colorado in the late 1800s to early 1900s. There is a lost treasure tale associated with Butch Cassidy of burying somewhere between $50,000 to $100,000 worth of gold in the hills near Malta Montana.
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Gambler’s Buried Winnings
A man by the name of Fleming who was a successful gambler is said to have buried $40,000 in gold coins that were his winnings from playing cards underneath his cabin. His cabin was located on Bell River about a mile northwest of Monarch Montana. Fleming was murdered probably in a game gone bad. Years later his family found his will stating that he had buried the gold coins under his cabin.
But after looking years later his cabin was gone and so were the gold coins which are alleged to still be buried in the spot where his cabin once stood. To this day no one has found Flemings buried winnings. My assumption is that his cabin washed away in the river along with the gold coins but that’s just my speculation.
Buried Gold Near Fort Missoula Military Post
In the 1880s a miner was coming back from his mine with 200 pounds of gold bullion when his mule broke its leg. He decided to bury the gold so he could go and get another mule to carry it. It is said that he buried the gold near the bank of the Clark Fork River near Fort Missoula Military Post. When he came back to retrieve his gold he couldn’t find where he had buried it.
Fort Missoula is located about 3 miles south of Missoula, Montana off of State Highway 93. If the gold is still there is would be a find of a lifetime!
William Kittering’s Buried Gold Coins
William Kittering was a rich rancher and merchant during the time of the Great Depression in 1929. It is said that he buried $35,000 in gold coins on his property in Fort Peck Montana. He died without letting his family know where he had buried the coins. Those coins have never been recovered and could still be there waiting for someone to dig them up.
Fort Peck is located along the Missouri River in Valley County Montana.
The Curry Gang’s Buried Loot
The Curry Gang came to Montana in the 1890s. The gang consisted of brothers by the names of Henry, Loney, John, and Harvey Logan. When they came to Montana they changed their name to Curry because before that they were in the Famous Wild Bunch gang of Butch Cassidy.
The Curry boys caused a lot of ruckus for years in the town of Landusky. Drinking and partying and tearing up miners camps. Harvey was the gang’s leader who was called Kid Curry. Eventually, all his brothers were killed and he did one final robbery. Kid and another man held up the Great Northern Flyer which was a train on July 03, 1901, when it was stopped at Exeter Creek.
As the train started to leave the station the two men made their way to the engine room where they pointed a gun at the engineer and told him to stop the train. Then they made their way to the express car where the valuables were stored and blew open the safe they got away with $40,000 in paper currency and some say $80,000 in gold and silver coins.
No one knows for sure what happened to Kid Curry after that but it’s presumed that he buried his loot near the area that the train was robbed which was near Malta Montana. The loot was never recovered.
Raw Gold Buried Near Holler Lake
In 1897 a gold prospector is said to have buried $50,000 worth of raw gold near the northern tip of Holler Lake about 3 miles from Wolf Creek Montana. But the prospector died before he was able to go and retrieve the gold. I could still be buried on the northern tip of Holler Lake in Cascade County Montana.
Conclusion – Lost Treasures of Montana
Well, that is the conclusion of 12 lost treasures of Montana. Montana is a wide-open and mountainous state so it’s no wonder there would be lost treasure stories from this state. I hope you enjoyed this article and if you have any experience searching for treasure in the state of Montana I would love to hear from you in the comments below.
Until next time Happy Treasure Hunting!
Henry plummer was hanged in Bannock not hell gate ronde