Treasure Hunting Maine

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GOLD

Gold primarily occurs in three different geologic settings in Maine: 1.) bedrock, 2.) sediments erroded from bedrock by glaciation, and 3.) in stream gravels.  

Placer Deposits

     A placer deposit is a concentration of a natural material that has accumulated in unconsolidated sediments of a stream bed, beach, or residual deposit.  Gold derived by weathering or other process from lode deposits is likely to accumulate in placer deposits because of its weight and resistance to corrosion.  In addition, its characteristically sun-yellow color makes it easily and quickly recognizable even in very small quantities.

     The gold pan or miner's pan is a shallow sheet-iron vessel with sloping sides and flat bottom used to wash gold-bearing gravel or other material containing heavy minerals. The process of washing material in a pan, referred to as "panning," is the simplest, most commonly used, and least expensive method for a prospector to separate gold from the silt, sand, and gravel of the stream deposits.  It is a tedious, back-breaking job and only with practice does one become proficient in the operation. Thankfully, technology finally caught up with our gold fever and brought us metal detectors!

Placer gold has been found in the following counties:  Aroostook, Franklin, Hancock, Kennebeck, Knox, Oxford, Penobscot, Somerset, and Washington.

As always, ask for permission before detecting / panning on private property.  

GEMS

John Sinkankas, in Gemstones of North America Vol. 1, reported that the finest, gem-quality purple apatite in the world was from Mount Apatite in Androscoggin County. Oxford County is the only known location for gem-quality beryllonite, and this location has produced only very small colorless or light yellow stones. Pegmatites in the State have produced colorless and pale yellow herderite crystals from which small gems have been cut. Oxford County deposits have produced colorless, facet-grade phenakite from which small to medium stones have been cut. Small to medium sized, colorless to slightly pinkish stones have been cut from pollucite recovered in Oxford County.

Tourmaline was the first gemstone mined in the United States by miners other than prehistoric man or Native Americans. Tourmaline mining began at Mount Mica, ME, in 1822 and, with starts and stops, has continued to the present. In 1992, operations at Mount Mica produced both gem-quality and mineral specimen tourmaline.

Over the years, mining operations on Mount Mica produced hundreds of kilograms of tourmaline. Museums and private collections around the world contain outstanding examples of tourmaline from the deposit. The largest reported crystal from the site apparently is one that is 39.4 centimeters long, 17.8 centimeters wide, and weighs about 14.3 kilograms. Apparently, a flawless, blue-green 256-carat stone is the largest cut stone from Mount Mica.

Mount Mica may have been the first tourmaline producer in Maine, but it is by no means the largest. Newry Hill, a spur off Plumbago Mountain, or more specifically the Dunton Mine on Newry Hill, is the most prolific tourmaline producer in Maine. Since its discovery in 1898, production from the mine has exceeded thousands of kilograms of high-quality tourmaline. The mines ability to yield large quantities of quality tourmaline was clearly demonstrated by Plumbago Mining Corp. The company reported that from October 1972 until the Fall of 1974, it produced more than one metric ton of fine-quality tourmaline.

Other mines and quarries in a three county area produce gem- and specimen-grade tourmalines. The level and type of activities at each mine or quarry vary from year to year. Currently, most of them are open to hobbyist or professional collectors for a fee or with the owners permission.

Maine tourmalines come in a wide variation of colors, deep grass green to light green to yellow-green to blue green. They are also found in all shades of red, from pink to deep red, and blue-green to light blue to deep blue, and as colorless crystals. The State's mines also produce bicolors and watermelon crystals. The colors can be very fine and some believe that Maine tourmalines set the standard for non-chrome green tourmaline.

RELICS, COINS, & JEWELRY

Maine offers a rich history as an early colony.  Whether it's an old colonial foundation in the woods, remains of an early fort, your front yard, or downtown construction sites, you are sure to find some awesome coins and relics.  However, that's not to speak of the seashore's huge potential.  The coast of Maine is said to have been an especially popular place for such pirates as Captain Kidd, Captain Bellamy, and their like to have buried treasure.

Also, for hundreds of years, the Atlantic coastline served as a busy passage for thousands of Spanish, Danish, French English, and colonial ships.  Pirates and privateers combined with storms and shifting sand bars made this course the most hazardous in the world.  The rocky coast of Maine in particular, spelled disaster to several ships that became lost in fog or darkness.  Their hulks remain today at the bottom of the sea, some with rare coins scattered in the sand nearby.

Locals say that if you just walk along the coast after a storm, you can find Spanish doubloons, coppers, pillar dollars, guineas, jewelry, pottery and other relics without a detector.  Just imagine.....having one!

Here's a few more ideas to get you started:

• Schools and College Campuses
• Parks / Playgrounds / Picnic Areas
• Foundations, Wells, and Cellar Holes of Old Churches or Houses
• Downtown Construction Sites
• Swimming Holes and Beaches
• Camp Grounds, Boy Scout Camps, and WPA / CCC Camps
• Sports Facilities
• Ghost Towns
• Riding Stables and Race Tracks
• Old Fair and Carnival Locations
• Old Town Dumpsites

LOST TREASURE

As in other areas of the US, there are several tales of lost treasure in Maine concerning caches buried for safety.  In many of these stories, people either died or forgot where they buried the stash.  Contributing factors include:   

    1.  Federal laws making possession of gold illegal in the early 1900s

    2.  Distrust of banks during the Great Depression.  

• All along the Maine coast are more islands than can be counted, and many of these have been suggested as burial sites for buccaneers and privateers. Pirates aside, the coastal areas of Maine have yielded their share of Massachusetts Pine Tree shillings and related pieces over the years.
• On Richmond Island, offshore from Cape Elizabeth, a vast treasure of Spanish-American and other gold and silver coins was found in 1855. Many of the pieces were given to the Maine Historical Society.
• At Cedar Ledges east of Ram Island in Casco Bay, three kettles of gold coins were found on Thanksgiving Day, 1852, and more may still be there.

These excerpts are a sampling from American Coin Treasures and Hoards