(Smithsonian Magazine) Legend has it that in 1863, just before the outbreak of the Battle of Gettysburg, the Union Army dispatched a wagon train filled with gold that would be used to pay Union soldiers. The wagon train departed from Wheeling, West Virginia, and made it St. Mary’s, Pennsylvania. At some point after that, however, the shipment of gold disappeared.
The story might very well be fictional, a mere rumor that has persisted for generations. But perhaps not. As Christine Hauser reports for the New York Times, FBI representatives were seen earlier this month digging up a site in Dents Run, Pennsylvania, where some locals believe the treasure is buried.
The FBI offered few details about what it was doing in the area. In a statement, the agency said only that it was “conducting a court-authorized excavation” and “nothing was found.” But Bridget McClure of NBC-affiliate WJAC reports that Dennis and Kem Parada, owners of the treasure recovery service Finders Keepers, were present at the excavation.
