A Modern Day Lost Treasure

Here’s a more recent treasure some of you intrepid hikers might want to look for. This one is also located in Arkansas and the research on this particular treasure should be pretty easy to conduct.

In 1975 a twin-engine Cessna had the misfortune of crashing in Carroll County, Arkansas somewhere near Berryville. The story I read said the crash scattered debris from the plane over an area covering twenty miles. The debris field was supposed to have started near Trigger Gap, Arkansas and extend northeast. Personally I think twenty miles is a pretty big area for something as small as a twin-engine Cessna unless parts started falling off in the sky, so you will definitely want to do some reading in the Arkansas papers from the time to get some more info.

You’re wondering right now why is it that this plane crash would be worth the time researching and looking for? It seems that the plane was carrying a “mine payroll” from point A to point B. The interesting part of this is that the payroll was in CASH. Twenty thousand dollars worth! The cash was secured in a metal briefcase and although it was searched for at the time of the crash, it apparently was never found.

Like I said before, this one could be really easy to research. There are probably records available from the F.A.A., the local newspapers, the local Sheriff’s department and the local libraries and courthouses.

I haven’t done any follow-up research on this one to verify that it hasn‘t been found. I found a small blurb on this in my research and thought I would right a short article about it. If the cash hasn’t been recovered then it’s been sitting out in the wilderness for more than thirty years just waiting for someone to find that briefcase.

Twenty grand in cash, you wouldn’t even have to find a buyer on E-Bay for that one! Although it might be a little moldy by now.