For those of you that read this blog regularly or who know me personally you know that I’m not a big believer in the KGC mega-millions myths nor do I believe Jesse James was in control of part or all of the KGC.
With the disclaimers out of the way I can’t in good faith just sit by and not say anything about the show that aired on the History Channel about Jesse James on the evening of 9 November 2009. My problems with this show don’t even take into account anything said about the KGC.
With the disclaimers out of the way I can’t in good faith just sit by and not say anything about the show that aired on the History Channel about Jesse James on the evening of 9 November 2009. My problems with this show don’t even take into account anything said about the KGC.
I have lost all my faith in the History Channel as there wasn’t very much verifiable information or in my opinion, truthful information in this show. The one outstanding truth during the whole show was stated by Mr. Pastore himself when he said he didn’t know how to interpret the signs. This is true, he does not!
In case you think I am just being a spoil sport, I do know what I speak of. I had the unpleasant misfortune of working with Mr. Pastore on this same treasure site several years ago. He, in my opinion, is not someone you would want to work a site with. My own connection to Mr. Pastore was quickly severed by myself in just a couple of months because of the way he worked.
It is my opinion that the treasure they did “find” was planted before hand. Please watch this carefully and take note at how clean the coins are and especially how clean the jar is when it comes out of the ground. Anyone that has ever dug a jar or coin out of the ground will recognize this to be suspicious. Please keep in mind this is strictly my opinion and I have no proof that this is what occurred. I would ask that anyone that is tempted to contact Mr. Pastore for information or help with a treasure site be very cautious in doing so.
I could go on and on for days about the misconceptions brought about by this show but I don’t want to dwell on something needlessly.
I apologize to the readers if this article is not what you expected. As I said, I could not in good faith let this go by without a warning to others based on my opinions.
28 comments:
I was thinking the very same thing about the coins and the "mason jar". Did you see the underside of the lid? It was like new! The glass looked brand new and the coins didn't have a spec of dirt on them. HIGHLY SUSPICIOUS!!!!
I think the program was entertaing enough, but no viable verifiable information. The finds were too clean, maybe staged, or found earlier and recreated, which I find hard to rebieve.
This is a comment from one of our readers who does not have a google account. We'll just call him "suspicious", his choice, not mine!
I don't have a Google account so I can't post a comment ... I'll just shoot this e-mail to you.
From the start of the show it was clear that Pastore didn't have a, uh, clue what he was doing. My thought was that this would be just another one of those shows where nothing of note turns up. To my surprise, after 10 years of searching Pastore finds not one but two treasures, and what do you know, it's when he also happens to have cameras following him around.
Like you, how shiny that gold coin was after many decades (yeah, right) in the ground told me that Pastore wasn't even good at faking a recovery. Doesn't he know that those coins even when stored will turn dull due to the copper alloy they contain ? Guess not.
The Jeremiah James connection to JJ was interesting. However, after the obviously bogus treasure finds I can't take seriously any of his other finds either.
What I was "lost" by was, where was this "hidden treasure" found? The inplication was it was "central Kansas," with no more specific info. As such, was the "treasure" found on public or private land? In either event, who would own such finds? Just curious.
The show was interesting.staged? probably,I live in "Central Kansas"" ..LOL.! I was very disappointed with the total disregard of all the other history that they probably destroyed with a backhoe..... anybody know why they they armed and wearing badges ?...
Pastore is a liar. He knows the truth. It's all planted.
Thanks for beating me to the punch on most of my own observations about this mess..
Two things..
1)There is no way in hell these guys actually found those coins as claimed. those coins in my experience and opinion, are without question SALTED. The purpose of the salting seems to be to further/underwrite the nonsensical claims/book deals that sell stories about paid 'sentinels' who will improbably take 50 bucks in stolen bullion/coin to guard millions worth of treasure, and not simply dig it up and run off to California where no one will ever find them and they will be the richest men in the state...
That location is the only topography in the area, and was a MAGNET for picnics,outings, KIDS DRINKING, HUNTERS...etc..
for many years.. anytime you put down a metal detector you are going to dig a lot of junk metal esp at a well-used location such as this. I have zero-doubt that these coins were 100% planted to further the purposes of those selling this show.
Finding this legitimately, would be the statistical likelyhood equivalent of getting attacked by a bear, and a polar bear, at the same time in midtown manhattan..
2) The first thing anyone who grew up in a rural area would think when you find a BOX BURIED on top of a hill in a rural area, as per the groundscan...
its a gravesite.
Everyone in these areas for hundreds of years takes a picturesque hillside to bury their beloved grandma/grandpa who can enjoy eternity with the sun rising on them from the top of the hill..
IF these guys really found what they claimed to find..a box buried on top of a hill.. there is one really good likelyhood for what that was = a casket.
these guys likely dug up a unmarked gravesite and made up a excuse after prying the coffin-lid off of the land owners great-great-grandfathers brother..
and to their disappointment finding only ELMER's remains, and no treasure..
so this preposterous excuse about not being able to dig the last 8 feet..
if these guys knowingly tampered with human remains in the pursuit of treasure..like the morons I expect they are...
I beleive there are laws pertaining to disturbing the dead, hoping that their caset/box has treasure in it.. and you KNOW that these guys even realizing its a coffin went into it, expecting it was part of some great conspiracy to better hide the treasure..
they dug up a grave in my best guess.
yes,after watch this show it is very odd that these so called history/treasure hunters would be wearing side-arms and badges.in fact in one scene mr. pastore places a hat on his head with what appeared to be a U.S.Marshals badge attached to the front. with those notations in mind i believe( IF there is any truth in all this),the anonymous investors may be the united states goverment.....just one mans opinion..thank you
One thing I thought was typical of this type of show was showing that the evidence that the teeth thought to have been Jesse James' was inconclusive because it couldn't be proven that they were his teeth to begin with. It should be noted that the teeth did have DNA markers that proved the teeth belonged to a relative of James' mother, it just couldn't be proven that the teeth belonged to Jesse James.
Even more ridiculous was the fact that Jeremiah James' DNA didn't match Jesse James family DNA but was considered inconclusive because they didn't know if the body exhumed was actually Jeremiah James. So, the first test matched but was inconclusive so they intimate that Jesse could have faked his own death, The second test didn't match but was inconclusive so they intimate that Jeremiah could have been Jesse. This goes beyond flawed logic and just goes to show how poorly The History Channel practices science and interprets evidence in pursuit of a juicy story.
I am open to hearing evidence of any remarkable claim but I am truly offended when a program like this insults my intelligence. They fall just to the side of being deceptive. I am happy that the other posters were just as skeptical as I was.
If they really found what they believed were authentic coins they would never have rubbed grime into them with filthy, sandy gloves. If you spent years reaching that point you would have learned far better "dig site" procedures than this.
Regarding the badges and weapons: Pastore operates "Private Merchant Police Services", a Corporate Security Consulting firm.
PMP is written on the badges they wear on that show so I guess it was kind of commercial for his business ;)
If I were a company I would watch this show and try and decide if PMP has the integrity I would want my security contractors to have.
Left a very bad taste in my mouth. Really, do you think 2nd graders are watching!!?? History Channel is in need of a major overhaul!!!
Not a casket. What grieving relative would dig by hand a grave deeper than 6' let alone more than 20'. However I do believe the coins were staged.
I could barely stand this show. I went straight to the net to check this weirdo out. I agree with a lot of what I have read here. Such as, and was my first thought, what the hell is the deal with barney fife sporting the gun and cheese ball badge. They had mid thigh tactical holsters. Which are used when a gun may need to be drawn when in a crouch to make drawing it under fire easier. These saturday morning cartoon charactors look out of place in the field looking for made up treasure, let alone sporting skip tracer style gear. Second the coins? Saw no time in the ground. Man made alloys corrode because of the reaction to minerals found in the soil. Salts, calcium, iron, magnesium and alike. I found a few coins buried while searching the lake superior region for agates. Most you couldnt tell where coins at first because of all the corrosion. And they probably had not been buried for more then 70 years. Which was the oldest coin I found. A silver quarter. Left alone 130. They would have came clean but only after a proper restoration bath by a professional. And if the gold coins where real there is no way in hell someone with half a brain would rub them fully gloved covered in sandy soil. A single scratch can reduce its value by 20 to 30 %. He was rubbing it like it was his pecker. And what about that gold bar? "Must me 4 ounces?" Hello?! Gold weighs almost the same as lead being very close on the periodtic table. That much gold would weigh twice that. They didnt seem very excited to find such a valuable artifact. They knew little about the equipment they used. They were awkward clumsy and criminally stupid. Basically what reality tv producers drool over. The show was disturbing stupid. And pack with inaccuracies and half truths. Total trype.
Im seeing alot of under educated comments on here in regard to the gold looking to new
Watch any credible show about gold and you will see gold looks that shiny coming out of the ground after thousands of years
the mason jar logo looks like its from 1933- 1960's hers the history of ball jar logos link
http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&hl=en&sa=N&tbo=d&biw=1366&bih=667&tbm=isch&tbnid=avhQ6NsBsSVRNM:&imgrefurl=http://www.artangelsmarket.com/1/post/2012/06/ball-mason-jar-dating-chart.html&docid=Sx0qnNeciYk-lM&imgurl=http://www.artangelsmarket.com/uploads/5/1/1/8/5118311/1121505.jpg%253F464&w=464&h=315&ei=1QnyUJi7F5To8QSY04FA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=181&vpy=51&dur=23&hovh=185&hovw=273&tx=127&ty=117&sig=117875587812197470259&page=1&tbnh=148&tbnw=218&start=0&ndsp=31&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0,i:88
While I have just seen this show, and now read all these comments, It has sparked a true belief in what history says. I have always believed that Jesse James faked his own death just based on simple evidence, now after see the face recognition with his great great grandson...its confirmed thst JM James was Jesse. No doubt in my mind. As far as gold or silver coins go...it does come out of the ground shiny....bury a coin yourself and see ! I believe that Mr Pastore is on the right track, but for the convience of filming...of course recreating must hsppen now and then...too much history is showing that this is true...and I believe its never to late to change our minds...good job History Channel....keep it up.
The face matching portion of the show was not very well thought out. The shape of J.James' nostrils match the nostrils of the corpse. It would have been more plausible to say that he posed for the corpse picture, and then went off to live his life in secrecy, than to say that the corpse was someone else. Also, I paused the scene where the DNA report from the exhumed corpse pops up. The show highlights the part where it says that there can be no conclusion about the corpse being J.James, HOWEVER, when you keep reading it, you find out that they are just being scientists, and scientists never say anything is 100%. But, they are very certain to the point where they conclude that someone else has to disprove that it's the corpse of J.James by some other proof, because the corpse itself is a match for the outlaw.
Just saw the program for the first time last night on the History Channel. The theories were interesting and entertaining. However, the uniforms and sidearms, including a shotgun, were over the top. It was like they were trying to give the impression that wearing the uniforms and having the weapons made it an "official" search with some type of authority attached to the adventure. After reading that they belong to, or own, a private security company, the whole thing for me was simply just a notch above one of those "scripted" reality shows where the whole thing is a reenactment. Finding the coins and the broken Mason jar, that was definitely staged. I'm not a Jesse James history authority so I'll chalk this all up to "interesting" along with the Templar Knights artifacts found buried in Arizona. If you want someone to take you seriously, leave your private security badges, uniforms, and weapons at home next time.
Cool story mr P. but maybe try to sell it to a 5th grade class next time. More than likely you will get the rewarding applause you seem so intent on getting. It's actually quite disturbing that you would even attempt, on camera, probably a priceless archeological dig on gold coins. When you did hit the mother load didn't even take off your sand caked leather gloves that would absolutely tarnish the value. History and monitary..... Again try it to some elementary kids and I bet you will receive the "cool treasure hunter" title, you seem so intent on having.... We're all adults Mr. P.... Should have thought it through another day. Sweet badges and tactical gear though.
I have just seen this show for about the 3rd time. I am not so sure about the treasure hunting part and don't care about that, but the parts about that young guy being a great-great-grandson of Jesse James, and JM James really being Jesse James, I TOTALLY buy that. The evidence is TOO compelling! I'd rather see a show on that alone, going over all the evidence, including other historical records such as census records, etc., that may further shed light on this possibility.
Kansas is an open carry state... they didn't have to have any other reason to have guns.
Just watched this show for the 1st time on a DVD I checked out from my local library. It was entertaining, to be sure. I am not a Jesse James historian, nor do I know much about gold, coins, treasure hunting, but I thought it was all a bit cheeseball. The markings on the sandstone walls? Looked legitimately older, so i don't think those were probably staged. But who's to say they were drawn in 50 years ago by some random kids having fun? I mean, come on, it seems like an awfully big leap to say those were done by the James-Younger gang or that they had anything at all to do with the KGC. As I said, the story was highly entertaining, but didn't seem realistic at all. Did anyone else notice that on the sign-in sheet for the militia/guerrilla reunion that Jesse's name was spelled incorrectly? It was spelled Jessie, not Jesse.
I would love to see a show based on the J.M. James/Jesse James theory. Was be very interesting and entertaining even if disproved.
Did they ever say whether the body taking the place of Jesse James had two chest wound scars and that he was missing the top half of his middle finger?
Ellinwood Kansas was site
If Jesse James did indeed fake his death to live an unassuming and anonymous life, he wouldn't have used his real last name and the last place on earth he would have settled down in was the state of Kansas. He hated Kansas and Kansans hated him.
Many things indicate that the findings are legit while others are questionable. The corpse lacked a scar over his left eye while the photo of the younger Jesse James clearly showed a scar. Unless Jesse had plastic surgery -- which I doubt was available in the 1800s -- that corpse was not Jesse.
However, one thing the show failed to mention is Jesse's widow and children. His widow was so distraught that she never stopped wearing her black dress. And, his 11 year-old son had to go to work to help support the family; you can Google this info. If Jesse had survived, would he have not helped support his family with all the loot he stole? Would he never want to see his 2 children ever again to keep his cover....Maybe yes, maybe no, just depends on his character.
As for the buried coins: the glass mason jars would have protected the coins from corrosion and dirt. But then, why were the mason jars found broken and the coins found in adjacent location? A glass mason jar would not break just sitting buried in the ground; a physical force would have to act on the glass to break it.
Many unanswered questions.....only speculation and conjecture.
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