Across the world there are countless myths and legends about lost treasure in exotic locations, but there are a number of those legends that take place right here in the U.S. One of the most famous of those legends is that of the lost gold of the Confederacy. Legend tells of two enormous crates of gold valued at about 100 thousand dollars in 1865, which if found today, would be worth around a million dollars. The story goes that on May 24th, 1865, two wagon trains were traveling through Lincoln County, Georgia and were robbed at the Chennault Crossroads. The wagons actually contained two separate fortunes: one was the last of the gold reserve from the confederate treasury, and the other was gold from the Virginia banks. The gold was en route from Anderson, South Carolina to Savannah, Georgia, where it was scheduled to be loaded onto a ship and sent back to France; the money was originally on loan from the French who backed the Confederacy during the Civil War.
The wagon trains were guarded by the forces of Captain Parker of the Confederate Navy, who had orders to proceed to Augusta and then over to Savannah while avoiding the heavy numbers of Union troops scattered throughout the state. The trains ran into trouble when they engaged some Union troops, just before reaching Augusta, and were forced to turn back. They managed to make it back to Chennault Plantation, a farm owned by Dionysius Chennault, a Methodist minister and plantation owner. It was there that the wagon trains were ransacked and an unidentified thief or thieves hijacked the gold.
Union troops, curious as to the outcome of the Confederacy’s gold, ventured down to the Chennault Plantation where they tortured the residents to try and find out where the gold had been hidden. After that was unsuccessful, all the Chennault family was sent to Washington where they were extensively interrogated, but again to no avail. Eventually, the Chennaults were released and sent back to Georgia, but the whereabouts of the gold remain a mystery.
Some say that the gold was buried at the point in which the Apalachee and Oconnee rivers intersect, not far from the farm. Others say that the gold was divided up between the locals, and that the cache no longer exists. But speculation remains high due to the fact that after heavy rainstorms, it’s commonplace to find gold coins along the dirt roads near the plantation. Most people that are familiar with the legend believe that the treasure exists somewhere on the grounds of the Chennault Plantation, it just has yet to be unearthed. If you should be lucky enough to come across the lost trove, and are thinking, “How should I sell my gold?” consider sending it in to CashForGoldUSA. We pay top dollar for precious metals, and you could walk away with a huge amount of cash in hand!
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