W. F. Thompson Tell Story of Buried Gold at Richmond.

The Courier-Tribune presents hither to unpublished
Narrative of a Murder on The Old California Trail.

Link to Short Sketch of W. F Thompson taken from 1938 Courier-Tribune.

(A paper presented by W.F. Thomson at a dinner club in Topeka to which Mr. and Mrs. Thomson belonged.)

I was born in Ohio but the greater part of my life has been spent in the valley of the Nemaha in and about Seneca. I came to Kansas too late  to enjoy many of  the. adventures of the frontier but still have the satisfaction of as one of the important stations on the old California trail.

The gold seekers who for a time thought Pike's Peak was to be the Eduardo of America  in all manner of conveyances from stagecoach, covered wagon, pack mule, push cart and even the Irish mans favorite vehicle know as the wheelbarrow. They were loaded to capacity with such goods as they thought they needed largely implements for digging gold.  They were, I am told, motley crowd of mankind which had adopted the slogan, "Pikes Peak or Bust."

At still an earlier  date there were exciting times on the Nemaha.  The mad rush to California after the discovery of gold in  1840  led dauntless numbers along the old California trail, fording the Nemaha two miles north of where Seneca is located.  Here a town had  sprung up called Richmond. It comprised of a half dozen shacks of cabins, most of which were  used for eating houses, saloons and gambling dens.

The incident which prompts me to write this story centers about Richmond which was obliterated before I was born. Richmond lost its opportunity to become a thriving town through the ingénues of a Vermont Yankee. The Yankee, John E. Smith by name, later a personal friend of mine, saw the possibility of a fortune to be made hotel business along with a stage station on the much traveled trail.  Smith at his own expense bridged the Nemaha two miles farther upstream, then he built   a large hotel or tavern,  as they were called in those days. 

The next move by Yankee Smith meant a death blow to Richmond.   After completing  of the  hotel, the stage barn and bridge he laid out a good road  from his bridge east to the nearest point on the trail which led by way of Richmond. At this Junction he erected a huge sign with the following: "This way to a new Bridge over the Nemaha." 

 The  cunning  Yankee was so determined that the wary traveler should not be  misled at the forks of the two road that he plowed up a section of the old trail and sowed it to oat.  By the time  spring caravans  of  travel  reached this point all sign of the old road leading to Richmond were completely erased  -- hence Seneca had its beginning.

 Let us go back to Richmond for  a bit of romance and  tragedy of the late forties and early fifties to a man of more than ordinary prominence later in life in the making of Kansas and building of colleges-- the mm who donated to Baker University a building cost many thousands  of dollars, a real fortune these  days.  There he spent several days of his honeymoon in the late fifties. I have this bit of romance from the lips of this man only a year or two before he passed to his reward at the age of nearly ninety,

This man, William Davis Ripey,  was engaged in the overland freighting business between Missouri points and Salt Lake City, tilling principally cows for oxen to haul his wagons. loaded with such staples as flour, bacon, beans, coffee, tobacco and some sugar as a luxury, But it strikes' me that flour was something of a luxury at one dollar per pound (the price it sometimes it brought in Salt Lake City  and other points of distribution.)

Mr. Ripley took his bride with him on one of these journeys as their "wedding trip". His train was composed of eight monster wagons, something over 100 cattle, and 60 of them milking cows. Six yoke, or 12 head of cattle  were required to pull each of the heavy loaded wagons, a caravan of no mean size. The cows sold for a fabulous pride in Utah where there few cattle in those days. The other oxen could easy pull the wagons back east by hooking them up tandem style.

Mrs. Ripey was not only a charming bride, but ambitious and pretty.  Having resolved to be a helpmate in every sense of the  word, this young woman had a scheme and plan of her own. She wanted to have part in the planning  the elaborate wedding trip and  at .the same time help in a financial way, Before leaving, the freight station on the. Missouri with the dozen loaded  wagons she procured two dozen setting hens and set, them in convenient places in the wagons. Long before reaching in. the  mountains the flock had increased tenfold.  Needless to say, Mrs. Ripey's chickens found a ready sale in Salt Lake City as did her husband's cows.

Among the thousands who risked their lives as well as their morals in the mad rush for gold, following it's discovery in 1849 were  two stalwart, broad shouldered  clean-cut  chaps, 22 years of age, from Massachusetts who made the trip with the early "forty-miners."  These young men from Boston endured countless hardships in making the trip of 2000  miles across a trackless wilderness, beset on every hand with danger of some kind.  After years of hard toil and endurance that only the most rugged could stand,  they were successful in "panning" a nice fortune in gold.   I am not certain where Mr. Ripey formed his acquaintance with these young men but there was a relation as a reader will relate later on.

,In a measure, their least for gold had been  satisfied, talk of home and loved ones brought old renewed attracts of homesickness from which they had suffered many times.  Now that they possessed the wherewithal necessary for the return trip home they were unable to throw off the spell of homesickness. They set about procuring a wagon, team and such other supplies as would be needed to make the return trip across the plains to the Missouri river. They had to wait but a short time for a caravan of freighters  on the  trip east with  home they joined. for company and protection.  The plains at that time were infested with bands of  Indians and outlaw white men who would kill and rob.

Somewhat jubilant over their success and the anticipated joy of going back  home where they would be greeted as though the lost had been found, these two weather beaten had the conscious pride of having withstood evil temptations that invaded the camp of the gold miner.  This perhaps accounted for their success. In manner  they held themselves secluded from the freighters, miners and other rough characters who made up the crowd of the returning train.  Among the characters who made up the crowd were two men of whom they were suspicious,  gamblers, hard drinkers and exceptionally handy with their guns.

The return trip as far east as Julesburg on the South Fork of the Plat river, in the northeast corner of Colorado was uneventful except for a few scares from Indians and delays caused by migrating buffaloes crossing the  trail.

 Julesburg was not only a stag station  of considerable size, importance at that time but was located well toward the end of the plains country where the heavy loads of freight were often divided into two wagons for the hard pull over the mountains. Here the caravan halted, some for a few days' rest, others for a return trip over the mountains.

The young men from the east became disgusted with the drinking and gambling that was indulged in so freely and decided to  take their chances with the perils of the plains rather than risk their lives and hard earned money fortune  with  drunken  men.  They forged ahead the next 500 miles alone. The wagon was loaded lightly and the team was strong and every day was taking them  so many miles nearer home and their loved  ones.

In due time they reached Richmond on the west bank of the Nemaha. It was late one after noon. It so happened that they crossed  near where Mr. and Mrs. Ripey had camped over Sunday on their wedding  trip. The two young men decided they too would make camp and replenish their supplies from the little store in Richmond.  After Dark they buried their powder can filled with gold.

They selected a site across from the "big tree" (which might have been oak, elm or cottonwood) on the west bank of the Nemaha  in direct line with the rays of light shining from the window of the saloon to the place of deposit. They did  not risk leafing the gold in the wagon un-guarded even though no on there might suspect them to have  a fortune in un-coined gold.

It was rather late when they made their visit to the combined store and saloon and  gambling quarters in the rear, They made some purchases and were preparing to carry them back to the  wagon and camp which they were loathe to leave very long.  At this stage who should emerge from the rear of the saloon into the store but the two ruffians of whom they had suspicion and thought they had escaped in Julesburg. The Ruffians had been drinking, possibly to strengthen their courage for the dastardly deed for which  they had been waiting   2000 miles for an opportune time to perform. 

Immediately they became quarrelsome and a fight followed. One of the men from Massachusetts was shot and instantly killed. The other put up a good  fight until the light in the saloon were put  our or shot out. 

Not knowing but that the saloon keeper and the others there might be accomplices of the two  ruffians, the other Massachusetts man stole out in the darkness of the night which offered a cloak to escape.  Making  his way to his  team and wagon with all haste he hooked up and fled east, leaving the  gold where he believed it was  safer than in his possession. About noon the second day he arrived at St. Joseph. But he did not feel he dared return to Richmond for fear of further encounter with the hold-up men.  At St. Joseph he disposed of the team and wagon and pursued his course to his old home state.

Who would presume to say at this time that the boyhood sweetheart he had left  in old Massachusetts five years before was not more precious to him at this particular time than buried gold?  At any rate he hurried on leaving the treasure to be clamed at some future time.  Soon after reaching home he married his lost partner's sister, the girl he had pledged to claim when his  fortune had been made.

Several years quickly passed quickly and for some unknown reason he had not been able to return to Kansas for the dearly earned fortune which rested under the sod on the banks of the Nemaha.  At this time the Civil War broke out  He responded to the call and enlisted.

Before leaving home the family to join the ranks from which he never returned he left with his wife and two baby sons a map he had made showing the location of  the buried  gold on the hillside on the east side of the Nemaha and I might say, in the shadow of the trunk of the tree that stood in direct line with the rays of light from the rays of light from the saloon window.

Years passed by and the lonely widow  reared and educated the fatherless sons and with the  firm  belief that some day they would be able to  realize on the gold.

About thirty years after the  murder and attempted robbery, when the young men had grown to splendid types of young manhood, they came to Kansas to  search for the treasure hidden by their father and uncle.  After considerable inquiry among the old settlers the site of the old Richmond was located.  An abandoned well  was the visible landmark left of the  old town site. The timber had been cleared  off all that part of the valley on that stream was in cultivation, making the map of little value, except  what might have been located from  the old  ford, had the ford been located on the map.

These two young men from Boston had brought bayonets taken from army muskets, with them. They hoped to prod the ground and thus strike the powder can with it's gold nuggets.  They worked vertiginously for several weeks prodding the  ground where the thought the gold might be located.  They had no success. Tired and discouraged and with blisters on their hand they abandon the search and returned home.

Twenty two years later, later one hot afternoon in August a prosperous looking old gentleman walked into my office caring a fine new looking leather handbag of considerable size.  I greeted my visitor in a cordial manner in which real estate neb usually meet a    prosperous looking prospect.
 "Your are Mr. Thompson?"
 " Yes." 
 "In the real estate business?"
"Yes Sir." 
"Know the country pretty well, I suppose?"

Wanting to impress my customer that I knew my business I answered in the affirmative.  Here the old gentleman asked for a private interview. I led the way to the private room of my office.  After the door was closed he revealed  identity. He was none other than W. D. Ripey, the pioneer freighter who had amassed a fortune in his various enterprises.

While this old man had not withheld his means from assisting many a worthy cause, his age had not deprived him of any of his desire for more gold. during the afternoon Mr. Ripey told me a lot of very interesting history of early days of the early days on he plains, some of which were entirely  new to me.  He told how he and his wife had made their  wedding trip with a  train of freight wagons, camping over Sunday at a ford on the Nemaha near a place called Richmond. In substance he told me all I have related about the two gold miners, their success and one   being murdered, how the other made his escape: about the two sons of the survivor and their fruitless search for the hidden treasure.

However I had heard conflicting   statements about the time the young men from Boston were making their search with bayonets.

Of course I was delighted in the  getting so much pioneer history from the mouth of a man  who had  real experience and knew his story very well. But I was much more surprised then I can tell when Mr. Ripey proceeded to unfold a  much worn map which he carefully guarded -- telling me how he had obtained  for a consideration from the mother and sons who apparently were friends of his and would share in what he might find.

 After taking me into his confidence in all that I have related Mr. Ripey  said: "The country has changed so much in the nearly 60 years since I camped at the ford at Richmond I am not sure I could find the place. I believe I can trust  you and I want you to help me.  Will you do it?"  I assured him I would be only too good  to render any service within the consent of the owner of the land.  Mr. Ripey strenuously protested against any publicity

But I remembered how the  owner of the land has posted notices in the local paper that all trespassers would be arrested. This he had to do for protection for his place had been over-run with prospectors after the young had given up and  returned to their homes.

The day was far spent and being desirous to  grant his request to see  remaining evidence of the old trail and ford, I consented  to drive out that way. We left the car by the road side and started out on foot, as near as possible along the old  trail leading to the field to the ford.

We located the ford but there was nothing in evidence where by which we could locate the camping sight of his honeymoon trip. It was a  real disappointment to the old man. The next day we returned to make farther investigation for some landmark. I had gained permission of the landowner so we no longer felt that were  trespassers

The old man of 88 had made a  fortune in his lifetime  by persistent effort and even at this advanced age he was unwilling to give up this new undertaking.

Several weeks later Mr. Ripey again  returned  with his handbag. This time he opened it withdrew a  brand new two bushel seamless "A" bag, saying, "I guess this will hold the gold." 

I was sorry to have to say the promised thrill of my life was as  far away after our third attempt to locate some object to help in using the map as it was  before.

The vanishing of Richmond, removal of timber along with  repeated floods of more than half a  century had changed the countenance of the earth so much that both of us were at a completer lost to find any  thing we could recognize.  Not willing to   give up, Mr. Ripey planned to return at some future time for another effort.  This, age and Father Time prevented.

So far as I know the gold sill lies buried in the hillside of the Nemaha.

There is much  un-recorded history in  Nemaha County.
 Would you care share yours story with others?