What an Amazing year-1755

     For all those that follow and treasure the Swift mine lore, one of the key elements in all versions of the supposedly Swift journal is the per chance meeting Swift had with a Frenchman named George Munday, sometimes spelled Mundy.  In nearly all accounts of the legend John Swift joined the pioneer militia and combined British army under the command of General Edward Braddock.  This time being before the winds of revolution evolved into all out war, the single purpose here was that the French had established a Fort at the the point where the two rivers combined and formed the mighty Ohio.  Today this location is Pittsburgh.  The French and Indian allies of various tribes  were intent on keeping the British loyal colonist from expanding westward.  It was into this volunteer and regular army that Swift claimed to have joined.  Here he says that he met a prisoner, George Mundy,  that claimed to have been mining and smelting silver south of the Ohio River in the wilderness.

     Now the truly amazing historic fact related to this matter is that  Daniel Boone did join this same army in 1755 and met  John Finley, who claims that he had operated a trading store south of the Ohio in the wilderness as the same time. Finley operated a trading business in Esskippikithiki, the Shawnee town located on the level plain just west of Pilot Knob.  Both events, one the legend, the other historical fact, coincided the same amazing year, 1755.

     Daniel Boone made his second trip into the Kentucky wilderness in 1769.  It was a successful trip because he and his party were led by John Finley.   Finley took the party to near the place he had traded with the Shawnee some 16 years earlier.   The group of hunters set up camp along the largest creek in the area.  It was reported that the men would spend hours around the evening campfire being read the only book brought on the journey.   The book was called Gulliver's Travels, written by Johnathan Swift.  Now that is quite strange, indeed.

Some Background and Links

     Facebook fans can now find a group, Swift Silver Mine, dedicated to sharing information about the Swift Legend.  It was just started by my friend Mike Steely.  Mike published a great book entitled "Swift's  Silver Mines and related Appalachian Treasures."  Mike's work is the most comprehensive collection of treasure stories and mysteries of the mountains I've seen.  The book is available from Amazon.com. Check out Swift's Silver Mines for more information.
     While the story of "Swift" that I am telling is a novel and does not necessarily delve deep into the many variations and oddities of the lost treasure, it does indeed remain true to the basic legend as well as accurate time lines involving popular characters of early Kentucky history.  The book is in final edit stages and as noted in earlier post should be out for publication by early spring. Personally, I really dislike this stage of production, because, obviously, I am anxious to get the book out to see what you think.
     Many of the places mentioned in nearly all the journals reportedly passed down through generations, are in fact, found in more than one location.  Some claim the treasure is in Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia as well as Kentucky.  From time to time, there have been treasures found, such as silver and gold coins and silver ingots.  Whether these represent the long lost Swift treasure has never been verified, but certainly leaves hope for someone to make that once in history discovery.  It has been claimed by many to have been found but no definite proof of such finds have been presented to establish as the great treasure mine that Swift claimed to have worked in the wilderness from 1760-1769.
     In 1886 Harper's Monthly Magazine published one of the first articles regarding the Swift treasure.   Henry Mills Allen in his article "Through Cumberland Gap on Horseback," says, "but we did not come upon 'Swift's silver."  From the Tennessee in the South to the Ohio River one may pass through country that claim the location of Swift's silver mines-the El Dorado spot of Eastern Kentucky, where, a hundred and twenty-five years ago, one John Swift said he made silver in large quantities."
      The New York Times in 1896 published a short article claiming that the mine had been discovered.  I'll have more on my next entry regarding some interesting and strangely coincidental happenings in the Kentucky wilderness.  Stay tuned.

Pilot Knob

           The pinnacle the two were climbing this hot August day was known locally as Pilot Knob. It was famous in the region, although no one knew for sure how the place got its name. Pilot Knob was the last great peak on the western edge of the Cumberland Plateau, which covered the eastern third of Kentucky, and the grand geologic feature marked the end of the rugged terrain of Eastern Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia. Here the mountains abruptly ended and gave way very noticeably to the much more level bluegrass region of Kentucky. The view from Pilot Knob was spectacular and it had been said that pioneer and explorer Daniel Boone first saw the beautiful rolling hills of Kentucky from this lofty view.

            The smells of the deep, rich woodlands had now given way to the fresh scent of the many small Virginia pines that grow in abundance on the cliff tops. Will had learned many of the indigenous tree species and easily identified them along the way. He always enjoyed trying to name them during his many trips into the woods. This trail was well defined and obviously used by the many hikers who made their way each year to the top of the famous knob. Will, although a little winded himself, was still fit enough to make such climbs and quite often would go on weekend explorations around the region. When he was a boy, Will loved to hunt for Indian relics and pretend he had found the most priceless of treasures.  As he got older he continued his hunting forays, minus the imagined treasure, and one of his greatest pastimes was to walk freshly plowed fields each spring searching for arrowheads. He used to find mostly broken arrowheads, pottery shards and on the lucky occasion, bone tools. Nowadays, the laws had changed to protect artifacts from being removed from their original environment and Will abided by those laws. 

-Excerpt from "Swift."

Has it been found?

     The book development is moving along.  The book is still in the edit phase and should  be ready for press just after the first of the year.  I had hoped to have everything done by the end of this year, but things have a way of changing plans.
     Many treasure hunters still search after the elusive Swift treasure even today.  Some have claimed to have found it and others claim to know where it is located.  I have never been convinced, yet, that anyone has actually found the treasure. On the other hand, if someone had made the actual discovery, would they tell about it?  Writing about this wonderful story has been a great project.  Most all locations mentioned in the book are actual places.  There are still other landmarks, such as the half moon pictured here, that have been mentioned in some versions of the Swift Journal that are not included in this story. Though historians may slightly be upset at the liberty I have taken with historical characters, I believe the reader will see and understand that the alternative historic scenarios create an exciting and adventurous novel.
     In future posts, I plan introduce you to some of the main characters and some adventures outside the realm of the book.

Swift- A Novel Coming Soon

The legend says that men under the leadership of Captain John Swift were mining silver in the wilderness west of the Allegheny Mountains in mid 1700’s.   History records that one of Kentucky’s first pioneers, John Finley, established a trading store in the same region, also in the mid 1700’s.   The legendary silver mines have never been found nor have they been proven not to exist.   Historians face the same dilemma in that they cannot prove nor disprove the early pioneers did exactly what they claimed.   History is recalled from our minds, perhaps written down or photographed, but in the end history, legends and lore are all collections of recollections.  The current collection of history has been favorable to Daniel Boone and other early pioneers but has little regard for John Finley.  This was unfortunate.

Follow the Turkey Track - Excerpt from "Swift"

Finally, after what seemed like hours of driving, they reached the graveled parking lot and Rock Bridge picnic area. From the edge of the parking lot was the trail head. Will, Jennifer and Ray quickly grabbed a bottle of water each and headed down the trail. The Rock Bridge trail led the three adventurers off down a short half mile walk down the crest of a ridge. The obviously well used path brought the trio to one of the most famous and most unusual rock formations in all the country. Here the creek had completely eroded through the sandstone conglomerate rock creating a ‘rock bridge’ across the creek. Ray had seen it before and immediately scrambled up the rocky outcrop and made his way out on the bridge. In a matter of seconds Ray located the odd carving.

            “Hey, here it is,” Ray yelled.

            Will and Jennifer climbed up the rocks to see, for what they had traveled this far and spent a Saturday morning searching. Ray had seen this track before and wanted the others to see it and compare it to the one carved on the rock wall at Pilot Knob.  

            “This turkey track has been here for as long as anyone can remember,” Ray added.

            “It looks just like the one on the rock wall,” Jennifer remarked.

            “Well, this’n here is supposed to point the direction to the John Swift silver mine, at least that is what some of the treasure hunters claim. This is Swift Creek you know,” Ray explained.

            “Swift Creek!” Will commented in surprise.

            “Named for the John Swift’s Silver Mine?” Jennifer questioned.

            “Yep, sure is Swift Creek. There is a historical marker on the court house lawn in Wolf County that says as much. In fact, I do believe we are in Wolf County right now. I think Swift Creek starts up there around the town of Campton somewhere,” Ray spouted out. Suddenly Ray Deevers was a virtual encyclopedia on the story of John Swift. Ray had recalled nearly everything he had learned in his limited exposure to the Swift legend. Will was a bit embarrassed that he had never heard of the Swift legend, especially since he had studied geology. He never spent much time in eastern Kentucky where the legend is solidly established, and because his geology schooling was out of state, he really was learning about Kentucky geology in his hobby of exploring. Jennifer had seen an occasional newspaper story on the subject, and had heard her dad talk about the story from time to time.

            “People have spent a lot of time and effort searching these hills for those lost silver mines. A natural rock bridge crossing the creek would seem to me to figure into a good marker for finding the way to the mines, I would imagine,” Ray continued.

            “Which way is the turkey track pointing?” Will asked as he aligned himself with the track.  

            “Well, that depends which direction you think it was intended to point. Most of the people I know seem to think the track points in the direction the track is headed as if it were a real bird track left by a turkey walking. The middle toe, so to speak,” Ray pointed toward the carving with his finger and gestured his hand in a smooth motion pointing and standing at the same time “looks to me to point up that ridge,” Ray explained.

            “That is a westerly direction, I think,” Will noted.

            “That is where we came from, right?” Jennifer asked. She knew directions as well as Will and Ray but she was being sarcastic as they had driven two hours east just to reach this spot. Jennifer was not as impressed with the turkey track as Will and Ray were but she was fascinated with the rock bridge and had already begun to climb down in order to take some photographs. This was the only place in the region that a completely natural stone arch span across a major creek. Will and Ray sat in the middle of the rock bridge for a good while, flipping twigs and loose quartz pebbles into the lazy creek below.   

Shawnee Town - Excerpt from "Swift"

 Arrival at Eskippakithiki

The site of the Shawnee town was shocking to John Finely as they crossed over a low hill and the entire levels of the town came into full view. They had already greeted others along the path that were coming out from the town and saw other small parties of five and six hunters moving out in various directions. As they made their way into the village some took notice but seemed apathetic to the arrival of the group containing two white men. It simply was assumed that the warriors would not have brought trouble to this great town.
     Eskippakithiki was situated on a level plain at the foot hills of the last remnants of the mountains located to the east. The village was a scattering of long bark houses, the kind of permanent house most southeastern tribes built. Several poles were set in a general rectangular -shape, stockade style. Smaller rafter poles were arched for the roof. Mud, moss, leaves, dry grass and bark was mixed in random fashion to cover the entire structure. Despite the unusual materials, the long bark houses were relatively water tight. Scattered about were numerous cooking fires sending straight columns of smoke into the blue cloudless sky. Surrounding the village were flat fields of green grasses and crops that were obviously being cultivated by the Shawnee. There was one notable stream nearby supplying a continuous fresh water source. A heavily worn path lead from the village, westward to the long hill, then downward to the meandering creek. Women and children were located at various distances along the path carrying skins and pots of water to their various homes in the town. Hunting was good in every direction. Bison could be found literally north, south, and west of the town while deer and elk were plentiful east in the mountains. Although John was unaware, a good source of flint could be found nearby in the mountainous area. The flint was a precious resource used to make nearly every tool for everyday life although this group of Shawnee had begun to acquire metal objects including axes and even some now had rifles they obtained from the British.
John Finley and George Mundy were ignored by their traveling companions as each hunter separated off to their own house and waiting families. The hunters were bringing back numerous trade items, from the west presumably, but they never divulged their origins to either John or George. The two strangers moved right though the village and, though were stared at by the inhabitants, no hostility was exhibited. John Finley moved to the eastern edge of the town, located a nice big Burr oak tree in the hot savanna plain. It was well outside of the town at the edge of the woods and adjacent to a heavily worn path. John assumed the path was an old bison trail but later would learn it was the Warrior’s Path. John quickly discarded his heavy pack and set about making a hasty temporary camp. John gathered firewood, built a cooking pit from stones and made ready for his first night’s stay in a big town. George Mundy rested under the shade of the big oak tree, watching John hurry about setting up camp. Some of the Shawnee kids came around just to see the newcomers, the white-skinned new comers.
“Aren’t you going to lay a camp?” John asked.
“I will in a little while. Do you know what Eskippakithiki means?” George said, changing the subject.
“I don’t speak Shawnee, so it’s pretty likely I don’t know what it means,” John replied with a touch of sarcasm.
“Means a place called Blue Licks. Eskipp means Blue Licks, ak means place and the ithiki is that part of their language that means called, I guess. Anyway, this is known as the lower Blue Licks. North up the Warriors Path is the upper Blue Licks. They gather and boil salt there, I am told. Never been there myself, though,” George explained.
“A place called Blue Licks,” John chuckled.
“Yes sir. Funny thing to me too. You know back east they call this country out here Kentakee. I think what some hunters done was confuse the last part of this town’s name and came up with it. You take the ‘Ki-thi-ki from the last part of Eskippa and it would be pretty easy for some of them devils to make Kee-taa-kee sound like Ken-ta-kee. It always seemed like that to me anyway.”
    "It's something to ponder.”

The Journal

The Swift Journal

The legend of the lost silver mines of John Swift has been passed along from generation to generation.   There are many versions of the supposed journal left by Swift. Swift died in 1800 and wrote down the directions to the mines just before he died. Here are excerpts from the journal that is thought to be dated to 1859 and likely the oldest version.


“I was delayed in my search for the silver mines by the French and Indian War. I had known the Frenchman Munday, *several years by then. In 1760 we searched and found the mines but were unable to work them until the following year.   The first company in search of these mines were: Staley, Ireland, McClintock, Blackburn, myself and some friendly Shawnee Indians, with Munday as our guide into the wilderness.”

“The creek the furnace is in heads southwest and then runs northeast.  It is in a far and remote place in the west.  It abounds with laurel.  It is so rough and rocky that it is nearly impossible to get horses to the furnace.  We built and enclosure of vines and brush on another creek six or seven miles away to keep our horses in.”

“On our first trip, Munday got lost but after following the creek in a southwest course he recognized the hills on the opposite side. He said if we were ever over there he knew how to reach the Indian Trace, which was some miles below, the he would know ho to get to the mines.”

“He (Munday) said we had to go through a myrtle thicket and then down a flight of Indian Stair Steps, then across the creek to the cliffs where the mine was. We crossed the creek by a natural bridge and Munday led us to a place the Indians used as a camping ground. One mile northwest from the rock bridge and just below where the creek forks we also smelted ore.”

“Munday finally found the myrtle thicket.  He led us to the Indian Stair Steps. You can stand on the top of the stair steps and look across the creek at the mine and the cliffs are in the shape of a half-moon. We went down the steps and crossed the creek and climbed up to between the second and third ledge then went about 200 yards west and found the opening to one of the mines.”

“Where the ore is, the cliff is in the shape of a half-moon, and we called it the Half-Moon Cliff. The vein of ore runs northeast and southwest. There are two veins, one thick and one thin. The richest ore is to be found in the latitude of 38 degrees and 57 minutes north.”  **


 *There are variations in spelling from journal to journal, Munday also Mundy.

**Henson, Paul. Lost Silver Mines and Buried Treasures of Kentucky. 1st ed. 1. Louisville: United Christian Printing Services, 1972. 6-12. Print.

About the Legend

Currently, I am finishing up the edits and fine tuning my new novel entitled Swift. The novel chronicles the tale of three friends who accidentally discover clues to the hidden treasure. The background history about the legend is presented in a unique approach which gives readers an understanding of the legend.

The Legend of John Swift Silver Mines has touched many lives over the years and many people have spent fortunes searching for the elusive treasure.  Countless theories have been proposed and almost as many supposed journals that describe the secret location of the mines and caches of counterfeit coins.  There are a number of websites that briefly describe the Swift legend and the mystery has been written about in newspapers over and over again.

I invite anyone interested, knowledgeable or curious to join in on this site. You are encouraged to share your thoughts and ideas, ask questions or simply follow this site. We will be announcing the book release date and provide links to review and purchase.

In the late 1950’s and early 60’s, I became familiar with the famous legend from my father and my cousin, Michael Paul Henson.  I recall various treasure hunters coming to Kentucky armed with copies of the journal supposedly left by Swift.   Since my father had extensive knowledge of the Red River country, having named many of the arches himself, he was much sought after to provide directions and information about some of the unusual rock formations of the region.  Later, my cousin Michael Paul wrote books and became a recognized authority on the subject.  Paul devoted a good portion of his life researching and searching for the lost mines.  From both these two fine gentlemen I gleaned quite a lot of information and over the years have collected articles and information regarding the famous legend.

I’ve started this site to share thoughts, information and perhaps unique stories you have discovered in your time following this elusive story.  One thing is for sure, the legend has been around a very long time. I believe it to be the oldest legend in Kentucky.  Harper’s Monthly Magazine carried an article in 1886 that mentions the Swift Silver Mines.   In 1896 the New York Times carried a short article stating the famous old silver mine was believed to have been discovered in Kentucky.  Articles and stories have been published in newspapers and magazines periodically ever since.  There have been a few books written and hundreds of web sites mentioning the silver mines.  I will from time to time add to this site with information that hopefully will be interesting.  But, I really look forward to your comments and thoughts.

Ed Henson