Wagon Train.
Loads of treasure are said to have been buried in Southeast Arizona near an unknown peak that was once called Davis Mountain by the people who hid it there. A smuggler train headed from Mexico stole this large cache. However, the original treasure was stolen from a bank vault in Monterey and a church in Matamoros, Mexico. The treasure included a cigar box full of diamonds, two statuary figures of pure gold—one of the Virgin Mary and one of Jesus —sacks of gold and silver, 39 bars of solid gold bullion, and several rawhide bags of 90,000 Mexican dollars.
Fittingly, the bandit smuggler train was robbed by outlaws while traveling through Skeleton Canyon. After robbing the smuggler train, the outlaws buried the loot on Davis Mountain. Although this mountain does not exist on any Arizona map today, one of the bandits gave detailed directions to the treasure before he died. It is unknown why these outlaws did not return for the treasure or what became of them.
The dying bandit’s directions were:
Head West across rolling plains to Davis Mountain, a bald, rounded granite dome visible for miles. From the peak, you can see New Mexico with binoculars, and old Sugar Loaf stands boldly against the sky.
Once you have arrived at Davis Mountain, continue West for 1 to 1 ½ miles until you spot a canyon. The canyon’s East wall has wooded hills, while the West wall is a sheer rock precipice.
The creek that flows through this canyon plunges over a ledge in a small cataract approximately ten feet high, and Silver Spring flows into the canyon on its West end. Near this spring is a tall juniper tree with a grave marked by slabs of stone at its foot. Five hundred dollars in gold is allegedly buried in a tin can at the head of the grave.
Davis Mountains State Park, Arizona, courtesy of Wikipedia.
Gum Spring lies up the canyon, south of Silver Springs, about 1 to 1 1/3 miles away. Between the two springs, lying in the scattered brush, are the remains of a burned-out wagon. This wagon is located on the West side of the canyon, where it curves inward to form a shallow cove. At the deepest part of this cove lies a stone marker, three feet high, square, and one foot thick. Two crosses are carved on the east face of this marker. After locating the stone, face Davis Mountain and step 20 paces. This is where the treasure is said to be buried.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated September 2026.
Also See:
Arizona – The Grand Canyon State
Ghosts, Legends, Myths, & Mysteries
See Sources.