|
 Talk
to anyone who knows something about the Dutchman’s
lost mine and they will tell you the role Black Top
Mesa played in the story.
Black Top Mesa lies between East Boulder and Needle
Canyons immediately west of the north end of Bluff
Spring’s Mountain. The highest point on Black Top
Mesa probably doesn’t exceed 3,800 feet above sea
level, and the southern end is the highest portion
of the mountain.
The mountain is formed from Tertiary volcanic rocks;
primarily alternating layers of ash, tuff and
basalt. The basalt that caps the mountain was formed
about three million years ago during the Willow
Springs caldera eruption. Near the southern end of
Black Top Mesa, on the East Boulder Canyon side, is
a red dike that crosses the canyon and intersects
the side of the mountain. Prospectors for many years
believed this dike was proof of mineralization in
epic portions on Black Top Mesa. Prospect holes have
been drilled and dug all over the mountain and not
one ounce of gold has ever been produced. Several
men have gone broke investing in wild schemes
associated with buried gold on this mountain.
The source of Black Top Mesa’s name is not known;
however it’s safe to suggest early cattlemen of the
region named the mountain because of its obvious cap
of black basalt. Black Top Mesa would probably still
be on an obscure page in Arizona history if it
hadn’t been for a writer named Barry Storm and a
prospector who died there in the summer of 1931
named Adolph Ruth.
Storm’s books On the Trail of the Lost Dutchman,
1939, and Thunder God’s Mountain, 1945, made this
landmark and others in the Superstition Wilderness
Area prominent on a national level. The newspapers
of the 1930’s also raised a lot of interest about
lost gold and the rugged desolate mountains peaks
within the interior of the Superstition Wilderness
Area. In those days the area was known as the
Superstition Mountain range or sometimes referred to
as the Salt River Mountains.
 The
easiest access to Black Top Mesa can be accomplished
by hiking in on the Dutchman’s Trail (FS 104), also
known as the First Water-Charlebois Trail. As you
drop into Boulder Basin and the Brush Corral area,
Black Top Mesa looms immediately to the southeast.
The mountain’s yellow tuff cliffs and black cap of
basalt make it obvious just east of East Boulder
Canyon. The distance from First Water Trailhead to
this point is about 5.6 miles, give or takes a
couple of tenths.
A view of Black Top Mesa and a spectacular view of
Weaver’s Needle can be observed from Fremont Saddle.
The hike from Peralta Trailhead to Fremont Saddle is
about one and half miles. This route is a long climb
up hill. From the trailhead to Fremont Saddle you
gain about two thousand feet in elevation.
The cultural history of Black Top Mesa is very
interesting. There are many petroglyphs on Black Top
Mesa. Their cultural value depends on
interpretation.
On the south end of Black Top Mesa on the highest
point is scratched the word “oro” in a rock. In the
area there are many more markings. Were these
created by discouraged lost mine and treasure
hunters? Or are they authentic Spanish markings?
Could they be Native American in origin?
Not far from the oro rock is a marker with the name
Fay Ward 1945. Another question we could ask at this
point is how old do markings have to be to be
historically significant? There are several other
such markings on Black Top Mesa some dating as early
as 1928.
Many of the markings on Black Mesa came into being
when Barry Storm published his books on the Peralta
and Lost Dutchman Mines. All of these previous
markings are on the south end of Black Top Mesa.
The north end of Black Top Mesa produces one of the
finest preserved oro markings in the Superstition
Wilderness Area. This marking has been visible for
the past seventy years or so. It was first mentioned
in a journal written sometime in the early nineteen
twenties.
If human history is important, and it appears to be
in many circles, then the markings on Black Top Mesa
have significant value as historical in our society.
I am sure an archaeologist would not agree with this
statement, however, to archaeologist who are
studying garbage dumps of the 1940’s and 1950’s they
might be significant.
Black Top Mesa has many prospect holes dug in its
surface. This mountain has attracted a host of Dutch
hunters from around the nation over the years. Their
diggings bear testimony to their belief. These holes
represented the dreams and hopes of prospectors and
investors alike.
The largest prospect is on the south end of Black
Top Mesa at the base of the yellow welded tuff. This
tunnel is about sixty feet long. This site over the
years was worked by several different individuals
hunting for gold or treasure. Probably every
knowledgeable Dutch hunter has investigated Black
Top Mesa at one time or another. Charles “Chuck” and
Peggy Aylor maintained a camp in East Boulder Canyon
directly below the cliffs of Black Top Mesa for more
than two decades. Hank and Marion Harnish worked
Black Top Mesa off and on for twenty years. They had
base camps at Cowboy Camp, East Boulder and on top
of Black Top Mesa. Dale Howard spent his share of
time on the mountain searching for clues. Richard
Peck looked at the mountain for awhile and moved on.
Johnny Burbridge worked for years on the various
markings he found on Black Top Mesa.
A man named Robert E. Lee spent a lot of time and
money on Black Top Mesa. He eventually produced a
film and a book titled The Lost Dutchman Mine. Lee
announced to the world he had found the location of
the Dutchman’s lost mine on Black Top Mesa in his
film.
Many men I have not named were convinced there was
buried gold on Black Top Mesa and some of them spent
a life time searching for it.
The Forest Service has for years been filling in
some of these old prospect holes. On December 31,
1983 the wilderness was withdrawn from mineral
entry. This prohibited the prospectors from digging
and stopped excavation operations in the
Superstition Wilderness Area.
The preservation of cultural history of this region
is very difficult to preserve because of the policy
of wilderness management. Only Native American sites
and cultural materials are protected. Even hundred
year old mining or ranching sites can not be
preserved for the future. Most non-Native American
sites have been removed or destroyed because they
are not conducive to the Wilderness Management Plan.
There is an urgent need for many of the sites to
have GPS coordinates recorded and preserved for the
future because the government does not allow plaques
or any marking of historical sites.
Adolph Ruth’s remains were found on the slopes of
Black Top Mesa in January of 1932 by William A.
Barkley and Jeff Adams. Ruth had disappeared the
previous summer without much of a trace. His death
in the mountains created quite a furor in national
headlines making this mountain well known.
Black Top is certainly one of the more interesting
mountains within the wilderness area, and it has
played a significant role in the area’s history. As
long as there are dreamers there will be men and
women searching for the Dutchman’s Lost Mine. This
is not to say the Dutchman’s mine doesn’t exist— but
it does say, without dreamers there would be nobody
searching for it. |
