Those familiar with the legend of Jim Bowie and the lost silver mine may already be up on the latest details, the history, and the hunt for what’s believed to be a source of untold wealth. But for those who are yet unfamiliar, “Lost Gold,” a TV series from The Travel Channel, aired an episode on the subject that was filmed on location in Menard, Texas. You’ll want to look this up for sure!
Menard celebrates its links to this famed Texan with the Jim Bowie Days Bar-B-Q Cook-off and Car Show which, in fact, is coming up soon! During summer 2018, members of the “Lost Gold” film crew traveled there in search of Bowie’s fabled lost silver mine, and the results can be seen in their season one episode. The caption for their findings explains: “Josh and Jesse head to central Texas to explore one of the legendary adventures of Jim Bowie. In 1831, Bowie set out on an expedition to find a lost silver mine but never reached his destination due to a conflict with Native Americans.”
Photo: Wikipedia
GoSanAngelo covered the original airing of the episode, which took place in February of 2019, however, it’s also available for full viewing on The Travel Channel watch link available here. To provide some depth and background to the story, a great many years and dollars have been spent by various treasure hunters from throughout the U.S. searching for the lost San Saba Mine. Legend has it that the directions to loads of bullion in the Texas Hill Country were believed to have been given to Jim Bowie by Native Americans, only to have been lost with Bowie’s death at the Battle of the Alamo. However, despite the intensive searches since then, nothing has turned up to substantiate the tale.
Photo: Facebook/Feldman Brothers
“Lost Gold” attempts to solve this and many more treasure mysteries, some more than a century in age. The brothers that host the show (Josh and Jesse Feldman) try to put themselves in the place of those before them, who were involved in the fables. Each episode is designed around a hunt which is based in history. The brothers make use of old records, diaries, maps, and the like, coupled with the knowledge of locals intimately familiar with the stories. It’s an interesting premise and one that’s garnering a following – not the least of which will be a renewed interest from the Lone Star State with their Jim Bowie focus.
