For those treasure hunters interested in old forts and towns that have disappeared, these two sites have almost certainly been overlooked.
Fort Desha in Desha County was believed to have been built by the French near the Mississippi River, as protection for a trading post which dealt mainly with Indians of the area. I quote this from the 1894 “12th Annual Report of American Ethnology”:
“Old Fort Desha had been square, measuring 150 yards from side to side. On the west side extends a grated or covered pathway a distance of 250 yards, ending near the former bank of the Mississippi River. The height of the wall of the fort is at present four feet.. The articles picked up here from time to time and found in the process of cultivating the soil belong both to the days of the first settlement of the country and to very modern times. There are thimbles, pipes, broken dishes, parts of pistols and rifles, pieces of silver coin, probably used as gun sights, a Chinese coin, a toy pistol, articles of Indian origin, old bullet molds, etc. The remains of an old forge were uncovered here a few years ago.”
Remember, this was before metal detectors were invented, so the old French fort is a virtual gold mine for the lucky treasure hunter who takes the trouble to relocate the site.
The first settlement established in Arkansas Territory was Davidsonville, near present-day Pocahontas, Arkansas. In 1805, John Davidson fled from New Orleans, where he had killed a man who had murdered his father. Davidson built a trading post which quickly became an important stop in river traffic. He also opened a jewelry store which became popular with Indians in the area.
Wealthy Spanish families from New Madrid moved to Davidsonville after the disastrous New Madrid earthquake. They are believed to have hidden caches of gold after they moved.
A city map of Davidsonville showed it wasn’t such a small town after all. The town covered fifty acres, with a school, church, four dry goods stores, drug store, hardware store, harness shop, blacksmith shop, barber shop, Davidson’s jewelry store, and two saloons. Then, suddenly in 1828, the town came to a sudden end. It vanished in one week.
The story is that a riverboat from New Orleans discharged passengers who carried yellow fever. The disease swept the town. Residents fled. Farmers burned the entire town to rid it of the ill vapor. Blackened timbers and bricks are commonly found today.
Three rivers, the Spring, Black, and Eleven Point, come together where old Davidsonville stood, a perfect set-up for frequent flooding. Those who returned after the epidemic decided to build elsewhere. There is no record of any of the Spanish gold, or any of Davidson’s jewelry being found.