I am tying to acquire any information I can on a man named Isaac White, who was one of the heroes of the Alamo.
Yours truly,
Isaac White
Jacksonville, Fl
According to the NEW
HANDBOOK OF TEXAS, Isaac White, Alamo defender, resided in Alabama
or Kentucky before migrating to Texas. He was a married man with one daughter.
White served the Alamo garrison in the rank of sergeant, although it is
uncertain to which specific unit he belonged. White died in the battle
of the Alamo on March 6, 1836.
Subject: Casa's Treasure
Date: 02/01/99
From: Mark Austin
I was born 1962 in Wilford Hall, Lackland AFB and I lived in San Antonio until I was 26.
I feel strongly about my native-San Antonian status. I've lived in Seattle for the past 10 years and can tell you that I really miss the history, the land, the people (and the fajitas!) of San Antonio. (I don't miss the summer heat though!) Today, I publish the most popular treasure hunting site on the Internet. 
http://www.treasurenet.com/ , TreasureNet gets around 75,000 hits a day. (I am not a treasure hunter myself.) What my visitors don't know about me, is that I created TreasureNet out of the frustration of knowing where a real Spanish treasure was buried near San Antonio in 1811.
I believe I have located where Capt. Juan Baptista De Las Casas buried at least one chest of gold coins and bullion, on Jan. 10th, 1811 not far from San Antonio. For the past 6 years, I've been trying to get the owner of the land to let us take a look. Unfortunately, without success. This time capsule almost certainly contained other Texas treasures, including land grants, the mail, pistols, and who knows what else. It was priceless. It is possible it also included a small box of diamonds. I originally found out about the treasure in 1975, when I was only 13. I spent 20 years looking for it.
I can not tell you exactly where the burials are (yet), except for the fact that they are located on private property, on what used to be the old San José Mission (San Lucas) Ranch... SW of San Antonio.
Now the bad news. I believe that someone in either late 1995, or sometime in 1996, based on the information that I shared, looted this burial site. It's possible that some of the individuals involved in this recovery have left the state, although I believe some of the individuals still live in Texas.
My most powerful evidence of this clandestine recovery is a set of before and after aerial photos of the site. At my own expense, in 1994, I took a set of low altitude aerial near-infrared photos of the site. In fact, it was my photo interpretation that actually led to the exact spot of the burials. (after 19 years of searching through archives... thank you John Leal) Anyway, last year, I took another set of photos, and much to my dismay found that the site had been disturbed.
Below is the infrared photo that led me to the burials... (before the looting)
I have other images that show surrounding features. This image above is intentionally non-distinct. My interpretations of the photo have been confirmed by a leading Texas archaeologist. These are most likely burial sites. I have also located a building site, and other burials.
I am writing to you for two reasons, first, to see if any of you have heard rumors of any such discovery in the past few years. Are you aware of any large gold transactions in San Antonio in recent years? I believe there is a good chance that a certain San Antonio politician may have gotten his hands on some of the gold. Secondly, to ask for your assistance in investigating my claims. I have a very short list of names... people I shared the information with... From my limited investigation, I have uncovered evidence of lifestyles dramatically changing... I just want to make sure the story is told, and the historical treasures are returned to the people. I don't care about the gold. I do care about the story.
As you undoubtedly know, Juan Casas, is commonly thought to have been a revolutionary. I don't believe this is true. There is, or was, a bronze plaque in front of the Bexar County Courthouse that refers to the Casas "revolution". Texans needs to know who Juan Casas really was. The truth about Jan. 11th, 1811 is, that the governors were expecting a shipment of gold. They had packed all they're belongings, and were prepared to retreat to the Colorado, leaving San Antonio undefended. Juan Casas, being the loyalist (not revolutionary) he was, tried to stop this deraliction of duty by capturing and burying the gold. He then marched into San Antonio, arrested the Governors, and declared himself temporary Governor. It really is an amazing story.
I have put the entire Juan Casas Trial and Last Will and Testament online... I'm not sure when it was translated to English, but I found it at the Barker Historical library in Austin in the late 1970's.
Please take the time to read Juan Casas' own words when he says... "a train conveying public funds to Texas". That packtrain is what I believe I have located. Including, I believe, the murdered escorts.
I recently uncovered this most enlightening document online, The Memoirs of José Antonio Navarro [Alamo de Parras Archives].
This letter represents an accurate portal of Juan Casas. It was written by José Antonio Navarro, in 1853. After reading this memoir, I started thinking... Forget the Alamo! Remember Juan Casas! (ok, maybe that's going a little too far... :-)
For the record, I had some articles published in the Express Newsvoicing my objection to the "Treasure Hunt At The Alamo" . If you've lived in San Antonio for any length of time, you will remember this. I believe Thornton was Mayor at the time. Anyway, I objected to allowing private individuals to lead a treasure hunt at the Alamo. It just seemed sacreligous to dig for treasure in front of the Alamo. I was doing everything in my power to stop the project, and proposed a comprehensive, remote sensing study of the entire Plaza, not just a corner of it. (their survey was terribly flawed) it's a long story... but these things are important....
1. I befriended some of the people involved in the "Alamo Treasure Hunt."
2. I shared the location of the Juan Casas burials with this group. (I only showed the burials to 3 people)
3. In the process of getting to know the Alamo treasure hunters, I found out they were just after the glory, and didn't give a [deleted explitive] about the history.
3. I tried to stop the treasure hunt at the Alamo. I prepared a proposal on behalf of NUMA to conduct a comprehensive, nondestructive, remote sensing study of the entire Plaza. This proposal was defeated, I believe, because of a close relationship between the Mayor of San Antonio, and the treasure hunters.
4. In trying stop this excavation, the treasure hunters basically came right out and called me their "enemy". Remember, this is after sharing the location of the burials with the them!
I believe when something of such importance is found, it belongs to everyone. Perhaps the looters can keep the gold. But they should return the other, sensitive, perishable materials to the people of Texas.
If nothing else, I just wanted to share this information with someone who cares about the history of San Antonio, and the Alamo. If you can help with an investigation, that'd be even better.
Thanks for your time.
Marc Austin
webmaster@treasurenet.com http://www.treasurenet.com/
