UT celia) VOL. 21 NUMBER 3
ORION'S
ROCKET
SIPC =a
Cree tarda
Two
NUGGETS &
A DIRTY DIME
Three Trips Bring Treasure
FC #250 CANADA $205,
HM
THE END OF A FOUR PART SERIESREASURE SPECIA
MYSTERY OF THE
3 SPIDER RO
In 1982, Robert Kyker and Duane
Hale obiained this map from Rex
Grove. It was given to Grove and
Ray Whitlock and provoked them to
drill « hole 70 feet deep in 1958 near
Aspermont, where they broke into a
eave (see Part II for more dete).
58 Treasure
CONC
Eddtor's Note: In this four-part article,
the authors have revealed mutch of te in-
formation they have collected about the
three strange stones known as the Spider
Rocks. The carved stones, which were
unearthed along with a variety of other
artifacts, presented a mystery to Dave
‘Amold when he discovered them in
Texas—the first one ai Clyde in 1902, the
Second at Asperinont in 1905, the third
at Rotan in 1909—and they remain just
as puzaling today, Although the authors
offer no solution, sheir combined 68 years
of research herve dane much to:define the
extent and establish the credentials of this
historical problem—showing, aiturng
other things, that Dare Amold was @ real
‘person, nat just a figment of folk fore, and
thar he was not likely che perpetrator ef
@ hoax. Readers who have ideas or
information ta contribwie abou the
Spider Rocks are invited ta conact the
fuahors at the addresses given at the end
of this artiele.‘A rock carving found in the Aspermont
area shows many of the same symbols
ciched into the Rotan Spider Rock—PO,
OF, S, DLN, and a star (ist tothe right
Of DLN), Below the star isa fleched ar-
row, which points to the sar. Photo pur-
chased from Henry Henderson by Bob
Ryker and Duane Hale, Nov. 25, 1989.4
WILSON AND HALE
VISIT SPIDER ROCK
Steve Wilson and Duane Hale travel
ed to Rule, Texas, on September 29-30,
1973, and visited Dock Henderson. Dock
took @ copy of the Aspermont Spider
Rock map and said that the copper plate
with the “"X"" in the center was lying
right on top of the fifth dot inthe ladder~
ooking thing coming out from the enter
of the map. Conceming the two knives,
the one with the casket carved on it was
in the southeast commer of the map and
pointed to this same dot, and so did the
key. Dock said that the six-inch high
stamette which he and Reid had. found
must have been platinum. Ut had the forks
of the river carved on its back with a
drilled hole inside the forks and one on
the outside t0 the east, He thought
something was buried on an istand in the
river, but this island had just about wash
od away,
ROBERT KYKER WROTE
DUANE HALE IN 1974
Robert Kyker wrote Hale in 1974,
he hid tulked to Steve
Steve had mentioned Hale's
thesis on mining in Texas. Kyker said
that he had become inerested in treasure
hunting in 1968, while working with Bob
Labe in Wichita Falls, Apparently the
two had located enough. hieroglyphics
near Padgett, Texas, to convince them
that some unknown code had been used
extensively by early occupants of the
area, Kyker began “collecting bottle
tops,” bits of information on every
known Spanish site in Texas and Ok-
labo,
ASPERMONT & CLYDE
ARTIFACTS REVEALED
IN 1976
Steve Wilson ond Duane Hale had con-
tinued to share information, visiting fre-
quently after Hale moved to Oklahoma
in 1973, They both decided over spring
break in 1976 to go to Haskell and try
o answer some questions. They visited
[Dock Henderson, the newspaper files at
both Haskell and Aspermont, as well as
the courthouse records. ‘Their primary
‘goal was to locate the descendants of Dr.
CL, Terrell, who had financed the dig-
‘ging at hoth Aspermont and Clyde. They
‘uncovered some great leads, but were not
able to find the Terrells, even after thoy
‘extended their trip to include Waco.
‘That last night before they retumed to,
‘Oklahoma, Steve stated that he was g0-
ing to write a book on Spider Rock, and
Hale said that he thought they should be
co-authors, Steve said that he dida’t sce
itthat way. that each could write his awn
hook, Wilson began working on Spider
Rock when a senior in high schaol in
1960 and was able to interview some of
the original searchers who were dead by
the time Hale came along in 1968.
‘A few months later, Hale was able to
locate the youngest son of Dr. Terrell,
Charles ‘Terrell, who was living. in
Eastland, Teaas, just 10 miles east of
Cisco, Terrell was about 11 years old
when the Aspermant Spider Rock was
dug up and had gone to the site with his
fier. He related that Arnold was a big
gwarthy" man in his late 605, Who ap-
peared to be uneducated. Charles Terrell
remembered Arnold using the word
“sigh'" repeatedly and stated in later
years, when he learned Spanish, that he
was sure that Amold was trying to say
“si” Apparently, according to Terrell,
there was a Mexican there named Saul
Rodriguez who rode a big fine horse
‘Terrell assured Hale that all the artifacts
had been burned in the drugstore fire of
late 1908. Shordly after this, Hale told
Steve Wilson about having’ found the
Terrells.
Treasure 59