Dungeon Rock Cave & Pirate Veal's Treasure

In Lynn Massachusetts once lived a man named Hiram Marble, and in 1852 Hiram had a vision. In this vision the spirit of Thomas Veal, a pirate who centuries earlier had fled into the Lynn woods after 3 of his cohorts were captured and hanged, told Hiram to dig inside a small cave in the Lynn woods and he'd become a rich man. Convinced this vision was real and the spirit was directing him to his hidden bounty, that year began Hiram's lifelong quest for the search of Pirate Veal's treasure.

Hiram moved into the woods where this cave existed, and for a while he actually lived inside it. Later he built a house at the bottom of the hill into which he moved his wife and son. In Hiram's search for the treasure he spent each day digging deeper and deeper into the cave, carrying out the rubble by hand. Even after many years passed without finding anything he was just stubborn enough, or crazy enough, to keep at it. He died in 1868 having spent the final 16 years of his life digging in vain.

That might have been the end of the search, but crazy didn't skip a generation in the Marble household. Hiram's son Edwin, who had already been helping out with the search, continued digging right where his father left off. In 1880 he too died unsuccessfully, and so ended a quest that had begun 28 years earlier and ended with a giant hole in the hill.

This hole still exists today and is now known as Dungeon Rock Cave. A steel door was installed at its entrance, however the door is opened for the public from 9am to 2:30pm every Tuesday thru Saturday. Access is free and only requires an easy hike of around half a mile to reach it. We made this hike on a steamy afternoon this summer, and after reaching the hill ascended via this neat little staircase cut into the rocks.

With a little bit of poking around it was easy to locate the cave, and we were pleased to find that sure enough, a park worker does actually make the trip out there each day to unlock the door. After triumphantly posing for pictures at the entrance Tina and I made our way in.

What I expected to walk into was a hollowed out cavern maybe the size of a small room, but what greeted us was an actual mine shaft, and quite a long one at that. We started our journey by descending this set of stairs someone so helpfully installed.

The cave wound back and forth throughout its entire length, never actually going in a straight line, which legend says was due to the spirit constantly "correcting" Hiram's direction. I estimated it's length to be between 100-150 feet, mighty impressive for 2 men to dig without using any machinery.

Nearing the end we felt the tunnel's ceiling getting steadily lower, and I could almost sense Hiram's, or at that point probably Edwin's, desperation to hurry up and dig farther and quicker as time ran short. The tunnel ended in an equally desperate manner, for the first time splitting into two directions and each continuing only a handful of feet at a crawlspaces height - a last ditch change of direction the son didn't quite have time to make.

We left that day thinking pretty much the same thing we did as when we started, poor old crazy Hiram Marble. We pitied him for wasting his life like he did. But later on we learned something about the man that got me wondering. While he was digging he would charge locals for tours of his tunnel, and additionally he sold bonds for a stake in the treasure once he found it. This subsidized his quest to continue doing what he loved, digging for riches, a desire he passed onto his son so strongly that his final wish was to be buried in the ground right outside the cave.

I'm typing these words on a beautiful summer day while stuck inside an office, finishing my lunch break so I can get back to earning my living shuffling papers around a desk. Hiram, on the other hand, earned his living by going on a life-long hunt for pirate's treasure.

Now I'm wondering if I've had it backwards all along. Perhaps it's Hiram who would have felt pity for me.

The Forgotten Village of Punkintown

Nestled deep within the woods of Eliot Maine once lived a community of 30-40 people, existing self-sufficiently and separate from the surrounding cities of Eliot and South Berwick. This was known as Punkintown Village. At its height in the 1800's it included anywhere from 7 to 10 families, at least one quarry where they cut stone for their house foundations, and their own grist mill for processing grain. This village survived into the early 1900's until a series of fires and illnesses led to its demise. The woods overtook what remained of the village, and today not a single signpost or marker stands that would point you to where it once stood.

Internet research hasn't been much more productive, with the most entertaining piece of information being the legend of cross-eyed Emma Jane, one of the last inhabitants who would walk into neighboring South Berwick to steal food from gardens and try to sell it back to the townsfolk.

So off we went one Saturday afternoon to try and find the village for ourselves. Our hike began on a dirt road off Route 236, where a trail would supposedly lead us to a pair of lakes the village once sat between. Sure enough, an unmarked trail continued uphill at the end of this dirt road. There were several side paths along the way, but we stuck to the main trail as we believed this was the original horse & buggy "road" that led to Punkintown Village.

Perhaps half a mile into our walk we found this memorial stone, and although nothing about it indicated Punkintown we at least felt we were on the path to somewhere.

Next we came across 3 of these stone pillars, which we thought might be markers of some sort. But although we scoured the area pretty thoroughly we found nothing else of interest nearby.

After a mile of walking what finally suggested to us we had reached the village was this cellar hole. It was set back from the main path and you had to be looking to spot it amidst all the growth, but it was unmistakable once you did.

We reached the end of the main trail without any further discoveries, but many side paths still needed to be explored. The bugs were attacking pretty fiercely though, so we decided that Tina and Logan would return to the car while Barry and I each picked a trail to walk 5 minutes down. It was a last ditch effort to find anything else.

I was perhaps 60 seconds down my trail when I struck gold, coming across the remains of this old cemetery.

It was the Plaisted family cemetery, which I'd remembered reading to be one of the families that inhabited Punkintown Village. It was run down but wonderful, standing alone in the middle of the woods as it was. Like many family cemeteries this one has a large memorial in the center listing each family member,

And many smaller stones with brief descriptions of who was buried underneath, such as this one simply labeled "mother". I can only hope my kids give me something equally as loving when I die.

Finding this cemetery made the entire afternoon worthwhile, and has encouraged us to make subsequent trips back to explore more of the side trails. In three follow up visits we have found another house foundation, a quarry, this fully standing structure,

and this partially standing one.

And although information has been scarce, I did find a reference online that spoke about the remnants of the village, and of its cemeteries. Plural.

Which means there's still more treasure to be found in the woods of Punkintown.

Diana's Bath

Located in Bartlett, NH, right outside of North Conway is a place that's been on my personal list to visit for the last couple years. Diana's Bath is a short, 1/2 mile hike leading to the base of a 75 foot rock formation creating a series of waterfalls. This place is perfect to spend the afternoon to picnic and just relax taking in the sun and dipping your feet into the pools of crystal clear water.

Many visitors who go, climb the rocks to find their perfect spot. It was busy the day we went but we still had no problem finding our own rock to sit and relax.

There was something there for each one of us. Dave read while I laid in the sun. Logan, our rock climber, took 3 trips hiking up all the rocks to the top and Madison found no matter what rock she sat on, her phone still had service. It was a win for everyone!

If you are really ambitious, there is also another trail that is roughly 10 miles leading you up North Moat Mountain. This trail will also lead you to the waterfalls. We weren't up for the hike that day and after several hours in the sun and a teenager with a dead cell phone, it was time to go. This is a must see even if you have just a few minutes to take the short walk to see its beauty. Growing up and having been to the mountains many times over the years, I can't believe how many places I haven't seen. We truly live in a beautiful state.

Website: http://northconwaynh.com/dianas-baths/

Parker Mountain Plane Crash Wreckage

In 1946 a twin-engine airplane crashed into the side of Parker Mountain in Strafford NH, killing all three people onboard. All these years later pieces of the plane still remain on the mountainside, and on a drizzly afternoon in 2016 I took Logan and a friend in search of the wreckage.

Occupants of the airplane were millionaire Leslie LeVeque, his wife Elsa, and pilot Robert Johns, all of Columbus Ohio. In addition to being a real estate investor and co-owner of the then tallest building in Columbus, the Lincoln Tower, Leslie was the inventor of the automatic pinsetter used in bowling alleys. The couple were returning from a weekend at their summer home in Blue Hill Missouri when, according to the Marysville Tribune of Ohio, a lack of visibility due to dense fog caused them to hit the mountain.

From researching the site I knew the wreckage was on the north face of the mountain, but unlike other crash sites there was no trail leading to it. At least none that we found. Nor were there any discrete little ribbons tied to trees that point the way, such as those at the Belknap crash site. But Parker isn't a very big mountain, so with a general idea of the location and a little bit of stumbling we were able to find what's left of the plane.

There's a feeling I get when hiking to one of these crash sites, at the moment the wreckage first comes into view, when reality hits that I'm witnessing a spot where something bad happened. The look on Logan's face when he first spotted a piece of the plane sums up that feeling perfectly.

I had read there were three large pieces on the mountain, however we were only able to find two of them. One was this twisted piece of metal here.

And the other was what looked to my non-aviational eye to be the front of the plane.

After visiting the crash site we made out way back to the main trail, which we followed to the top of the mountain. Along the way we found this rock sitting area and fire pit which, had I brought along my beer cooler I might even have taken full advantage of.

The summit of Parker Mountain isn't a full 360 view, and the clouds obscured what would have been a nice view in at least one direction, but none of that mattered on this day. It was a beautiful sight, and after my earlier thoughts about lives cut short I was able to appreciate this beauty all the much more.

Winnekenni Castle

Located in Haverhill, MA sits a beautiful castle that was built back in 1873. Before the castle was built, Dr. James Nichols originally purchased the land to conduct experiments with chemical fertilizers. Several years later, he decided to build the castle as his summer home. The castle and all 27 acres of land surrounding it stayed in the family until 1895 and was then sold to the city of Haverhill.

The outside of the castle has remained sound but the inside was destroyed in a fire back in 1969. With the help of some local high school students, the Winnekenni Foundation restored the inside and it is now rented out for functions.

Aside from the castle, this place is a wonderful recreational park for the whole family. There is a playground, places to picnic and nice wide paths to bike or walk all surrounding a beautiful lake. The trails seemed endless where there are paths leading off of paths.

Even though this place is only about 45 minutes away from us,  I found myself wishing it was much closer to make as my regular walking trail. I know we will be back though. While Dave biked this trail and I walked it, there were many more trails we both missed and will have to explore on our next trip back!

Links:

Official Website

Beehive Hut and Ye Old Cemetery

The website for the town of Danville tells the story of a stone chamber, rumored to exist somewhere within the town's woods, whose location had been lost for many years until being re-discovered by some youths playing in the area. It's called the Beehive Hut and is man-made but of unknown age and origin. Speculation as to its purpose range from the mundane to the outrageous, in that it's a root cellar built by early settlers to it being an archaeological sight dating back many hundreds of years prior to Columbus.

Once it was found again, steps were taken to not only keep it found but also preserve and share it with the community. Its location down a side road off Route 111A is freely given by the town, and once you've driven as far as you can down the dirt road, arrows point you to a trail.

From where we parked it was probably a quarter mile of very easy walking until we reached the chamber.

There were no bees inside the Beehive Hut, but that afternoon it could have been called the Mosquito Hut. Those pests were everywhere. They didn't stop me from scooting in and having a quick look around though.

I even coerced Tina to step inside the entrance and take a picture.

Then we were on our way back. Once you've walked around the top of the chamber and been inside there's not much else to see. Besides, less than a mile down the road we had passed a cemetery called Ye Old Cemetery which dated back to 1740. You can't just drive by something like that without stopping to look around.

This cemetery was old to the point that the earliest graves didn't even have headstones, just rocks placed uniformly in the first few rows. When we got to the actual headstones many were broken and illegible. But of the ones we could read, in addition to giving names and dates, many had messages inscribed into them. This one from a 19 year old man started off with the cheerful phrase "Deceitful world farewell to you."

Another headstone for a "Capt. (Reuben) Hook" gave us a chuckle. I wondered what kind of ribbing this fellow took in life, however I figured out later (to my disappointment) that he pre-dated the fictional Captain Hook character from Peter Pan.

Ye Old Cemetery concluded that day's trip to Danville and the Beehive Hut. But here's what's extra cool about this stone chamber, or stone chambers in general. There are literally dozens of them in the Northeast, similar to this one and scattered anywhere from New Hampshire to New York. And there's seemingly just as many opinions as to what purpose they served as there are chambers. Most of them aren't commemorated like they've done with this one, but with some scouring we believe we have several of them pinpointed, and one of these days we'll be taking a road trip to see just how many of these mysterious chambers we're able to find.

Hammond Castle

I don't play the lottery, but if someday I ever find myself extremely wealthy I hope I do something fun with it and not just sit on the money. I want to be like John Hammond Jr of Gloucester, Massachusetts. I want to build a castle.

Building a castle might be the thing locals of Gloucester remember him best by, but John Hammond was an extremely motivated person his entire life. A world traveler who associated with people such as Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell, he himself was an inventory with over 800 patents and 400 inventions to his name. His specialty was in radio waves, and he's considered by most to be the father of radio control.

Traveling throughout Europe for many years, Hammond developed a love for medieval architecture and what it represented. He was fascinated by its atmosphere, one he described as "haunting old monuments and buildings" and that "dissipated the obscurity of time." Basically, they made him feel like he'd traveled to a land long ago. Of course we all feel that way, but Hammond had enough money to do something about it. This combination of love and means, along with a need for someplace to store his vast collection of artifacts, led to the construction of Hammond Castle.

Tucked behind the trees of Hesperus Ave in Gloucester, you could almost drive right past the castle without noticing it if not for the signs and large parking lot. It's not until you're coming down the walkway that the building really starts to take shape.

Once inside the castle we were given the choice of joining a group or doing a self-guided tour. We decided to go it on our own. I've no doubt we missed some good history doing it this way, but at the same time I didn't end up with a group of people waiting impatiently when I wanted to walk up and down the hidden staircase one more time, or when I took a few extra minutes staring at a coat-of-arms and wondering if I'd fit into it.

I found the most impressive room, by sheer size alone, to be the Great Hall. Fashioned after those of the European castles Hammond visited, this hall measures 100' in length and 60' in height.

Not just the vastness was impressive, but all throughout the hall were treasures and artifacts. This human skull had no description, but researching it later we learned it is believed to belong to a sailor from Christopher Columbus's crew.

The next spot you don't want to miss is the courtyard, which is situated within the castle walls. Another reason I like Hammond is he apparently had a prankster side to him. During parties he would give guests a fright by jumping off the balcony (where this picture was taken) and into what they thought was shallow water. However this deceptive looking pool was actually almost 9' deep.

The front of the castle is the best view to really capture its size and beauty. It also provides some wonderful photo opportunities. I always drag the family into at least one of them.

Although sometimes, ones own feet can be even more captivating that a medieval castle.

The grounds are open for public access at no charge, but there is a modest fee to tour the inside of Hammond Castle. We consider this well worth the price for anyone interested in taking a trip back in time, which should be everyone. But just in case all this hasn't been enough to tempt you, know that I didn't even show you the life-size nude statue Hammond commissioned of himself for his wife, which stands by the pool.

Yet another reason why I like this fellow so much.

Links:
Official Website
Photo Album