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Abstract

Since the mid-19th century, the mystery of the Beale ciphers has confounded cryptanalysts, intelligence agencies, historians, and treasure hunters alike. Countless works of scholarship have analyzed the story, the ciphers, and possible locations for the massive buried treasure allegedly in rural Bedford County, Virginia. However, prior methodology applied to historiography on the subject has been unsuccessful in making headway in an understanding of the history and location of the Beale treasure. In examining prior scholarship in conjunction with recorded land grants and associated archaeological scholarship, this paper proposes a new direction for research into the Beale cipher mystery and new locations to search for the treasure. In addition, this paper provides explanations as to potential members of the Beale party as not previously identified. It can be concluded that the Beale treasure has likely been moved from its original location in Virginia, and that Thomas Beale was a real person despite limited records on the matter. It can also be concluded that George Strother and Roger Weightman were most likely members of the Beale party, and these new conclusions are crucial to any future efforts to locate a potential vault.

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34

Last Page

57

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

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