Daily Morning Post, May 31, 1854, page 3, column 1

Relics- Yesterday afternoon, while the workmen employed in making excavations of the ground purchased by the PRR Co. freight depot came across at a distance of about 5 feet below the surface a large lot of cannonballs. As this forms a portion of the grounds formerly occupied by old Ft. Duquesne and Fort Pitt, there is no doubt but that these balls formed a portion of the armaments of one of these forts.

The Daily Pittsburgh Gazette, May 31, 1854, page 3, column 1, “Home Matters”

Relics- The workmen engaged in excavating the ground in the First Ward for the foundation of the freight depot of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, yesterday came upon a dozen or more cannon balls, buried some three or five feet below the surface of the ground, relics of Fort Pitt. They were instantly appropriated by the finders.

The Daily Pittsburgh Gazette, June 5, 1854, page 3, column 1, “Home Matters”

The Pennsylvania Freight Depot- The excavations being made for the freight depot at the point, have disclosed some relics of the old fort, which have been eagerly appropriated by the lucky finders. These, so far, consist of cannon balls and a religious book, with the date 1747 upon it. The discovery mania, has since then, seized upon quite a number, and on Saturday they were busy at work digging. Stories of robbers and buried gold were plenty and it at one time it seemed the general opinion that they had lit upon a gold mine. After digging about five feet, one party came upon an old log under which it was supposed the money was buried.

It was also rumored that in the days of the fort there existed a subterranean passage leading to the river. Those who rejected the bullion story adopted the other, and turned their attention to its discovery. They had not succeeded, however, when we left the ground.

Daily Morning Post, June 9, 1854, page 3, column 1

More Discoveries- The workmen of the ground of the old fort came across yesterday the remains of an old wooden enclosure, a few feet under the surface, leading to a subterranean passage, which was entered by several men. It appears to have been a magazine, and must have been used long before the revolution, and perhaps extends to the Monongahela River. It is the intention of the company to strip the ground and remove the whole affair, when we shall know more about the buried treasures, reported by the oldest inhabitant. Perhaps a few muskets or dilapidated swords may be gathered up, nothing more. We are anxious, however to see the bottom of this mysterious underground arrangement- Chronicle

The Daily Pittsburgh Gazette, June 9, 1854, page 3, column 1, “Home Matters”

Same as Daily Morning Post of June 9, 1854.

Daily Morning Post, June 12, 1854, page 3, column 1, “The City Post”

The Old Fort- We mentioned the other day, that the workmen on the new depot of the Pennsylvania Railroad had discovered at the distance of four or five feet below the surface, the remains of a wooden building or inclosure of some kind. The editor of the American has been examining it carefully and gives as his opinion that the building exhumed formed no part of the known or remembered Fort Pitt, which appears to have been built over it. It appears to have been a cellar or vault, probably for the safe keeping of powder, or a kind of refuge for that article in time of danger or attack, the covering being formed of a double layer of timbers about 12 inches square, each layer crossing the other, counter hewed and fitting together, and this again covered with 4 inch plank, caulked and pitched, forming originally a flat roof. Time had long since so far done its work and caused the roof to brake in or about the middle, and, falling onto the vault, gave the form of an inverted roof, which it now presents. The excavations requiring its removal, about 20 feet square of the work has been uncovered, of about 8 feet of earth in depth in the center and about 4 feet at the ends, where the timber still rests on the walls of the vault. The surface of the timbers is some what decayed, but the heart remains firm and sound as ever.

It is probably the hasty work of the French in their first erection of Fort Duquesne, just 100 years ago, and afterwards covered up by the English in their more complete works of Fort Pitt, this part of the ground being more elevated than that around it: and also made the site of their magazine, the old stone remains of which, close beside it, are undergoing a like removal, the mortar of the walls having an unusual hardness, little differing from that of the stone which it binds. The French military reports of the day, if they could be exhumed, might throw some light upon it.

The Daily Pittsburgh Gazette, June 12, 1854, page 3, column 1, “Home Matters”

The excavations resulted in the discovery on the ground purchased by the P.R.R. resulted in the discovery of a magazine, containing nothing, however.

The Daily Pittsburgh Gazette, June 14, 1854, page 3, column 1, “Home Matters”

More Discoveries- A boy named M’Laughlin on Monday evening found the case of a gold watch on the site of the old fort, bearing the inscription “Presented to James Wetherall by his friend George Washington, May 3d 1755.” It is now in possession of the boy’s father, janitor of the Merchant’s Exchange, where the curious by calling can see it.

The Daily Pittsburgh Gazette, June 16, 1854, page 3, column 1, “Home Matters”

Relic- The upper half of a sword blade, fastened in a rough handle of wood, without guard, was found in the “magazine” at the point yesterday. It is very rusty, the handle is saturated with moisture. It is now in the possession of Mr. Wm. Bennett, of “Our House” restaurant, Diamond Alley.

Daily Morning Post, June 17, 1854, page 3, column1

Another Relic- We were shown yesterday by Mr. Bennett of “Our House” the remains of an old broad sword similar to the kind made use of by dragoon soldiers which was discovered underneath the logs forming the floor of the old magazine. The article appears to have been broken in two by some accident. We have “no hesitation in saying” that judging from the appearance of the weapon now, the original possessor, whoever he may have been, must have performed “prodigies of valor” with it – its battered and broken condition bear testimony to that.

J.M. Draper to Lyman Draper
Pittsburgh, PA
June 18, 1854

…”We have had a great time here digging up old forts Duquesne and Pitt. Actually exhumed an old [magazine] made of timber that no body living ever knew or heard of. My own view of it I gave in a number [?] paper is of no other consequence that silencing which it has over a thousand [?] rumors. [?] all of a very marvelous color. But to the – it was fruitful affair and they [?] off [?] without number. Old muskets, tomahawks, knives, stools, chairs even were exhibited as relics dug out. The operation being watched by crowds of people who attended in hundreds day after day. At last a watch case was found - a real gold case, the works having been extracted or destroyed bearing the inscription “To my friend Saml. Wetherall, Geo. Washington, May 3rd 1755.” This was a [?] relic. [?] the inscription this date and giver all confirmed its [faith?] as a relic. Three or four of our dailies gravely endorsed it and [?] described it and commented on the connecting circumstances as confirmatory of its genuineness. They were only bothered about the absence of the name Wetherall in the history of the times- but an antiquare in Beaver had a number of letters, he said, of Washington’s in which he was sure the name of Wetherall occurred. His mother was connected with the Witherall family, some of whom were in service at the time, and off he started home to Beaver, to search the – with a promise of revelations Exclusively to ours of the Daily Editors. Never heard of him since I [?] the folly of it and the fools, and actually got abused for my obstinate incredulity in a matter so clear and plain. The perpretrator of the hoax explained it afterwards to me. It was an ingenious lad of 17 or 18. The son of an instrument maker had an old – back watch case, which he got galvanized pasted on it beeswax and wrote the inscription and applied aqua [?]. He could think of no real person and borrowed that of “wetherall” – had to watch for two days he said for an opportunity to drop it unseen in the ruins, and finally employed a boy to do it in the night, having previously made two or three [?] and of the design beforehand. It was a complete [?] and greatly enjoyed by this boy, who has earned, perhaps for his life, the name of “witherall.”

Daily Morning Post, June 14, 1854, page 3, column 1, “The City Post”

DISCOVERY OF AN INTERESTING RELIC-

A very valuable and interesting relic of olden times, was exhumed from the ruins of the magazine of the old French fort on Monday evening. The article found is the outside case of an old French gold watch, with many evidences on its surface of having been in use, and has on its back the following inscription, engraved in rough and unsymmetrical characters:
“Presented to James Wetherall, by his friend, George Washington, May 3, 1755”
This date corresponds with the time Braddock set out with his ill-fated expedition for the conquest of Fort Duquesne. It was about the 1st of May of that year that he crossed the Potomac River, on his road to the Ohio, and is well known, George Washington was with him. On the 19th of July following, they arrived within 12 miles of the fort, at a point on the Monongahela river, where the terrible defeat and massacre took place. The supposition, therefore, is that this watch was presented by Washington to some one of the name of Wetherall, in Braddock’s Army, and that during the murderous fight, he was either killed or made prisoner, and this watch along with other property taken from him, and afterwards lost at the fort, where it has remained undiscovered until this time.

The case bears indubitable evidence of being an ancient piece workmanship, and should be prized as an invaluable memento of Washington.

It is now in the hands of Mr. M’Laughlin, the janitor of Merchants’ Exchange, who will show it to anyone who may call.