Why pearl hunters are more decent than gold diggers: Pearl rush on Lake Caddo

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Even in Ancient Egypt and India, they knew about the completely unique properties of pearls. In ancient times, it was believed that this gem improves health, preserves youth and beauty. Today, pearl jewelry is a symbol of sophistication, elegance and charm. Natural pearls are very rare these days, but a hundred years ago they were the only type of pearls from which jewelry was made. It was incredibly expensive and the places where you were lucky enough to find it began to shake a real fever. As, for example, Texas Lake Caddo, the truth is the community of pearl hunters there turned out to be much more decent than their brothers-gold diggers.

Before British biologist William Saville-Kent first developed the pearl culture technique, for thousands of years divers have been harvesting natural pearls from wild oysters in the Indian Ocean. It was also found in areas such as the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Mannar. The most successful pearl mining was in the Persian Gulf. Fishing there was the most famous in the world.

The Chinese were very active in the extraction of pearls. During the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD) pearl divers hunted for pearls in the South China Sea. When the Spanish conquistadors arrived in America, they discovered real pearl deposits along the Venezuelan coast. Pearls, mined near the local islands of Cubagua and Margarita, were presented by Philip II of Spain to his future wife Mary I of England.

In the Americas, Native Americans dug freshwater pearls from the lakes and rivers of Ohio, Tennessee, and the Mississippi. Saltwater pearls were found in the Caribbean. They also found it in the waters off the coast of Central and South America. In colonial times, white masters used slaves as pearl divers. It was mainly on the northern coast of present-day Colombia and Venezuela. The waters in this area were teeming with sharks, and many unfortunate slaves died from the attack of these most dangerous predators. The work of a diver was an extremely risky business, but there were lucky ones who managed to get a large valuable pearl and gain freedom for it.

On the border between Texas and Louisiana is a huge dragon-shaped lake called Caddo. In 1905, a Japanese immigrant, Sachihiko Ono Murata, decided to settle there. The Japanese once served in the US Navy's Pacific Fleet. He was the chef on the ship there.

Lake Caddo is famous for its beautiful cypress forest, which is one of the largest in the United States. It is also the largest freshwater lake in the state of Texas. For many years it has been a favorite fishing and recreation destination for the inhabitants of this part of the country. Murata was very fond of the cypresses growing around the lake. He even worked there, on oil rigs, which were located in the area of the reservoir.

Once Murata was preparing himself a mussel to bait a catfish and found a small pearl in it. There was nothing supernatural about it. From time to time, the guys found pearls in mussels and gave them to their lovers. This was considered a special gift and blessing for a future marriage.

Just a couple of days later, Murata discovered the second pearl. These chance finds did not generate much interest until Murata decided to sell them. It was rumored that he sold pearls to Tiffany & Co in New York for $ 1,500 each. It was crazy money at the time. After all, then the typical Texas farmer earned from 300 to 600 dollars a year.

The surroundings of the lake were flooded with thousands of people from nearby settlements. They set up tents on the beach. Many brought their families with them.

Lake Caddo is not very deep. The water in it was waist-high or chest-high. Most pearl hunters walked barefoot in the water, picking up mussels with their feet poking around in the mud. Others used fishing tongs, which allowed them to search for mussels during the cold winter months and in deeper parts of the lake. Most of the pearls were only $ 20 or $ 25, but one lady, Mrs. Jeff Stroud of the Lewis community, found and sold a huge, valuable pearl for $ 900. It was the most expensive pearl on the lake. Another lucky one, a fisherman named George Allen, received $ 500 for one pearl.

For three years, the lake was shaken by a real pearl fever. The pearl hunt was so lucrative that the fishermen stopped their fishing and massively devoted all their time to hunting mussels. Not everyone was lucky. Some worked tirelessly for weeks or even months and did not find a single pearl. Disappointment was sometimes so strong that it gave rise to despair and pushed the unfortunate to commit crimes. Many who found pearls hid it carefully to avoid envy. Therefore, it is very difficult to determine the exact amount of pearls found in the lake.

Nevertheless, the number of hunters did not decrease: there were about a thousand people at the same time on Lake Caddo. They were housed in tents on the shore, of which there were also many - about five hundred. Unlike the gold rush in California or the oil wells in Pennsylvania, no one grabbed a special place. The lake was free for everyone. And there were no quarrels. Everyone was busy, valued their time very much and tried to work more and rest less. There was not even a church in the vicinity, there was nowhere to go, and people worked even on Sunday.

Pearl mining on Lake Caddo lasted until 1913. Until the time the dam was built. The water level in the lake has risen greatly and it has become very deep in order to ferment and collect mussels. The pearl fever is over. The fishermen returned to their craft, and the newcomers returned home.

Now there are still freshwater mussels in the lake. Only collecting them is strictly prohibited. Now it is the vicinity of a protected state park.

Besides pearl hunters, there are treasure hunters. Read our article on how two lucky ones have found the biggest treasure of the Iron Age, which they have been looking for for 30 years.