The El Cazador Shipwreck, Found Treasure, and Tap4Treasure’s Mission #6 Bounty

On October 20^th, 1783, El Cazador , also known as The Hunter in English, set sail from Veracruz, Mexico, to New Orleans. New Orleans was a crucial port for trade at the time and under the control of Spain. El Cazador was sent by Charles III of Spain to deliver 450,000 Spanish reales to stabilize the failing currency there, but it never arrived. The ship was deemed lost at sea, with all crew and cargo, in June of 1794.

The loss of the El Cazador was devastating for Spain’s attempt to alleviate economic tensions. And although New Orleans was a key shipping location because it sat where farmers and traders of the north could send goods down the Mississippi River to be transported and sold wherever needed around the world, Spain began to question it’s value.

Some historians claim the costly shipwreck of the El Cazador is said to have ultimately aided in the decision of Spain to give up control of the lands there, and that this decision also helped create the America it is today. Theories propose that if the El Cazador had arrived at New Orleans with its badly needed shipment of silver, Spain would have been able to stabilize the port, and they would have never thought to give up the Louisiana Territory to the French, which Spain did near the turn of the century in the secret Treaty of San IIdenfonso.

This transaction then provided Napoleon the option to sell these same lands to the United States in 1803. The series of events, starting with the loss of the El Cazador, allowed the United States the opportunity to significantly add to their lands and economies. There is no doubt the Louisiana Purchase is one of America’s most prized acquisitions.

It’s amazing how unseeingly connected occurrences can be realized to have changed the world, or at least helped bring certain things about.

For over 200 years, no one was sure exactly where the El Cazador and its shipment of silver coins sank. But in 1983, this would change as well.

Jerry Murphy, who was fishing fifty miles off the coast of Louisiana, had his trawler aboard The Mistake hit a snag. After hoisting it up to access the damage, he was pleasantly surprised to discover his net had hit upon a load of coins.

He quickly marked the boat’s location and made claim to the El Cazador lost treasure. Thousands of coins were brought back to the surface over a course of the next months.

Some of the coins of the El Cazador are now available for purchase in their numerous dominations. 1/4 Reales to 8 Reales or pieces of the eight were on board the ship.

Tap4Treasure’s Mission #6 has chosen its Bounty to be a 1/2 Reale Silver Coin of the El Cazador. This hunt is a copper level mission, meaning a drawing will be held from all correct transmissions to pick a winner for this very special prize.

To play is free and all an individual needs to do for his chance to win the prize is follow the intel, identify the drop site, and transmit the correct location to T4THQ.

The clues are of ‘Scavenger Hunt’ style. A searcher has to find the objects and discover the missing information to identify the drop site. The first piece of Intel (Dispatch #1 of Mission #6) is below. If you can solve this, you could win an authentic El Cazador Treasure Coin! Each piece takes a searcher to a website and offers a number to solve for. There are 6-10 Dispatches. The numbered code will then be used to open a page with an additional piece of INTEL that will identify the Drop Site to Transmit.