“I’ve always enjoyed Mystery Cave Park, and ever since I figured out that the James gang probably came through the area, I’ve been spending more time wandering around, hoping to find something. Obviously, the three walnut trees would be long dead, so it would take a lot of luck, or a lot of time, to find anything.” Fortunately, Isaacson had both time and luck on his side. But of course they never got to come back after Northfield, so whatever they buried might still be there. And the James gang had once robbed a bank in Corydon, Iowa, so that could be where the bag was from. “But when I looked closer at the handwriting, I realized it might have said ‘buried’ instead of ‘burned,’ so I got wondering if they stashed something they intended to return for. He went on to say that Miller’s diary mentioned something in a “Corydon bag” that was burned near three walnut trees, just north of the cave. I got pretty jazzed up, and then when I did some research and found out a guy named Sidd Finch had actually owned a farm there around that time, I was sure I was onto something.” “Suddenly, it all clicked,” exclaimed Nels, “I realized they could have been near Cherry Grove and Mystery Cave. Clell Miller was a sometimes member of the gang, and in his diary, it mentions that they spent a few days at a farm owned by Sidd Finch, and that they camped out near a grove of cherry trees, and spent one day looking around in a cave.” In one of the gang member’s diaries, it told about their trip to Minnesota, as they made their way up to Northfield. Nels says he’s spent years researching the James gang and their exploits. The attempted robbery occurred in 1876, and essentially ended the era of western gunslinging marauders in the Old West. That Northfield trip actually was the end of the gang, because the robbery was foiled, and most of them were killed or captured,” Nes shared. Their gang was mostly made up of the James and Younger brothers, but a few other friends and relatives rode with them once in a while. Most people in Minnesota have heard that the Jesse James gang once tried to rob a bank in Northfield. “I’ve always been a student of history, and especially the 19th century American outlaws. He says he spent a lot of time doing his research, and did a lot of walking around, but in the end, dumb luck played a crucial role as well. Nels Isaacson of rural Spring Valley recently made an amazing find.

Jessy james gang