For nearly two weeks, Joseph Troyer’s lonely homestead sat without its owner.
The 69-year-old Civil War veteran lived apart from others near Big Hole, Idaho, earning what little he could by washing gold from the river gravel. Visitors were rare, and when Troyer disappeared, the mystery lingered until a search party set out to find him.
What they discovered was a quiet and haunting scene. Troyer was found seated beside his mining tools on a gravel bar, his back against a miner’s rocker and one hand resting over his heart. He appeared to have died suddenly, likely from heart failure, while working near the river.
Yet his body had not been disturbed.
Nearby were his two faithful dogs, believed to have guarded him from wild animals and birds during the long days after his death.
Body of Joseph Troyer Found
ABERDEEN, Idaho. — Missing for nearly two weeks, the body of Joseph Troyer, an aged homesteader living near Big Hole, was found Sunday afternoon alongside his gold mining tools on a gravel bar not far from his home.
The find was made by a searching party organized Sunday morning for the purpose of clearing up the mystery of Troyer’s disappearance.
It is believed the body had laid on the bar for ten days or two weeks, but fortunately it was protected from wild animals and birds by his two dogs which were found by the searchers not far from the spot where the body lay. The dead man sat in a perfectly natural position, leaning his back against a miner’s rocker, with his right hand resting over his heart. This leads to the belief that death was caused from heart failure and that it was sudden.
Mr. Troyer lived on a homestead four miles east of Aberdeen, lying between Big Hole and Snake River. He lived a hermit’s life, a considerable distance from any frequent traveled road, and it was not often that any one visited his place. He was 69 years of age and an old soldier, having served in the Civil War and drew a pension. This, together with the little he made on the river washing gold, constituted his living.
Source: American Falls Press. American Falls, Idaho. December 17, 1910.
