Is there gold under the rubble of the Frank Slide? Who was the miracle baby who was the sole survivor of the slide? Was the town completely destroyed? Find out the truth
Myths abound about the people who survived the Frank Slide disaster. These stories have grown over the years due to lack of or conflicting information. Some of the bigger stories are legends of the area, some have faded with time and most are completely inaccurate.
Lost Gold - money buried beneath the Frank Slide
A popular myth is the story of the buried bank and the $25,000, $125,000 or $500,000 (depending on who is telling the story) in gold (or silver) stored in its basement vault. (double check). While this is a fun tale, there's little basis to it. The town of Frank was not destroyed in the slide -- the main street escaped the slide entirely. One of the most enduring photos of the aftermath of the slide shows the newly-freed miners walking down an intact main street of Frank, with the slide in the bankground. Even more interesting, the bank is clearly visible in the photo -- still standing.
Consider too, the amount of money rumored to be "lost". In 1903, $25,000 was a lot of money and an amount as high as $500,000 would have been a ridiculous amount of money for a small mining town back to have.
Baby Frankie - the sole survivor of the Frank Slide
This is a popular myth, even mentioned in folk songs about the train, but in reality, more than 20 people were found and pulled from the rubble after the slide. 17 miners also dug their way to safety from within the blocked mine.
Three young girls were found in the slide, all miraculously unharmed, and the myth is probably based on one of these girls. Fernie Watkins was found in the debris, 15 month old Marion Leitch was thrown from her house and landed safely in a bale of hay that had been tossed from the livery, and 27 month old Gladys Ennis was found by her mother in a pile of mud.
Town of Frank destroyed -- did the slide crush the town?
The myth persists that Frank was entirely destroyed by the slide. As mentioned before, the slide missed most of the town, instead destroying miner's houses, mine buildings and campsites. Most residences and businesses were untouched.
The mine was reopened within a month and a second mine was even opened a few years later north of town. Frank continued to be a booming mining community.
Those who remained were understandably nervous about another slide and slowly New Frank was created, north of the original site. When a government commision found in 1910 the mountain was indeed unstable, the old location was moved to join the new location north of the slide. The mine was shut down at the same time.
Turtle Mountain is Going to Fall Again
It could, but if it does, it won't be the same surprise. Turtle Mountain has been closely monitored for decades and geoligists have a much better understanding of what warnings to look for. If another slide does happen, there will be plenty of time to prepare.
