Ralph Madison is not a pirate, but he sure likes his buried treasure. Rare coins, old jewelry, antique toys — he likes finding treasures of all kinds.

Most of all, however, he likes the hunt.

“There’s always that thrill of what it is,” Madison said.

With metal detector in hand, Madison can often be seen scanning Litchfield parks and yards for items of value as the beep-beep of the machine sings along. He works at his own pace, listening to the beeps grow in volume and frequency as he nears a possible prize.

Television shows like the Travel Channel’s “Cash and Treasures” and HGTV’s “If Walls Could Talk” have increased the allure for hidden treasure. Martin Reynolds, president of the Gopher State Treasure Hunters based in the Twin Cities, attributed the growth partly to increased advertising for metal detectors. The Gopher State Treasure Hunters club has nearly 70 members.

“There is an element of adventure to it,” Reynolds said. “...You never know what you’re going to find.”
Madison was introduced to the hobby five years ago. “The first year I had it, I found a lot of change,” he said. “The second year is when I started to find jewelry.”

Madison’s machine can identify what’s under the ground by small lights that indicate the type of metal. Aluminum foil, pull tabs, bottle caps, game tokens, nickels, pennies, keys, matchbox cars — the louder the beep, the better the metal, Madison said. The more beeps, the larger the object.

Over the years, Madison has found a variety of items, especially jewelry. He’s found silver rings, copper bracelets and once a $180 watch at a baseball diamond. Because he tries to hit common areas, like parks, playgrounds, sandboxes and ball fields, he figures most of his finds have fallen out of pockets and bags. His most common find — pennies.

Read more about Madison's metal detecting in the July 10 Independent Review.