If you own an older house, chances are pretty good that a previous owner hid valuables in it. If they did, they intended to retrieve those items one day. However, circumstances often prevent people from doing so – they die, become ill, or grow infirm and cannot remember where they hid items.

So if you own an older home, where should you check for hidden items? Here are some places to look.

Photo of two beautiful older houses that could be hiding gold and other precious metal surprises inside, which Specialty Metals can help you turn into cash.

Where Did People Like to Hide Valuables in Earlier Times?

Twenty years ago, a treasure hunter named Michael Paul Henson wrote “27 Unusual Places to Look for Treasure,” an article that you can still find online. Here are some of the places where he reported that he had found hidden valuables:

Above false closet ceilings
Behind loose bricks around fireplaces and elsewhere
Behind wallpaper (look for bulges)
Between layers of shelf paper (popular for paper currency)
Buried in flower gardens
In hollowed-out beams and/or logs in log cabins
Inside couch and chair cushions
Inside door locks
Inside hollow bed posts (a popular place to stash gold coins, Henson wrote)
Inside hollowed-out fence and clothesline posts
Inside hollowed-out stones placed outdoors
Inside old chicken coops (Henson notes that chickens made “good watchdogs”)
Inside or surrounding fireplace cleanouts
Sewn into carriage seats and horse harnesses
Under false bottoms in feed bins in barns
Under paving stones
Under porch floors
Under siding and shingles
Under steps
Under window sills and casements

And here are some additional places that are mentioned in other articles that I have found online:

Behind loose stones or bricks in foundations
Behind mantles made of slate and other materials
Down wells (coins or gold jewelry could be placed in a box and lowered down using a rope)
In outhouses, barns and sheds
In safes hidden behind closet walls or under closet floors
Inside tool cabinets and toolboxes
Under floorboards

Ready to Start Looking?

Now that you have read the lists above of hiding places, are you ready to start tapping on walls, lifting floorboards and probing for loose bricks? We can’t blame you. And when you find items made of gold or other precious metals, be sure to contact America's best Gold Refiners, part of Specialty Metals Smelters & Refiners, at 800-426-2344.

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Where to Find Hidden Gold and Other Valuables in and Around Old Houses

Where Did People Like to Hide Valuables in Earlier Times?

Ready to Start Looking?

America's Best Gold Refiners