South Bay Man Tours With His $114,000 Pair Of Pants From The Gold Rush

LONG BEACH, CA — When Torrance business executive Adam Crum bid on a rare pair of jeans recovered from a Gold Rush-era shipwreck, he knew he wanted to share his previously sunken treasure with as many people as possible.

Crum will take sail with a $15 million traveling exhibit, starting in Los Angeles County at the Long Beach Expo on June 22, to mark the 35th anniversary of the discovery of the S.S. Central Amerca that sank in 1857 carrying tons of California Gold Rush treasures.

"The discovery of the shipwreck site has been described as 'the greatest treasure ever found,' and the exhibit will include gold coins, assayer’s ingots, gold nuggets, and gold dust as well as the gold miner’s jeans and other recovered artifacts of the era," said Crum, president of Finest Known, LLC of Torrance.

The pair of jeans are the earliest known jeans from the Gold Rush, Crum said, and are considered the "world's most valuable jeans." The pants and 166-year-old Cuban cigars were found in the submerged trunk of first-class passenger John Dement from Oregon, who was a merchant and military veteran according to Crum.

Along with the jeans, the exhibit will include gold coins, assayer's ingots, gold nuggets and gold dust along with other recovered artifacts of the era. Other sunken artifacts in the exhibit include a gold pocket watch cover with engraved scenes of early San Francisco, a Madonna with child figure and a rare medal presented by the order of Saint Maurice and Saint Lazarus, all recovered from the ship.

Crum's exhibit will feature some artifacts that have either never been displayed or not publically seen in many years, he said.

“The centerpiece and highlight of the exhibit will be a mammoth, 64-pound assayer’s ingot nicknamed the Eureka Bar. It is the heaviest monetary document known to exist and the most valuable artifact recovered from the Ship of Gold. A priceless national treasure, it has not been seen in public for more than a decade,” Crum said.

The Ship of Gold touring exhibit is being organized by Finest Known, Arhos Gold Group and National Treasures I, LLC. and will be housed in a 40-foot-long recreation of the S.S. Central America's hull.

The exhibit will start its nationwide tour at the Long Beach Expo from June 22 to 24. Tickets to the expo are $10 for general admission, $5 for seniors and free for children 7 years old or younger. VIP early entry tickets allow guests to see the exhibits a day early on June 21 and cost $100. For more information about additional exhibits and to purchase tickets, visit the Long Beach Expo's website.

“We are delighted to present these historic California Gold Rush sunken treasure artifacts for people to see in person,” stated Crum. “After this debut exhibition, we will be announcing future locations and dates in the United States and other countries for a Treasures From The Deep touring display,” he said.