This episode of the television program "The Roy Rogers Show" television program features some United States $20 gold coins supposedly minted around 1870. Large size prop coins are used as substitutes. Roy Rogers was a popular "singing cowboy" of motion pictures in the 1930's and 1940's. He and his wife Dale Evans teamed up in some films and in 1951 produced their half-hour television program which ran on the NBC television network from 1951 to 1957. The program was set at the "Double R Ranch" and featured Roy Rogers, "The King of the Cowboys", his horse Trigger, "The Smartest Horse in the Movies" Dale Evans, "The Queen of the West" her horse Buttermilk, their German Shepherd dog Bullet, and their friend Pat Brady and his jeep Nellybelle. This episode is titled "Ghost Town Gold" and was first broadcast on May 25, 1952. Pat Brady buys the ghost town of "Lucky Springs" whose streets are flooded. Pat, Roy, and Dale encounter Webb Jenkins, an old man living in one of the buildings. Pat hires Webb as a caretaker and while searching a basement find some boxes of gold coins, supposed left in the 1870's by a bandit gang. The boxes are then stolen leaving one coin for Roy to identify which turns out to be a counterfeit. A few prop coins are shown but are not clear enough to identify. The program mentions the gold recall order of 1933 and some other factual detals.

Roy Rogers appears with Trigger and introduces the program: "Trigger is rarin' to go so lets start with today's show" A town sign on the ground appears.

The sign reads "Lucky Springs Pop. 773." The town is then shown.

The town is an unhabited "ghost town" with plenty of water flooding the main street.

Pat Brady, Roy's friend, has bought the ghost town and discovers an elderly man, Webb Jenkins, living in one of the buildings.

Pat hires Webb as a caretaker and the two men explore one of the buildings. Pat manages to fall down a flight of stairs to the basement and lands next to a box of gold coins.

Pat is excited and takes a closer look at the coins.

The coins are white metal prop coins but are not identifiable. Pat loses consciousness and when he wakes up the boxes are gone and so is Webb. Roy and Dale arrive and Roy finds a single coin.

Roy states that the coin is a twenty dollar gold piece dated 1870 and that the coins may have been left by the "Conway Gang" which operated in the area at that time. Roy tells Pat that the coins are "not legal" and that he will have to turn them into the government. (This was due to the gold recall Executive Order 6102 signed by President Roosevelt in 1933) Pat goes in search of Webb to get his coins back. Roy takes his his coin to the bank and shows it to teller Dave.

Dave says that he hasn't seen one in a long time but it doesn't look right. He offers to send it to the Treasury Department to be checked. He tells Roy that "by law all these gold coins ought to be turned in for redemption." Roy then informs Dave that "it isn't mine." Local resident Isabelle Stanton visits the bank to also show a coin to the teller.

He examines the coin and tells her what he told Roy about gold coin redemption. At a restaurant Roy and Pat discuss the coin.

Roy points out that the coin is gold-plated white metal and is a counterfeit. Dave calls Roy at the restaurant and tells him about Isabelle's visit. It turns out that Isabelle is Webb's niece. Roy goes to find Webb and tell him that the coins are worthless. Two men follow Isabelle as she leaves the bank. They catch up with her and question her, finding out that her uncle sent her to the bank with a few coins only. Roy and Dale then ride up, Dale stays with Isabelle while Roy rides after the men, catching up with them. Roy and the bad guys fight and then they leave. A Treasury Agent, Samuel Dover, visits Webb at Isabelle's house and examines Webb's coin.

Dover tells Webb that the coins are counterfeit and worthless. Webb asks to wait until his niece gets back and pulls out a gun. Dover then pulls out a gun and shoots Webb. Roy and Dale arrive and Dover produces an identification card.

Roy, Dale, and Pat head for the basement where they engage in a gunfight with two bad guys whom they manage to subdue and tie up.

They find the hidden coins, then Agent Dover appears and wants to confiscate the coins. Roy tells Dover that he doesn't believe that he is a government agent, Dover pulls a gun, Bullet jumps on him and subdues him. The next scene has Pat throwing the coins into a bucket.

The coins appear in the bucket.

These are most likely the same prop coins shown before. Pat and Dale ride up to give Pat some news.

The coins are made of platinum which was an inexpensive metal in the 1870's (about $5 an ounce). They are now worth more than if they were gold ($50 to $70 an ounce in the 1950's) and do not have to be turned into the government. Pat is happy and drives his jeep through the town's flooded main street.

Roy Rogers as Roy Rogers
Dale Evans as Dale Evans
Pat Brady as Pat Brady
Trigger as Trigger (Roy's horse)
Bullet as Bullet (Roy's dog)
Tom London as Webb Jenkins
Don Harvey as Samuel Dover
Director: Robert G. Walker
Writers: Dwight V. Babcock