Fort Knox Bullion Depository
Fort Knox, KY is probably the world's best known gold bullion depository, holding as it does a large proportion of the US gold reserves. It has for decades been a place of much fascination as well as having provided inspiration for many writers and movie makers.The Fort Knox reputation for securing valuables has led to the name being used to brand a variety of products from secure mailboxes to gun safes. The understandable secrecy of its operations has also led to it being the centre of various conspiracy theories.
History
The Fort Knox gold depository is located in Kentucky, situated about 30 miles from Louisville. Although built on what was once part of the Fort Knox military reservation, the bullion depository should not be confused with the army post nearby.The depository was built in 1936 by the US Treasury Department and the first gold shipments arrived in 1937. It is currently under the jurisdiction of the US Mint.
As you would expect, security is tight at the facility. As well as the latest protective technology the building is equipped with its own power and water systems. There's even a shooting range in the basement where the guards practice.
Visitors to the depository are not permitted - sorry, you can't buy tickets for a tour of the vaults!
What Is In Fort Knox?
Fort Knox is primarily known for its storage of the US gold reserve. The gold stored at Fort Knox is in the form of almost pure bars of bullion, each of which is slightly smaller than an average house brick and weighs around 400 ounces. In 1941 the amount stored there reached a peak of almost 650 million ounces. The currently figure is much lower at around 147 million ounces.As well as gold bullion, Fort Knox has also been used to store valuable historic documents including the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, the Articles of Confederation, Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and three volumes of the Gutenberg Bible.
In recent years no gold has been moved either to or from Fort Knox other than small samples for purity testing and audit purposes. This has helped to flame some of the many conspiracy theories concerning the place.
Conspiracy Theories
Huge piles of precious metal stored away from sight in a highly secure government facility; as you might expect, Fort Knox is a popular subject with conspiracy theorists!There have been frequent rumours that there is little or no gold actually is that the majority of the gold was moved to London in the 1960s. The government strongly denies these rumours, however given the secrecy surrounding the Fort Knox facility they are likely to remain in circulation.
US politicians such as Ron Paul have lobbied for the Fort Knox gold stores to be independently audited on a regular basis.
Some people have even suggested that the alleged gold in Fort Knox provides an excuse for security and secrecy under cover of which something else is actually stored there. Perhaps something not of this world?