Dan Blankenship

Oak Island has been hiding a treasure for more than 200 years. So far, the Lagina brothers have found a stone slab strange symbols carved into it, mysterious fragments of human bone and a cross,which origin may stretch back to the days of the Knights Templar.

To date, six men have died trying to solve the mystery and according to legend 7 people have to die so that the treasure can be found. It is a day of great anticipation for brothers Rick and Marty Lagina and the other members of their Oak Island team. In case you missed the new episode, here is what happened!

The Cofferdam Construction

It was the first day in the construction of an enormous 525-foot long cofferdam at Smith’s Cove, one of the most intriguing and mysterious places on the island.It would just gradually start coming together over the next couple of days. When completed, the confer dam will effectively wall off ocean water to the comb.

Using a powerful hydraulic hammer approximately 120 interlocking steel sheets will be driven some 25 feet into the ground this will allow the water to be drained and then the entire area searched for important clues. And these are the clues that might help the Laginas solve a two hundred and twenty three-year-old treasure mystery. It may also help them locate an elaborate system of booby-trapped flood tunnels that afforded searchers from exploring the so-called honey pen, located some 170 yards away.

“Every time Smith’s Cove has been searched in the past it’s been just an earthen cofferdam more or less similar to the bladder system we used last year. And there’s so much seepage under there through the sands and the gravel and whatever underneath there that was working in constant flooding. So this time we’re gonna drive sheet piling no 23 feet and interlock it that should stop the bulk of the water, “said Marty Lagina.

What is realistically the closest timeframe to when we start being able to dig an excavated Smith’s Cove?This is one of the questions raised and answered by the team. One of the members said: “This year, we’re anticipating about three weeks work from the time we started today until we can probably turn it over doodles right on schedule basically and then we can get started and see if there’s anything else hiding down in Smith’s Cove”

Journey that would pay off

As the team from Irving Equipment Limited continues with their operation at Smith’s Cove brothers Rick and Marty Lagina along with Craig Tester, Dave Blankenship and Charles Barkhouse are travelling some 2,300 miles west of Oak Island to the City of Calgary in Alberta, Canada.

They are on their way to the headquarters of Eagle Canada, a geophysical exploration company which over the past two weeks has conducted a major seismic imaging scan of the money pit site. This revolutionary process involves the detonation of literally hundreds of explosive dynamite charges. These charges send powerful shockwaves down into the earth which are then measured and recorded, allowing for the creation of a virtual three-dimensional map which in turn could reveal the precise location of everything from old searcher tunnels and booby traps to underground treasure vaults.

Included in the seismic scanning operation was another search area known as the mega bin located some 600 feet north of the money pit site. It was here in the early 1970s that veteran treasure hunter Dan Blankenship and his company, the Triton Alliance drilled some 40 exploratory bore holes searching for tunnels that Dan believed were connected to the money pit.

“We’re going to get a look at the seismic results which were very excited to see,” said Marty, while Rick added: “I do have high hopes for them being able to see vertical structures. We have our own little version of what that might be. You know, mental image of what that might be but in any event this is the first time we might get some scientific imaging of what’s going on under growling both at the money pit and over there on the hillside.”
When Jeremy started showing the results, the entire team was sitting at the edge of their seats: “There’s your megabit right there,” he said.“This is definitely the largest anomaly in this data set so far. It’s roughly 50 meters long so you’re in 150 to 175-foot length. The distance between the top and the base is 7 to 12 feet.”
“What’s interesting is things are draping on top of it so it is a confident structure whatever it is,” Jeremy pointed out. He was asked whether that was consistent with a chamber with a roof and a floor. And his answer was positive.

Anmind-boggling discovery

A 175 foot chamber located at a depth of approximately 50 feet – it sound weird, don’t you think? Could this discovery finally be the proof the Laginas and generations of other treasure hunters have been trying to find for more than two centuries? The man-made structures really do exist beneath the surface of Oak Island. This was something the Laginas have been searching for years. It is a breakthrough discovery.

A large void low at a depth of 160 to 170 feet and adjacent to the c1 and h8 bore holes that Rick and Marty dug in the money pit? “That’s where a lot of odd stuff came out of!” said Rick.

The Oak Island team found compelling evidence of what they believed to be the so-called Chappell vault, the 7-foot tall wooden box first discovered by William Chappell and Frederick Blair in 1897. It was while searching the spoils from this same hole that the team also made a number of incredible discoveries, including pottery bits of parchment and leather bookbinding and even pieces of human bones, which when tested or determined to be the remains of two individuals one from Europe and the other from the Middle East. Each was estimated to be more than 400 years old.
Unfortunately when the team attempted to penetrate the suspected vault with a 60 inch wide drill the object was pushed into muddy ground. Could this large chamber located near the h8 shaft be were the elusive Chappell vault is now located?

“If it is real it could answer a lot of stuff it could explain where we pushed that vault down to, you know, if there’s a cavity over there that has been breached then maybe that’s where the stuff went. Maybe it is the bottom of the old money pit,” confirmed the Laginas.

Forming a New Strategy

In Alberta, Canada brothers Rick and Marty Lagina along with members of the Oak Island team have just been given the startling information that seismic scanning has revealed the existence of underground points in the money pit area, voids that appear to surround the borehole known as H8.

A flood tunnel located at a depth of approximately 100 is what they believe they have come across. They started discussing what the best way was to use the data but one thing was for sure – they were ready to explore.
While Rick Marty and members of the team eagerly make their way back to Oak Island Jack Begley, Gary Drayton and area geophysicist Mike West head to the beach on lot 26 located upon the island’s South West Shore. They have come here in hopes of finding historical artifacts like the gold covered brooch Gary and Rick Lagina discovered just one week ago and which was estimated to be as much as 700 years old.
They covered the ground with metal detectors which had different characteristics and therefore, they made a detailed search.

A Bit of History

During the American Revolution in 1783, Captain James Anderson was a privateer who pledged his allegiance to the United States. However, after being given command of his own ship called the Betsy he became a spy for the British and fled the US taking his ship and the valuable cargo it was carrying with him. Facing charges of treason levied by then-governor Virginia Thomas Jefferson Anderson escaped to Nova Scotia where he purchased lot 26 on Oak Island.

Back to it!

To assist them in their search Mike will use a metal detecting device known as the E/M 61. Unlike conventional metal detectors which are generally limited to an average scanning depth of between one and three feet, the E/M 61 is equipped with powerful transmitter and receiver coils allowing it to sense metal objects buried up to 20 feet deep underground. It also features a GPS device which will allow the team to record the exact location of any targets too deep to be dug up by hand.

And what they found was a spike.The spike was believed to date back to 1700s and it came from the ship. Could have been part of a dock or boat slip once used by Captain James Anderson? But that was not all they found…
They have also come across a hook.The hook used for unloading cargo from ships and found on land once owned by the 18th century pirate captain James Anderson!

The James Anderson Recall

Last year, members of the Oak Island team traveled to the home of Steve Atkinson a direct descendant of James Anderson where they were shown one of the infamous Buccaneers. Just in addition to the chest was a ring of four mysterious keys.Could the hook that the team has just found on lot 26 be evidence that at least one of the legends concerning Captain James Anderson is true? Was the potential treasure from the ship buried all over the island?

The Meeting

As another Sun sets on Oak Island brothers Rick and Marty lagina have called a meeting in the war room. They are eager to share with their team the incredible results of the seismic testing that they received earlier that day from the technicians in Calgary.

Money Pit Rumors

Over the years there have been many Oak Island theorists who believe that the money pit was constructed as a decoy designed to thwart the efforts of would-be searchers and keep them from finding the actual treasure vault. It was their belief that after the money pit was done and then booby-trapped with seawater another more secret tunnel was constructed which branched off from the fabled shaft and then led to a treasure vault located safely above sea level.

“I have always felt that the theory proposed by others that the money pit was dug as deep as could be dug at the time and then there is a tunnel that goes off from it somewhere and in a relatively shallow depth that created a chamber underground. And that makes so much sense because it would be absolutely no way to find that with 300 year old technology unless you knew where it was,” said one of the brothers.

Could the shallow anomaly as indicated on the 3D seismic map and located some 600 feet north of the money pit be evidence that this incredible theory is true?Afterwards, the team designed a simple strategy and they shared the roles. Once again, everyone knew what to do, so they were on it.

Previous Smith’s Cove Excavation Attempts

In the early 1970s Oak Island treasure hunter Dan Blankenship played his own attempt to excavate Smith’s Cove and locate the flood tunnels which he hoped would lead him directly to the fabled treasure vault. Unlike Laginas, he constructed a large copper dam around Smith’s Cove made of large boulders packed with earth unfortunately harsh weather plagued his efforts. And before he could locate the flood tunnels Dan’s cofferdam was washed away but not before he made an amazing discovery.

Located just off shore and some 10 feet underground Dan found the remains of an elaborate wooden structure. Because of its unique shape Dan dubbed it the u-shaped structure although its intended purpose, as well as the identities of those who constructed it,has remained a mystery.

The Sonic Drilling

Later that day as work continues at Smith’s Cove, Rick Lagina along with his nephew Peter Fornetti, Craig Tester and other members of their team gather at the Oak Island Visitor Center.They’ve scheduled a meeting with representatives a drilling company that specializes in a process known as sonic drilling.

Unlike regular air or mud rotary drilling which uses powerful drill bits to literally grind beneath the ground,the sonic one uses vibrations to create a high-frequency sound which can literally pulverize obstacles. It has been used to extract samples of earth and objects from areas as much as five hundred feet deep.Everybody was excited to see it being put in use.

“I’ve always been against just guessing. I mean the whole point of the seismic program was to find anomalous features underground in the money pit well they’ve targeted an area that’s worth investigating and thus we’re gonna drill it,” said the Laginas, referring to the idea of scanning the ground.

Using last year’s geo-tech grid as a reference, the team has decided to dig their first hole at a location known as D6. Here, they hope to find not only a possible system of tunnels some 100 feet deep but also a 30-foot wide chamber at a depth of approximately 170 feet. It is also in this chamber that the team hopes it will locate the mysterious Chappell vault in which bits of gold and a piece of parchment was recovered more than a century ago shortly before it sank further beneath the ground.

After collecting samples at intervals of up to 10 feet, the samples are transferred into plastic sleeves for thorough inspection of any potential artifacts or treasure.And the team hopes to find interesting items. Are there any?

Why Finding Wood Matters?

While examining Spoils excavated from borehole D6 at the money pit Oak Island partner Craig Tester and geologist Terry Matheson have just made what they believe could be an important discovery.And it was wood they found! Is that a wood from a tunnel? But from which year it is? Could it be little more than the remains of a searcher tunnel one of the dozens that had been dug on the island over the years or could it be physical evidence from an original underground structure one that may have been put there centuries ago? Why the people who came to the island looking to hide an incredible treasure?

“This is the heart of that anomaly right where we’re drilling a tunnel, could be there, it could have been one of the other tunnels coming off the money pit we’ve encountered what we believe to be a tunnel in an area or we got a target based on the seismic data but we don’t know what that means it could be original work, we don’t know, and that’s what we’re trying to decipher. It’s exciting. It can’t be just a coincidence,” says Rick.

A Crossbow

The discovery of a possible tunnel directly connected to the money pit offers exciting news for the Laginas and members of their team. It means that the seismic data they received was able to accurately pinpoint the existence of a structure located some 93 feet below ground. It also means that as they continue to drill down deeper the team may also be successful at finding another critical proof- the one which they believed might contain the legendary Chappell vault. As the sonic drilling operation continues in the money pit area, Jack Begley,Gary Drayton and Mike West returned to lock 26, property that was once owned by the 18th century pirate and privateer captain James Anderson.

While searching for artifacts on lot 26 located on the island south west shore, the three of them have made a curious discovery – they found a crossbow. But the team is not quite certain how it got here. Dating back to as early as the seventh century BC the crossbow was a powerful long-range weapon and favored for its accuracyand ability to pierce through heavy armor. They were also widely used by individuals of high status throughout the militaries of medieval Europe until they were replaced in the 16th century by gunpowder firearms. Could what Gary’s identified as a possible crossbow fault really be evidence that members of the Knights Templar visited Oak Island centuries ago?

After examining it, it is believed that the crossbow dates back to the 1300s or perhaps even earlier. It was the discovery everyone love and it will motivate them for a further search.

Following a week of intriguing revelations and exciting new discoveries Rick, Marty and the Oak Island team are convinced that they are closer than ever to solving this 223-year-old mystery. When will they find the Oak Island treasure?