Pirate Treasure

Both you readers know I’m a big fan of pirates and there are all sorts of stories about them burying treasures all around the world. Undoubtedly some of these are true and a lot just someone’s imagination.

But one legend continues to exist even today — that more than $2 billion in gold may be hidden on Oak Island in Mahone Bay, which is about 45 minutes from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Treasure hunters have scoured the island for more than 200 years looking for the bounty. But apparently, the pirates who buried the treasure hid it well…..

Since around 1720, people have claimed that pirate treasure was buried on Oak Island, and in 1795, Daniel McGinnis was hunting on the island and found evidence that those stories might be true. 
An oak tree had been used with a hoist to lift something very heavy and when McGinnis dug at that spot,he found loose sand filling a pit about 12 feet in diameter. 
He returned the next day with two friends, and after digging down about ten feet, they encountered a wooden platform. Beneath the platform was more dirt, and digging down another ten feet or so, they found another wooden platform. At that point, they gave up — they needed better tools and maybe some engineering expertise. McGinnis and his friends didn’t get the help they needed, but it became apparent that something important had been buried on Oak Island. Before long, more people visited the island hoping to strike it rich.

In the early 1800s, a Nova Scotia company began excavating the pit. It was a slow process and took many years. But about every ten feet, they found another wooden platform and sometimes layers of charcoal, putty, or coconut fiber.
About 90 feet down, they found an oily stone about three feet wide, On the stone was a coded inscription that read, “Forty feet below, two million pounds lie buried.” (Gold worth two million pounds in 1795 would be worth approximately $2 billion today.)
But as they dug past the 90-foot level, water began rushing into the hole. A few days later, the pit was almost full of seawater. No matter how much they bailed, the water maintained its new level, so the company dug a second shaft, parallel to the first and 110 feet deep. But — when they dug across to the original hole, water quickly filled the new shaft as well. The company then abandoned the project.
But there were others ready to try their luck. 

Since that first attempt, several companies have excavated deeper in the original pit. Most treasure hunters — including a team organized by Franklin D. roosevelt — have found additional proof that something valuable is buried there. For example, at 126 feet — nearly forty feet below the 90 foot marker — engineers found oak and iron. Farther down, they also reached a large cement chamber, from which they brought up a tiny piece of parchment, that encouraged them to dig deeper.

A narrow shaft dug in 1971 allowed researchers to use special cameras to study the pit. It was reported that they saw several chests, some tools, and a disembodied head floating in the water, but the shaft collapsed before they could explore further.
Flooding has continued to hamper research efforts. At least six people have been killed in their quest for buried treasure, but the digging continues. As of late 2007, the 1971 shaft had been re-dug to a depth of 181 feet. 

Oak Island has become a unique vacation spot for people who like adventure and the chance to go home with buried treasure. Canadian law says any treasurer hunter can keep 90 percent of his or her findings. Some vacationers and explorers dig on nearby islands, and believe that the Oak Island site may be some elaborate distraction — maybe the treasure is actually buried on one of more than 100 other islands in Mahone Bay.
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