The Curse of Oak Island: Drilling Down (2016–…): Season 6, Episode 4 - The Oak Island Connection - full transcript
Matty Blake returns to Oak Island to connect to the countless people that the 225-year-old mystery, and the hit TV show that chronicles it, have impacted over the last decade.
Oak island is a mere 140 acres
setting just off the coast of nova scotia,
canada,
where for more
than two centuries,
it has been home to the world's
longest-running treasure hunt.
Come on!
- Bring something up!
- Look at that.
- Yes! - Look at that.
We just found a jewel.
Notorious pirates and members
of the secret society
known as the freemasons
have called it home.
Check this thing out.
Wow.
It's a mystery that has gripped
the world's imagination,
thanks in part
because it's also the subject
of one of the most popular
television series today.
It has built a wider
community of enthusiasts.
After the cameras showed up,
the appreciation
just went higher.
Every episode of
the curse of oak island
captures the imagination
of millions of viewers
around the world as
rick and marty lagina
and their team keep
finding amazing clues
that something of incredible
value lies buried here.
But how did it all really begin?
For a mystery with
so many questions,
what might the documented
history reveal about the people
and the community
here in nova scotia
that gave rise to the world's
longest-running treasure hunt?
This is drilling down.
Beginning in 2014,
the curse of oak island
brought the lagina
brothers' efforts
to solve this incredible
mystery into the homes
of millions of people
around the world.
Whoa.
- Is it a coin?
- I believe this is a coin.
For many,
it would be an introduction
to what has been an
obsession for generations
of determined treasure hunters.
But for the communities
surrounding oak island,
such as chester,
mahone bay and lunenburg, nova scotia,
it renewed interest in a
story that had been ingrained
in their culture since 1795,
when the fabled money
pit was first discovered.
My earliest memories
would be when my father
used to take me and my
brothers and some of our friends
out to, uh, oak island.
You know,
I don't think you ever walked on oak island
no matter who were,
that you weren't, uh,
always looking for the treasure.
I have grown up in the area.
I'm actually fourth generation.
My mom and dad knew
dan and jane blankenship.
And of course,
with my involvement
here at the resort,
I would see dan throughout the years.
Always had a good
relationship with dan and jane.
Heard a lot about
oak island growing up,
it was very much
a-a mystical place.
Oh, I think it's changed
a great deal over time.
I think the-the show has done
a tremendous amount to
give the whole quest credibility.
The island can't keep its
secret anymore. It can't do it.
Growing up as a child,
I think that there was a lot of,
uh, skepticism
as to whether there was
treasure on oak island.
But I think since the curse of oak island,
the show,
I think that people are
sort of changing their minds.
I mean, I know that I have.
Holy schmoly, all right.
- It's a cross.
- That's a cross.
The people of nova scotia,
they've been super
supportive of us.
Everybody wants you to succeed,
and they become part of it.
When rick,
marty and the team come in,
it's just great for business.
It's kind of a special treat.
You know,
most people never get to interact with, uh,
what they see on tv.
For us,
it's a regular occurrence.
People come in
hoping to see them.
Cheers, guys.
I think it's allowed
our businesses to keep open
during the slow season,
which we certainly appreciate.
What oak island has done for us,
it's put us on the map.
You know, it's, also,
just solidifies this idea
that nova scotia is a really,
really interesting
and beautiful place,
and a place to come visit.
So I think, you know,
the curse of oak island
has really created, um,
in the minds and hearts
of people internationally,
you know, the-the true idea
of what nova scotia is
and what it has to offer.
We started
doing tours ten years ago,
and we were lucky if we
had 20 to 25 people on a tour.
But as the popularity of the show,
you know,
expanded around the world,
the demand
for tickets is-is tremendous.
If we did a hundred tours,
we could fill them,
and that's a direct
result of the-the show.
Although tourism
over the past year
has been greatly affected
by the covid-19 pandemic,
thankfully,
there is one summer tour
that has found a safe
way to stay active.
An ocean-based one
led by professional diver
and boat captain tony sampson.
As a member of rick and
marty's oak island team,
tony has been instrumental
in their quest to
solve the mystery
by making a number of
compelling finds himself...
- What is that?
- Large board.
...Including a
17th-century ship's deck plank
found four years ago in
the triangle-shaped swamp.
All right, let's greet them when
they're coming down here now.
-Oh, wow. -Hello, team. -Hello.
Come on board and move up,
forward there, guys.
- How are you?
- Head up forward there, mate.
Nope, up further down.
All right.
Welcome aboard, folks.
Are there any questions
before we push off?
I have a question,
captain, before we begin.
Uh,
who here has seen the curse of oak island?
And who's a massive
fan of the show?
- Ooh, mom. -
mom's hand went up quick.
We're gonna have a blast,
all right?
Let's go see oak island.
What do you think?
- Sounds great. - All right.
We're gonna head
towards smith's cove now.
I think they might be doing some work here,
guys.
So,
as we approach smith's cove here, guys,
you can actually see the team
working away at the moment.
So you've got choice
drilling in there now
and also,
you've got one of billy's trucks.
Ah... -
Ahoy, brother charles!
That's charles barkhouse.
How you folks enjoying the tour?
Love it.
Did you find any treasure today,
charles?
Oak island is a
treasure. You know that.
Good, charles. Thanks for saying hi,
buddy.
See you later, brother.
Who wants to get up
personal with the swamp
and the money pit area?
Oh, yeah.
Okay, let's do it.
This area here,
guys, on the hill
where you see all those trucks,
that is where this
all started in 1795.
So, you see,
there's so many theories about oak island.
You know, some people believe
that the treasure was buried
in the money pit and
some people believe
that the money pit
was purely an exit point.
And so,
it could be a knights templar treasure,
the ark of the covenant,
the holy grail or the menorah,
or it could be
pirates or privateers.
All we do know is
that something strange
happened here on oak island.
So what we're looking at now,
dead ahead,
that's the southern
side of the swamp.
You can see how those
two drumlins fold in.
That actually leads
you down the path
of maybe this was two islands
or maybe it was a deep
lagoon at one stage.
I mean, what they've done
in season eight in the swamp,
you'll see more.
- I can't wait. Can't wait.
- Oh, my goodness.
Okay,
so we're gonna head back around
towards the marina now, guys.
Hopefully you've learned
something about oak island
and the mystery and the
history that surround this area.
Let's hear it for our
captain. What do you say?
Yes, thank you.
Thank you.
- Hey, boys.
- How you doing?
How are you?
After touring around the island,
I wanted to see what possible
connections could be made
between the treasure mystery
and the first documented records
of this storied place.
So,
I met up with oak island team members
charles barkhouse,
jack begley and doug crowell
at the south shore
genealogical society
in the nearby town of lunenburg,
nova scotia.
Well, thank you for letting us,
uh, be here.
Absolutely. Uh,
if you have anything, uh,
you need me to do, let me know.
Here,
thanks to curator stephen ernst,
the public can dig
into the area's history
as well as put their hands on some rare,
archival treasures
connected to oak island.
I still have questions
about the very beginning.
What's as far back as we can go? Like,
the first map,
the first anything we know about
oak island that's been recorded.
I have an excerpt here
of a... Charles morris.
He was the provincial
surveyor when... After halifax
- was settled in 1749. - Okay.
- Well, this was his map.
- Wait a second,
does that say smith's island?
- He calls it smith's island.
- It does.
Oh, but it doesn't stop there.
- What? - Show 'em, doug.
And if you look here,
this is oak island.
Oh, but it doesn't stop there.
- What? - Show 'em, doug.
And if you look here,
this is oak island.
At the south
shore genealogical society
in lunenburg, nova scotia,
doug crowell and
charles barkhouse
dug up the earliest
known maps of oak island
for me and jack begley.
And this is an excerpt of a map
that was done by joseph
frederick wallet des barres.
And if you look here,
this is oak island.
Now-now it's got a new name.
This is, uh, gloucester. Okay.
Now,
I know this from my new England history
that that's absolutely named,
you know,
from the english settlers coming over.
So we've gone no name,
smith's, gloucester.
This is 1762. When was this done,
do we know?
He published his
map around 1780.
But why is it now gloucester?
I think he was
doing a lot of the naming
in homage to rich patrons and,
uh, the royalties.
Interesting. I'm looking
at gloucester isle
and I'm just thinking of
the connection to England.
The name itself,
could that be proof,
and a tie to England, possibly?
I mean, it makes you think.
Over the past two centuries,
searchers and theorists alike
have presented a number
of compelling connections
and theories of what could
be buried on oak island.
Everything from pirate treasure
to the lost works of
william shakespeare
to priceless religious treasures
connected to the
knights templar.
But during season four
of the curse of oak island...
Hopefully, it's a coin.
...We saw metal detection expert
gary drayton,
along with charles barkhouse,
make a number of
possibly telling finds
on lot 24 about the
source of the treasure.
Hey, marty? - Yeah?
Over here.
- What do you got?
- Some good news.
- Some good news. Roundness?
- Yeah, great news.
- Roundness. - Yep.
- Holy smokes. - Look at these.
Wow.
- All in one spot?
- See that guy there?
- Yeah.
- You see? King george ii.
- What does that date from?
- Um, early 1700s.
- No kidding?
- These are all british coppers.
- All in one spot? - Y-yeah.
We've got six of
them in this circle.
Small little radius here.
There's so much stuff here,
I think this is an
encampment or a camp.
This is quite a haul. Wow, gary.
1700s? That changes a lot.
- It does change a lot.
- They're not supposed to be here.
No.
Then,
during season eight of the show,
the team made a
discovery on lot 15,
just north of the money pit area
that gave even more credence
to this english connection,
a believed 16th-century
pine tar kiln.
It's not just a
natural pile of stone
or it's not just a pile of stone,
you're sure?
Charcoal is
throughout this whole site.
That can only be
produced at a site
where you have
repetitive burning.
But it could've been used
for construction
of the money pit.
What first brought
the people to look
at the money pit was a light at night,
right?
Perhaps someone
was making tar at night.
Wow. Really?
It remains to be proven
just who was, in fact,
behind the origins
of the oak island mystery,
so, I also wanted to know
what connections could be made
by examining the
earliest records
of those who made
oak island their home.
So,
we're following this timeline of history
by following the maps.
What comes next?
Well,
remember earlier when you were looking
- at the shape of gloucester isle?
- Yes.
Well,
this map here will show you that in 1762,
oak island, as it was surveyed,
looks very similar
to what it is today.
Ah, that's-that... now,
I've seen this map replicated
in the war room, for example.
It's more recognizable
as the shape of the island.
Right. So, these lots
were done... Do we
know when this was done,
- made into lots like this?
- 1762.
1762. And do
we know who did that?
The government at the time w... Which,
their representative
was charles morris,
he's the man that did the survey.
- Interesting.
- Surveyor general of nova scotia.
And why did he
break up the lots...
- Great question.
- ...Into how they are today?
If some prominent
individual in the community
wasn't being granted
the whole island,
it was subdivided for other
people to draw lots from.
- Mm.
- And they were given four acres each, in general.
Now,
wait a second here. Is that, do I...
- Is that john smith?
- It is.
Same john smith
- from the original discovery of the money pit?
- Yes.
- With mcginnis and vaughan?
- He had his house right on that lot, too.
That's lot 18,
that's where the money pit is.
On a fall day in 1795,
legend has it that
three young men
named daniel mcginnis,
john smith and anthony vaughan
rowed a small boat
over from the mainland
after seeing strange
lights on oak island
where they discovered
the 13-foot wide depression
beneath a towering oak tree
that would come to be known
as the money pit.
A deep, booby-trapped shaft
where untold riches are
believed to still lie buried.
Well, matty,
you probably recognize this name.
James anderson?
Oh, captain james anderson,
privateer, yeah.
- Yes.
- One of the main prime suspects.
By having a lot on the island,
- it gives you a reason for being there.
- Hmm.
Captain james
anderson is a curious character
in this treasure saga,
who offers a number of potential
answers and connections.
This american sea captain
stole a ship loaded with valuables
during the revolutionary war
and defected to the british.
After being charged with treason,
he fled east
to nova scotia where
he purchased lot 26
on oak island,
and lived there until 1788.
I have captain james anderson's
sea chest.
- Wow.
- Sea chest? Like a treasure chest?
Yeah,
just like a treasure chest.
I'd love to see that. That
would be a first for us.
In season five of
the curse of oak island,
doug, charles,
marty lagina's son alex
and marty and rick's
nephew peter fornetti
had a chance meeting
with steve atkinson,
a direct descendant
of captain anderson.
Wow.
Now, in this chest...
...Right here,
you'll find some documents
you're gonna like.
They got to see
not only a possible
treasure chest
once owned by captain anderson
but documents that
potentially connect him
to another major aspect
of the oak island mystery.
"to all whom it may concern,
we do hereby certify
"that brother james
anderson is a...
Registered master mason
in the lodge number nine."
- master mason. - That's right.
With ancient ties
to the knights templar,
the freemasons are
uniquely connected
to the oak island mystery.
Not only have prominent
symbols of the secret society
been found all around the island,
including triangles
and the carved letter "g,"
for "god" or "divine creator,"
but treasure hunters
like daniel mcginnis,
m.R. Chappell
and even future u.S.
President franklin d. Roosevelt
were also members.
Could that mean that
captain james anderson,
a pirate with connections
to both the british
and freemasons,
is the key to the answers?
That remains to be revealed.
However,
the man he would eventually sell his lot to
might also offer an
important connection:
Samuel ball.
That name, samuel ball,
keeps coming up, and I know,
in past seasons,
the things you've discovered on his lot,
and-and it feels like he's
almost calling from history,
"hey, pay attention to me,
I'm part of this,"
ever since you found
his name on that tag.
Um,
and I know it's been incredible to watch
what you've done
this season on his lot.
Where does that work stand
right now as we sit here?
Well, actually,
matty, uh, laird and his team
- are still working on that lot right now.
- Oh, wow.
So why don't we go
back and take a look
- and see what they've found?
- Love it.
Let's do it. Guys, thanks.
This has been so
educational and really,
I've always wanted to know
more about the real history
of oak island before it was
"oak island" so, thank you.
I'm on it. We're on it.
I feel something there.
Ooh, yeah, that's nice.
While rick, marty, and the team
have always been curious
about the truth behind
late 18th-century oak
island landowner samuel ball,
over the past few seasons
on the curse of oak island,
they've made
incredible discoveries
that may connect
him to the treasure
people have been trying
to find for 225 years.
It says "patent."
I'd bet a lot that
was on a firearm.
It could've easily have
been on the-the stock.
- Yeah. - Or the butt.
Maybe that's the way
to look for whatever this is.
- Guns.
- That's what I would do. I would start with guns.
- Uh, probably british armaments.
- Yeah.
I mean,
if you find out that that was some kind
of nice shooting firearm,
it might speak to wealth.
Yeah.
Born into slavery
on a south carolina
plantation in 1765,
samuel ball made a daring
escape and headed north
when he was just 11 years old,
eventually winning his freedom
by joining the british military
during the american revolution.
At the war's end,
he moved to nova scotia, canada,
where, in 1788,
he purchased lot
26 on oak island
from none other than
captain james anderson.
Quite an interesting connection,
given their mutual
british military roots.
Although he was
known to his neighbors
as a simple cabbage farmer,
somehow he grew to become
one of the richest landowners
in the province,
owning a total of nine lots
on oak island by the
time of his death in 1846,
including lot 24,
where the team
found all that evidence
of a british encampment
four years ago.
This has led to much speculation
that perhaps he discovered
something of great value here.
He's always been the
mystery man of oak island,
and there are a
lot of mystery men,
but he's always been
at the top of the list.
And what's very intriguing
is that for the monies
that were paid for the lots
that he ended up owning
on oak island,
he could've bought
hundreds of acres
on the mainland.
Why did he choose
to remain here?
Up until a few years ago,
the old remains
of the foundation
where samuel
ball built his home,
which is designated
as a protected place
by the nova scotia government,
was strictly off-limits to
the laginas and their team.
However, thanks to the
awareness of the curse of oak island,
rick, marty and their partner
craig tester have been able
to forge a working relationship
with archaeologist laird niven,
and the province,
to carefully investigate
this mystery man's former digs.
It's incredible what a
huge part of the story
- samuel ball continues to be, even now.
- Mm-hmm.
Oh, wow. You were not kidding,
jack,
about the ball foundation.
I mean,
this looks unrecognizable.
- Laird how you doing, buddy?
- Hey, matty. How are you?
- Hi, liz. - Hey.
This is the big reason
why the ball foundation
- is played, is these two archaeologists.
- Yeah.
- Wow.
- Go on up and say hi.
- All right.
- Show-show them around.
This is incredible.
I remember any time we
shot anywhere around here,
it was like,
this mysterious ball foundation,
we couldn't go near and I was like,
"where's the foundation?"
- Yeah.
- Now, it's so clear.
Laird, I mean, this has
turned into a major archeological dig.
The premise for the
archaeology this year
was to use, uh, geophysics
to help us identify any what we
call anomalies around the site.
It-it went from being
just a house foundation
to a working farm.
Are there any structures
or anything in this house
that are unusual to you
- or might indicate something strange was going on?
- Well, we have this
very unusual feature, uh,
it's basically a box drain...
...That runs from this
corner of the house
all the way down
the hill to the...
To the very lowest area.
It would have been a consider...
Well, as jack knows,
a considerable expenditure
- of effort to build that.
- Yeah.
'cause he dug into the hardpan.
He dug a trench probably
four or five feet deep
all the way down to
the bottom of the hill.
Wh... okay, so I know
what the box drains
are for in smith's cove,
they were to possibly
flood a treasure vault.
Why would he have built
something like that here?
I have never seen one
running from a house.
So,
that begs a couple of questions:
What was he keeping in there,
and was he hiding anything?
But, you know,
it's another oddity of samuel ball's life.
He just,
he did extraordinary things
and dug an
extraordinary basement,
but for what purpose? Why...
Why did he choose oak island,
why did he come here,
why was he listed
as part of the original
finder of the money pit?
Could it be possible
that the generally
accepted story
about daniel mcginnis,
anthony vaughan and john smith
first discovering the money
pit isn't completely correct?
Well,
according to an alternate version
that was printed in an
1870 publication entitled
"history of the
county of lunenburg,"
it was mcginnis,
smith and samuel ball who found...
And first excavated...
The legendary treasure shaft.
Was samuel ball really connected
to that original discovery?
And if so,
just what did he find?
It's been awesome to watch
you guys work in season eight,
but what are some
of the artifacts
that you've found here
that are most exciting to you?
Well, actually,
we have some selected ones
over on the table,
if you want to go look.
Oh, I was hoping you'd say that.
Let's go.
There are a lot of
questions about samuel ball.
That work at the ball foundation
It will certainly
tell a better story
about ball's years
here on the island,
but there may also be some
aspect to that discovery process
that may help us in the field.
Oh, you have quite a collection.
Wow. So,
tell me about one of these items here.
Um,
this one here is a davenport transferware.
So this is going to be
right in... in the,
uh, the ball era.
It's perfect for time.
What's really nice is it has this,
uh,
this patterning on it,
- th-this print.
- Yeah, it's beautiful.
It's actually called snow scene.
We have a database of patterns
and if you put in "snow,"
you only get one pattern.
- Yeah.
- That's how kind of rare it is.
- And it's that?
- And it's that one.
Samuel himself could have
eaten out of this very bowl.
I think there's no
doubt about that.
What do those tell you
about what might
have gone on here?
We're getting a huge variety.
What could that mean?
Samuel ball was well-traveled?
I think he had the means
to have access to
a lot of ceramics.
We're finding coins
now. Here's another one.
- Mm-hmm.
- What do we know about this one?
This one we still have to clean,
but it's more typical
of an english cent,
more typical of a coin
from the ball period.
- Oh, interesting.
- Yeah.
You know,
I guess it was these coins
that kind of
reminded me a little bit
- of the british military encampment...
- Mm-hmm.
...That was found
here in season four.
And jack, that makes me think,
you know,
we know ball's connection
- to the british military.
- Mm-hmm.
Might he have been lured here
by someone like
captain james anderson,
who knew there
was treasure here?
I might be wrong,
but it appears that
there's a connection.
You wonder if there was some
information that was shared.
Hmm. Well, jack,
however he got here,
it's clear that he
did some work here,
and some 225 years later,
here we are,
trying to follow his steps
and find out why
and what he was up
to and what he knew.
- We have lots more to go.
- Ah, I love it.
Thank you so much for this,
it's been great.
- No problem. Thank you.
- Thank you.
Over the past eight seasons
of the curse of oak island,
as rick and marty lagina...
Along with their fellowship...
Have continued
digging for answers,
they've also connected
with numerous people
from the island's past.
This has led to new discoveries,
new friendships
and some incredible memories.
Welcome home.
Thank you. Thank you so much.
In season three, for instance,
rick,
marty and the team were contacted
by three direct descendants
of daniel mcginnis,
who had become aware
of the renewed hunt
for the treasure by
watching the show.
The reason why we're here is
you ladies made a unique offer
that you had brought
something to oak island,
and we're anticipating
that greatly.
I couldn't sleep last night,
I was wondering what it is
you were going to bring to the table,
literally.
Well,
it's my pleasure to show you.
Just the box is very nice.
This is one of the
stories we were told as children.
Grandpa daniel,
five generations ago.
He and his two
friends started digging.
Now, I've been told they found
three treasure chests.
Really?
Really.
- I never heard that.
- You know?
I never heard that, either.
Daniel took one,
and what is in this box
is one of the things that
came from that chest.
Wow.
- May I? - You may.
Oh, my goodness.
Thanks to this
chance connection,
rick, marty and the team
not only learned more
about the mystery,
but got to see a possible
piece of the oak island treasure...
A gold cross
estimated to possibly be
more than 400 years old.
Well,
that is quite extraordinary.
The curse of oak island
has offered one
very special guest
several opportunities to visit
the fellowship of the dig.
Lee lamb is the daughter
of robert and mildred restall,
a pair of retired
motorcycle daredevils
who lived on oak island with their sons,
bobby jr. And ricky,
trying to solve the mystery
from 1959 to 1965.
It was one of the
most extraordinary...
And tragic...
Chapters in this saga
that ended when
robert sr. And bobby jr.,
along with two other men,
lost their lives from exposure
to poison gases in a
shaft at smith's cove.
- Shall I show you?
- Sure. -Definitely.
Four years ago,
lee shared a find
her family made
that just may be connected
to when the mystery began.
So, this was found on the beach.
It's the 1704 stone.
- It's almost mythic.
- Yeah.
Log books? By your father?
- Or bobby?
- These are bobby's journals.
- My father never wrote journals.
- Oh, my goodness.
Bobby's the only one.
During season one,
in an effort to aid rick
and marty's search,
lee shared the detailed journals
that her late brother kept
during all of his and
his father's tireless work.
Every day. Every day.
Wow.
It's like history coming alive.
And in season five,
lee returned with her brother,
ricky,
who had not visited the island
since the horrible
tragedy in 1965.
I brought you a present.
Wow.
This is my brother,
rick restall.
- Oh. -
The restall family played
a very prominent role in
the history of the search.
And to welcome lee and
her brother ricky back...
They have an intimate
connection here.
Oh, wow.
This whole corner,
as you'll see,
is the restall corner.
It's a key part of the museum,
and your family's a key part
- of the history. - Right.
I just want to say
that I'm really pleased
that my brother's original maps
- are on the walls here. - Yeah.
You really picked the
right things. All of it.
That's... Fantastic
job you've done.
One of the most
profound oak island connections
that was not only responsible
for rick and
marty's participation
in the oak island treasure hunt,
but also their late friend
and partner dan blankenship,
was a five-page article
that appeared in the January,
1965 edition
of the reader's digest,
entitled,
"oak island's
mysterious money pit."
it consumed the
imaginations of rick and marty,
who, at the time,
were just boys growing up
in northern michigan.
It convinced dan
to leave his life in miami,
florida,
and move to the island,
along with his wife jane,
within a year of reading it.
I have a special guest, indeed.
This is david macdonald.
So you're the one that
caused all this trouble?
During season three,
the article's author,
david macdonald,
met the men...
and now partners...
Who he had a personal
hand in bringing together.
I remember like yesterday
reading this and
I was fascinated.
I read the article and I
handed it back to my wife
and I said "read this."
in so many words she said,
"so what?" you know.
- - and, uh,
I said, "number one," I said,
"there's treasure
on oak island."
"and number two," I said,
"I'm going to be
instrumental in getting it."
Well, david, um,
you didn't change the history of the world,
probably.
But you certainly changed
the history of oak island.
Yeah.
There's no question about that.
Things would be a lot different
had this not been written.
I guess, yes.
Well,
you're directly responsible
for these two characters being here,
for sure.
At the minimum.
Yeah.
And I want to say thank you.
Thank you very much.
On the curse of oak island,
we often see rick,
marty,
and members of the fellowship meet up
at the mug and anchor pub
in the nearby town of mahone bay
to connect on their efforts
after a long day
of treasure hunting.
Wow. That is really cool.
The mug and
anchor is really glad
to host the curse
of oak island guys.
Love to have 'em here,
give 'em their suds
and keep 'em happy.
Cheers, guys. - All: Cheers.
Well, today,
rick lagina invited
me to join him
at the team's
favorite watering hole
to meet with island
historian charles barkhouse
and three men who
are also connected
to rick's late friend and partner,
dan blankenship,
who spent more than 50
years searching for the fabled
treasure on oak island.
This is great. I love any chance
to come to the mug
and anchor with you.
I appreciate it. I
know some faces,
and some are new to me,
rick, so who am I with?
This is steve millett.
He actually worked
with dan on 10-x.
And this is monty dorey. He...
If there was ever a
right-hand man for dan,
and for david, it was monty.
Steve, I'd like to go to you.
You must have been
a pretty young man.
When were you working with dan?
- I believe I was around 18 or 19.
- Wow.
- And you worked on 10-x?
- I was down at 10-x, yeah.
Tell me about that.
It was interesting
for somebody my age
to be going over,
and not knowing what I was getting into.
And, um... But there was
a paycheck involved, so...
I did a little bit of
everything over there.
I dug and repaired stuff.
And dan just always
commanded respect.
He just treated me well.
And back then you did
whatever you needed to do.
Did you grow up knowing
about the oak island mystery
- or is this all new to you.
- Yes. No, no, I...
Well,
we were five to ten minutes from there,
so we all heard it,
we grew up knowing it.
And I believed it was there
because I wouldn't have been
down in that hole
without-without believing
there was something
- down there, so... - Awesome.
Monty,
let's start kind of at the beginning.
Your connection to oak island,
how you came to
be on oak island.
All right, here it comes.
Okay, have a go at it.
Local contractor monty dorey
was not only instrumental
in aiding dan over the years,
with various excavations
around the island
from time to time,
he's also joined the
ranks of rick and marty's
current fellowship.
We all done, buddy, or what?
No. Now we have to use 'em.
Okay.
He was friends with my father,
and, uh,
he just lived across the causeway there.
The host going across
to the island was...
- Dan blankenship was friends with your father.
- ...My parents. Yeah.
Yeah, and, uh,
then I got in the excavation business
and started doing
some... Hauling some fill,
a little digging here and there.
It was a lot of work done there,
and dan put his
heart and soul into it.
Monty,
do you have a memory of-of dan
that kind of comes
up more than any other
or one that maybe represents
him that you think of a lot?
Well,
it just mostly the phone calls, uh,
"monty, I got to have you
over here in a couple of days.
- I got another plan."
- "another plan," I love it.
Did you know of oak
island growing up?
- Oh, yes.
- What was your, what was your...
Through-through my, you know,
through my grandparents
and everything,
it was always a...
There was always stories there.
Paul, I know your father
worked on the island.
Well, you know,
my dad was here in 1965,
and he worked with dan
blankenship and robert dunfield.
He had met robert dunfield
in california where he was...
He was building metal detectors,
had a few tv repair shops.
He was interested
in gold hunting...
That was kind of
a hobby for him...
So they had a common interest.
So,
he's brought on board by dunfield
to build metal detectors,
but also help with a little
bit of the engineering.
He was there when they were
digging out the stone triangle,
and also doing
the money pit work.
He always felt that
this was a great story,
great place,
he felt that something was there.
He first showed me the film,
and I first got into this
when I was age 11.
I would see dan
blankenship on tv,
I'd-I'd, I'd go,
"my father worked
with that guy?"
I couldn't believe it,
because he was a legend.
It was untouchable to me.
So, to even have this come
full circle and to be here,
to meet dan, to meet all of you
and continue this
work is incredible.
Rick,
what has connecting with past searchers
done to enhance you
and your team's search?
We always had a hope
that we could talk to people
like yourselves and
get bits of information.
And it's only by having dialogue
and-and talking about the past
and building on the past
t-that will eventually happen.
At least,
that's my belief. It certainly is my hope.
And it's been the hope
of... When you were in 10-x,
you said yourself,
what were you hoping?
I was hoping to
find the treasure.
There you go. Every
time your phone rang
and you saw dan was
on the end of that line,
what was your thinking?
- Yeah.
- That you could help him succeed.
- Yeah. He always...
- So we hope...
He always said today's the day.
Today's the day... that's,
he would always say that.
- That was the expression.
- Today's the day. -Today's the day.
This story that
you are a part of,
actually, physically a part of,
has endured almost as long
as the u.S. Has been a country.
Now, that's remarkable.
Spent a lot of time over there.
- Well, here's to you guys.
- Yeah.
Here's to the-the
current search.
- Cheers. - The past.
Move forward, and rick,
I hate to break it to you,
but, uh,
based on what you've been finding,
it's... might be a lot older
than the united states.
Oak island's
connection to history
and to the surrounding community
has impacted no one more,
perhaps, than the two men
currently leading the
quest to solve this mystery
and who join me now together,
brothers rick and marty lagina.
Guys,
thanks for meeting me out here.
You're welcome,
matty. Thanks for coming.
Well,
this trip was especially moving for me
because I've met with all
kinds of people in the community
who say this story
fundamentally changed their lives.
They were drawn to the
island just like you guys were.
I wanted you to comment on that,
about how you've seen
the change in attitude
in this community,
uh,
insofar as what you guys are doing.
It is folklore here.
It's part of the
zeitgeist of the area.
And, uh,
after the cameras showed up, matty,
I... the appreciation
just went higher.
It has built
a wider community
of enthusiasts.
Like, here,
in the south shore area,
lots of people grew
up with the legend,
it was taught in the school,
people talked about it,
but then that
community of people
who thought of oak island
as their "own,"
because the world
now thinks of oak
island as their own,
and that really has been
a-a paradigm shift, if you will.
And we know that because
of the people who come
to the island for tours
or they come to visit
the interpretive centre.
It's r... it's remarkable.
Absolutely remarkable.
When you think about the impact
on the community that this show has had,
um,
um, and-and your own fellowship,
like,
what kind of thrills
you the most?
We both know. The letters that come in,
right?
- Yeah. - "my family and I
"watch the show together.
It's one of the
ways that we bond."
or "my daughter never thought
she could run a company
till she saw vanessa at roc in
charge of her own company."
the inspirational aspect of it is really,
I think,
- impactful to-to all of us.
- And gratifying.
And gratifying.
And I was thinking that,
for future generations
in schools around here,
you guys have changed
the narrative of this thing.
And students are now going to see tangible,
hard evidence
that has changed
a lot of opinions
in the scientific community
about what might've
happened here
and what might've
happened in north america.
And that would generate
interest in sciences...
- Yeah, sure. - ...Archaeology.
And I know how much
you guys value education.
That must be pretty
cool for you guys.
Absolutely.
If young people are inspired to,
you know,
further their education in any manner,
that's great.
- It's all about cultivating imagination, right?
- Yeah.
And this is an island
born of that, right?
It's an island of
what-ifs and possibilities
and when you can cultivate
in-in a young person's mind,
especially, uh, to imagine.
And if that carries the day?
Wow. That's-that's
special for us.
Just talk for a second about
the fellowship, your team,
and the perspective
that you guys have
from those early days to now,
and how the show has
maybe affected your team.
Everybody comes from
such dissimilar backgrounds,
but some of the
guys are quite local,
uh, growing up with the story,
others have come lately to it.
The linchpin and the
thing that's always there
is that everybody's
striving for the same thing.
Everybody wants
all of us to win.
- Yes.
- N-nobody's rooting for failure.
I can tell you that for sure.
Now, they may have
different ways of going about it,
but rick does a really,
really good job of leading.
And especially given the fact
there are so many
different areas of expertise
coming together here
to try and solve this thing
that that becomes especially important,
I would imagine.
Yeah, well,
the island required it, didn't it?
- Hmm.
- It's-it's too complicated for just us.
- -wow,
that's a great way to say it.
Y-you can... tell him about,
you know,
what we really thought
when we first came.
Oh yeah, I've said,
I've said that before. I'll say again.
When you're on the
outside looking in,
it's like what are
these clowns doing?
- Yeah, just...
- You know, I mean, come on.
All you got to do is...
you know,
rick and I would talk about it,
and say we'll have this
solved. Just like everybody else.
- Wow.
- Taught us a lesson or two.
That's fantastic. I mean,
that-that's what
I want to end on,
is-is you guys, obviously,
treasure hunting ain't easy,
and I-I understand that... Disagreements,
yes,
but,
you coming apart as brothers,
you told me day one,
that will never happen here...
- No, we're not gonna do that.
- ...For your mother.
Because of that,
I want to focus on the positive.
You bonded over this
island as children and now,
all these years later,
here you sit,
this massive tv show,
worldwide fame,
how has it positively affected
your relationship, this journey?
You know, we used to fight
when we were kids, we fight now.
We've had some fights over
how to proceed on this island.
But I told you,
at the core, it's rock solid,
and um, that's all that matters.
So I don't,
I don't think it's changed anything.
I thought once this journey had-had,
perhaps, you know,
in some sense strengthened
your relationship, but-but,
the beautiful part is it
sounds like it didn't need
- a heck of a lot of strength.
- No, I don't think. No.
We realized we're not
as smart as we thought.
We're not as smart.
Well,
I can speak for millions of people
around the world who have
been drawn to this mystery
and say,
thank you for actually doing it.
And we're glad that you guys
were connected to oak island,
as you are 'cause
you've brought us all here.
Stay tuned, matty.
- We couldn't...
- We'll try and deliver.
- Couldn't do it without you.
- Thanks, guys.
Rick and marty lagina,
along with their team,
may still be searching
for a treasure of vast riches
on oak island,
but it's undeniable
they've already
discovered something here
that's enriching
in so many ways.
This 225-year-old mystery
has connected people
from all walks of life and
from all over the world.
And it's one that will
keep connecting us
as we follow their quest
on the curse of oak island.
As always, acorns,
stay faithful and thanks for watching.
setting just off the coast of nova scotia,
canada,
where for more
than two centuries,
it has been home to the world's
longest-running treasure hunt.
Come on!
- Bring something up!
- Look at that.
- Yes! - Look at that.
We just found a jewel.
Notorious pirates and members
of the secret society
known as the freemasons
have called it home.
Check this thing out.
Wow.
It's a mystery that has gripped
the world's imagination,
thanks in part
because it's also the subject
of one of the most popular
television series today.
It has built a wider
community of enthusiasts.
After the cameras showed up,
the appreciation
just went higher.
Every episode of
the curse of oak island
captures the imagination
of millions of viewers
around the world as
rick and marty lagina
and their team keep
finding amazing clues
that something of incredible
value lies buried here.
But how did it all really begin?
For a mystery with
so many questions,
what might the documented
history reveal about the people
and the community
here in nova scotia
that gave rise to the world's
longest-running treasure hunt?
This is drilling down.
Beginning in 2014,
the curse of oak island
brought the lagina
brothers' efforts
to solve this incredible
mystery into the homes
of millions of people
around the world.
Whoa.
- Is it a coin?
- I believe this is a coin.
For many,
it would be an introduction
to what has been an
obsession for generations
of determined treasure hunters.
But for the communities
surrounding oak island,
such as chester,
mahone bay and lunenburg, nova scotia,
it renewed interest in a
story that had been ingrained
in their culture since 1795,
when the fabled money
pit was first discovered.
My earliest memories
would be when my father
used to take me and my
brothers and some of our friends
out to, uh, oak island.
You know,
I don't think you ever walked on oak island
no matter who were,
that you weren't, uh,
always looking for the treasure.
I have grown up in the area.
I'm actually fourth generation.
My mom and dad knew
dan and jane blankenship.
And of course,
with my involvement
here at the resort,
I would see dan throughout the years.
Always had a good
relationship with dan and jane.
Heard a lot about
oak island growing up,
it was very much
a-a mystical place.
Oh, I think it's changed
a great deal over time.
I think the-the show has done
a tremendous amount to
give the whole quest credibility.
The island can't keep its
secret anymore. It can't do it.
Growing up as a child,
I think that there was a lot of,
uh, skepticism
as to whether there was
treasure on oak island.
But I think since the curse of oak island,
the show,
I think that people are
sort of changing their minds.
I mean, I know that I have.
Holy schmoly, all right.
- It's a cross.
- That's a cross.
The people of nova scotia,
they've been super
supportive of us.
Everybody wants you to succeed,
and they become part of it.
When rick,
marty and the team come in,
it's just great for business.
It's kind of a special treat.
You know,
most people never get to interact with, uh,
what they see on tv.
For us,
it's a regular occurrence.
People come in
hoping to see them.
Cheers, guys.
I think it's allowed
our businesses to keep open
during the slow season,
which we certainly appreciate.
What oak island has done for us,
it's put us on the map.
You know, it's, also,
just solidifies this idea
that nova scotia is a really,
really interesting
and beautiful place,
and a place to come visit.
So I think, you know,
the curse of oak island
has really created, um,
in the minds and hearts
of people internationally,
you know, the-the true idea
of what nova scotia is
and what it has to offer.
We started
doing tours ten years ago,
and we were lucky if we
had 20 to 25 people on a tour.
But as the popularity of the show,
you know,
expanded around the world,
the demand
for tickets is-is tremendous.
If we did a hundred tours,
we could fill them,
and that's a direct
result of the-the show.
Although tourism
over the past year
has been greatly affected
by the covid-19 pandemic,
thankfully,
there is one summer tour
that has found a safe
way to stay active.
An ocean-based one
led by professional diver
and boat captain tony sampson.
As a member of rick and
marty's oak island team,
tony has been instrumental
in their quest to
solve the mystery
by making a number of
compelling finds himself...
- What is that?
- Large board.
...Including a
17th-century ship's deck plank
found four years ago in
the triangle-shaped swamp.
All right, let's greet them when
they're coming down here now.
-Oh, wow. -Hello, team. -Hello.
Come on board and move up,
forward there, guys.
- How are you?
- Head up forward there, mate.
Nope, up further down.
All right.
Welcome aboard, folks.
Are there any questions
before we push off?
I have a question,
captain, before we begin.
Uh,
who here has seen the curse of oak island?
And who's a massive
fan of the show?
- Ooh, mom. -
mom's hand went up quick.
We're gonna have a blast,
all right?
Let's go see oak island.
What do you think?
- Sounds great. - All right.
We're gonna head
towards smith's cove now.
I think they might be doing some work here,
guys.
So,
as we approach smith's cove here, guys,
you can actually see the team
working away at the moment.
So you've got choice
drilling in there now
and also,
you've got one of billy's trucks.
Ah... -
Ahoy, brother charles!
That's charles barkhouse.
How you folks enjoying the tour?
Love it.
Did you find any treasure today,
charles?
Oak island is a
treasure. You know that.
Good, charles. Thanks for saying hi,
buddy.
See you later, brother.
Who wants to get up
personal with the swamp
and the money pit area?
Oh, yeah.
Okay, let's do it.
This area here,
guys, on the hill
where you see all those trucks,
that is where this
all started in 1795.
So, you see,
there's so many theories about oak island.
You know, some people believe
that the treasure was buried
in the money pit and
some people believe
that the money pit
was purely an exit point.
And so,
it could be a knights templar treasure,
the ark of the covenant,
the holy grail or the menorah,
or it could be
pirates or privateers.
All we do know is
that something strange
happened here on oak island.
So what we're looking at now,
dead ahead,
that's the southern
side of the swamp.
You can see how those
two drumlins fold in.
That actually leads
you down the path
of maybe this was two islands
or maybe it was a deep
lagoon at one stage.
I mean, what they've done
in season eight in the swamp,
you'll see more.
- I can't wait. Can't wait.
- Oh, my goodness.
Okay,
so we're gonna head back around
towards the marina now, guys.
Hopefully you've learned
something about oak island
and the mystery and the
history that surround this area.
Let's hear it for our
captain. What do you say?
Yes, thank you.
Thank you.
- Hey, boys.
- How you doing?
How are you?
After touring around the island,
I wanted to see what possible
connections could be made
between the treasure mystery
and the first documented records
of this storied place.
So,
I met up with oak island team members
charles barkhouse,
jack begley and doug crowell
at the south shore
genealogical society
in the nearby town of lunenburg,
nova scotia.
Well, thank you for letting us,
uh, be here.
Absolutely. Uh,
if you have anything, uh,
you need me to do, let me know.
Here,
thanks to curator stephen ernst,
the public can dig
into the area's history
as well as put their hands on some rare,
archival treasures
connected to oak island.
I still have questions
about the very beginning.
What's as far back as we can go? Like,
the first map,
the first anything we know about
oak island that's been recorded.
I have an excerpt here
of a... Charles morris.
He was the provincial
surveyor when... After halifax
- was settled in 1749. - Okay.
- Well, this was his map.
- Wait a second,
does that say smith's island?
- He calls it smith's island.
- It does.
Oh, but it doesn't stop there.
- What? - Show 'em, doug.
And if you look here,
this is oak island.
Oh, but it doesn't stop there.
- What? - Show 'em, doug.
And if you look here,
this is oak island.
At the south
shore genealogical society
in lunenburg, nova scotia,
doug crowell and
charles barkhouse
dug up the earliest
known maps of oak island
for me and jack begley.
And this is an excerpt of a map
that was done by joseph
frederick wallet des barres.
And if you look here,
this is oak island.
Now-now it's got a new name.
This is, uh, gloucester. Okay.
Now,
I know this from my new England history
that that's absolutely named,
you know,
from the english settlers coming over.
So we've gone no name,
smith's, gloucester.
This is 1762. When was this done,
do we know?
He published his
map around 1780.
But why is it now gloucester?
I think he was
doing a lot of the naming
in homage to rich patrons and,
uh, the royalties.
Interesting. I'm looking
at gloucester isle
and I'm just thinking of
the connection to England.
The name itself,
could that be proof,
and a tie to England, possibly?
I mean, it makes you think.
Over the past two centuries,
searchers and theorists alike
have presented a number
of compelling connections
and theories of what could
be buried on oak island.
Everything from pirate treasure
to the lost works of
william shakespeare
to priceless religious treasures
connected to the
knights templar.
But during season four
of the curse of oak island...
Hopefully, it's a coin.
...We saw metal detection expert
gary drayton,
along with charles barkhouse,
make a number of
possibly telling finds
on lot 24 about the
source of the treasure.
Hey, marty? - Yeah?
Over here.
- What do you got?
- Some good news.
- Some good news. Roundness?
- Yeah, great news.
- Roundness. - Yep.
- Holy smokes. - Look at these.
Wow.
- All in one spot?
- See that guy there?
- Yeah.
- You see? King george ii.
- What does that date from?
- Um, early 1700s.
- No kidding?
- These are all british coppers.
- All in one spot? - Y-yeah.
We've got six of
them in this circle.
Small little radius here.
There's so much stuff here,
I think this is an
encampment or a camp.
This is quite a haul. Wow, gary.
1700s? That changes a lot.
- It does change a lot.
- They're not supposed to be here.
No.
Then,
during season eight of the show,
the team made a
discovery on lot 15,
just north of the money pit area
that gave even more credence
to this english connection,
a believed 16th-century
pine tar kiln.
It's not just a
natural pile of stone
or it's not just a pile of stone,
you're sure?
Charcoal is
throughout this whole site.
That can only be
produced at a site
where you have
repetitive burning.
But it could've been used
for construction
of the money pit.
What first brought
the people to look
at the money pit was a light at night,
right?
Perhaps someone
was making tar at night.
Wow. Really?
It remains to be proven
just who was, in fact,
behind the origins
of the oak island mystery,
so, I also wanted to know
what connections could be made
by examining the
earliest records
of those who made
oak island their home.
So,
we're following this timeline of history
by following the maps.
What comes next?
Well,
remember earlier when you were looking
- at the shape of gloucester isle?
- Yes.
Well,
this map here will show you that in 1762,
oak island, as it was surveyed,
looks very similar
to what it is today.
Ah, that's-that... now,
I've seen this map replicated
in the war room, for example.
It's more recognizable
as the shape of the island.
Right. So, these lots
were done... Do we
know when this was done,
- made into lots like this?
- 1762.
1762. And do
we know who did that?
The government at the time w... Which,
their representative
was charles morris,
he's the man that did the survey.
- Interesting.
- Surveyor general of nova scotia.
And why did he
break up the lots...
- Great question.
- ...Into how they are today?
If some prominent
individual in the community
wasn't being granted
the whole island,
it was subdivided for other
people to draw lots from.
- Mm.
- And they were given four acres each, in general.
Now,
wait a second here. Is that, do I...
- Is that john smith?
- It is.
Same john smith
- from the original discovery of the money pit?
- Yes.
- With mcginnis and vaughan?
- He had his house right on that lot, too.
That's lot 18,
that's where the money pit is.
On a fall day in 1795,
legend has it that
three young men
named daniel mcginnis,
john smith and anthony vaughan
rowed a small boat
over from the mainland
after seeing strange
lights on oak island
where they discovered
the 13-foot wide depression
beneath a towering oak tree
that would come to be known
as the money pit.
A deep, booby-trapped shaft
where untold riches are
believed to still lie buried.
Well, matty,
you probably recognize this name.
James anderson?
Oh, captain james anderson,
privateer, yeah.
- Yes.
- One of the main prime suspects.
By having a lot on the island,
- it gives you a reason for being there.
- Hmm.
Captain james
anderson is a curious character
in this treasure saga,
who offers a number of potential
answers and connections.
This american sea captain
stole a ship loaded with valuables
during the revolutionary war
and defected to the british.
After being charged with treason,
he fled east
to nova scotia where
he purchased lot 26
on oak island,
and lived there until 1788.
I have captain james anderson's
sea chest.
- Wow.
- Sea chest? Like a treasure chest?
Yeah,
just like a treasure chest.
I'd love to see that. That
would be a first for us.
In season five of
the curse of oak island,
doug, charles,
marty lagina's son alex
and marty and rick's
nephew peter fornetti
had a chance meeting
with steve atkinson,
a direct descendant
of captain anderson.
Wow.
Now, in this chest...
...Right here,
you'll find some documents
you're gonna like.
They got to see
not only a possible
treasure chest
once owned by captain anderson
but documents that
potentially connect him
to another major aspect
of the oak island mystery.
"to all whom it may concern,
we do hereby certify
"that brother james
anderson is a...
Registered master mason
in the lodge number nine."
- master mason. - That's right.
With ancient ties
to the knights templar,
the freemasons are
uniquely connected
to the oak island mystery.
Not only have prominent
symbols of the secret society
been found all around the island,
including triangles
and the carved letter "g,"
for "god" or "divine creator,"
but treasure hunters
like daniel mcginnis,
m.R. Chappell
and even future u.S.
President franklin d. Roosevelt
were also members.
Could that mean that
captain james anderson,
a pirate with connections
to both the british
and freemasons,
is the key to the answers?
That remains to be revealed.
However,
the man he would eventually sell his lot to
might also offer an
important connection:
Samuel ball.
That name, samuel ball,
keeps coming up, and I know,
in past seasons,
the things you've discovered on his lot,
and-and it feels like he's
almost calling from history,
"hey, pay attention to me,
I'm part of this,"
ever since you found
his name on that tag.
Um,
and I know it's been incredible to watch
what you've done
this season on his lot.
Where does that work stand
right now as we sit here?
Well, actually,
matty, uh, laird and his team
- are still working on that lot right now.
- Oh, wow.
So why don't we go
back and take a look
- and see what they've found?
- Love it.
Let's do it. Guys, thanks.
This has been so
educational and really,
I've always wanted to know
more about the real history
of oak island before it was
"oak island" so, thank you.
I'm on it. We're on it.
I feel something there.
Ooh, yeah, that's nice.
While rick, marty, and the team
have always been curious
about the truth behind
late 18th-century oak
island landowner samuel ball,
over the past few seasons
on the curse of oak island,
they've made
incredible discoveries
that may connect
him to the treasure
people have been trying
to find for 225 years.
It says "patent."
I'd bet a lot that
was on a firearm.
It could've easily have
been on the-the stock.
- Yeah. - Or the butt.
Maybe that's the way
to look for whatever this is.
- Guns.
- That's what I would do. I would start with guns.
- Uh, probably british armaments.
- Yeah.
I mean,
if you find out that that was some kind
of nice shooting firearm,
it might speak to wealth.
Yeah.
Born into slavery
on a south carolina
plantation in 1765,
samuel ball made a daring
escape and headed north
when he was just 11 years old,
eventually winning his freedom
by joining the british military
during the american revolution.
At the war's end,
he moved to nova scotia, canada,
where, in 1788,
he purchased lot
26 on oak island
from none other than
captain james anderson.
Quite an interesting connection,
given their mutual
british military roots.
Although he was
known to his neighbors
as a simple cabbage farmer,
somehow he grew to become
one of the richest landowners
in the province,
owning a total of nine lots
on oak island by the
time of his death in 1846,
including lot 24,
where the team
found all that evidence
of a british encampment
four years ago.
This has led to much speculation
that perhaps he discovered
something of great value here.
He's always been the
mystery man of oak island,
and there are a
lot of mystery men,
but he's always been
at the top of the list.
And what's very intriguing
is that for the monies
that were paid for the lots
that he ended up owning
on oak island,
he could've bought
hundreds of acres
on the mainland.
Why did he choose
to remain here?
Up until a few years ago,
the old remains
of the foundation
where samuel
ball built his home,
which is designated
as a protected place
by the nova scotia government,
was strictly off-limits to
the laginas and their team.
However, thanks to the
awareness of the curse of oak island,
rick, marty and their partner
craig tester have been able
to forge a working relationship
with archaeologist laird niven,
and the province,
to carefully investigate
this mystery man's former digs.
It's incredible what a
huge part of the story
- samuel ball continues to be, even now.
- Mm-hmm.
Oh, wow. You were not kidding,
jack,
about the ball foundation.
I mean,
this looks unrecognizable.
- Laird how you doing, buddy?
- Hey, matty. How are you?
- Hi, liz. - Hey.
This is the big reason
why the ball foundation
- is played, is these two archaeologists.
- Yeah.
- Wow.
- Go on up and say hi.
- All right.
- Show-show them around.
This is incredible.
I remember any time we
shot anywhere around here,
it was like,
this mysterious ball foundation,
we couldn't go near and I was like,
"where's the foundation?"
- Yeah.
- Now, it's so clear.
Laird, I mean, this has
turned into a major archeological dig.
The premise for the
archaeology this year
was to use, uh, geophysics
to help us identify any what we
call anomalies around the site.
It-it went from being
just a house foundation
to a working farm.
Are there any structures
or anything in this house
that are unusual to you
- or might indicate something strange was going on?
- Well, we have this
very unusual feature, uh,
it's basically a box drain...
...That runs from this
corner of the house
all the way down
the hill to the...
To the very lowest area.
It would have been a consider...
Well, as jack knows,
a considerable expenditure
- of effort to build that.
- Yeah.
'cause he dug into the hardpan.
He dug a trench probably
four or five feet deep
all the way down to
the bottom of the hill.
Wh... okay, so I know
what the box drains
are for in smith's cove,
they were to possibly
flood a treasure vault.
Why would he have built
something like that here?
I have never seen one
running from a house.
So,
that begs a couple of questions:
What was he keeping in there,
and was he hiding anything?
But, you know,
it's another oddity of samuel ball's life.
He just,
he did extraordinary things
and dug an
extraordinary basement,
but for what purpose? Why...
Why did he choose oak island,
why did he come here,
why was he listed
as part of the original
finder of the money pit?
Could it be possible
that the generally
accepted story
about daniel mcginnis,
anthony vaughan and john smith
first discovering the money
pit isn't completely correct?
Well,
according to an alternate version
that was printed in an
1870 publication entitled
"history of the
county of lunenburg,"
it was mcginnis,
smith and samuel ball who found...
And first excavated...
The legendary treasure shaft.
Was samuel ball really connected
to that original discovery?
And if so,
just what did he find?
It's been awesome to watch
you guys work in season eight,
but what are some
of the artifacts
that you've found here
that are most exciting to you?
Well, actually,
we have some selected ones
over on the table,
if you want to go look.
Oh, I was hoping you'd say that.
Let's go.
There are a lot of
questions about samuel ball.
That work at the ball foundation
It will certainly
tell a better story
about ball's years
here on the island,
but there may also be some
aspect to that discovery process
that may help us in the field.
Oh, you have quite a collection.
Wow. So,
tell me about one of these items here.
Um,
this one here is a davenport transferware.
So this is going to be
right in... in the,
uh, the ball era.
It's perfect for time.
What's really nice is it has this,
uh,
this patterning on it,
- th-this print.
- Yeah, it's beautiful.
It's actually called snow scene.
We have a database of patterns
and if you put in "snow,"
you only get one pattern.
- Yeah.
- That's how kind of rare it is.
- And it's that?
- And it's that one.
Samuel himself could have
eaten out of this very bowl.
I think there's no
doubt about that.
What do those tell you
about what might
have gone on here?
We're getting a huge variety.
What could that mean?
Samuel ball was well-traveled?
I think he had the means
to have access to
a lot of ceramics.
We're finding coins
now. Here's another one.
- Mm-hmm.
- What do we know about this one?
This one we still have to clean,
but it's more typical
of an english cent,
more typical of a coin
from the ball period.
- Oh, interesting.
- Yeah.
You know,
I guess it was these coins
that kind of
reminded me a little bit
- of the british military encampment...
- Mm-hmm.
...That was found
here in season four.
And jack, that makes me think,
you know,
we know ball's connection
- to the british military.
- Mm-hmm.
Might he have been lured here
by someone like
captain james anderson,
who knew there
was treasure here?
I might be wrong,
but it appears that
there's a connection.
You wonder if there was some
information that was shared.
Hmm. Well, jack,
however he got here,
it's clear that he
did some work here,
and some 225 years later,
here we are,
trying to follow his steps
and find out why
and what he was up
to and what he knew.
- We have lots more to go.
- Ah, I love it.
Thank you so much for this,
it's been great.
- No problem. Thank you.
- Thank you.
Over the past eight seasons
of the curse of oak island,
as rick and marty lagina...
Along with their fellowship...
Have continued
digging for answers,
they've also connected
with numerous people
from the island's past.
This has led to new discoveries,
new friendships
and some incredible memories.
Welcome home.
Thank you. Thank you so much.
In season three, for instance,
rick,
marty and the team were contacted
by three direct descendants
of daniel mcginnis,
who had become aware
of the renewed hunt
for the treasure by
watching the show.
The reason why we're here is
you ladies made a unique offer
that you had brought
something to oak island,
and we're anticipating
that greatly.
I couldn't sleep last night,
I was wondering what it is
you were going to bring to the table,
literally.
Well,
it's my pleasure to show you.
Just the box is very nice.
This is one of the
stories we were told as children.
Grandpa daniel,
five generations ago.
He and his two
friends started digging.
Now, I've been told they found
three treasure chests.
Really?
Really.
- I never heard that.
- You know?
I never heard that, either.
Daniel took one,
and what is in this box
is one of the things that
came from that chest.
Wow.
- May I? - You may.
Oh, my goodness.
Thanks to this
chance connection,
rick, marty and the team
not only learned more
about the mystery,
but got to see a possible
piece of the oak island treasure...
A gold cross
estimated to possibly be
more than 400 years old.
Well,
that is quite extraordinary.
The curse of oak island
has offered one
very special guest
several opportunities to visit
the fellowship of the dig.
Lee lamb is the daughter
of robert and mildred restall,
a pair of retired
motorcycle daredevils
who lived on oak island with their sons,
bobby jr. And ricky,
trying to solve the mystery
from 1959 to 1965.
It was one of the
most extraordinary...
And tragic...
Chapters in this saga
that ended when
robert sr. And bobby jr.,
along with two other men,
lost their lives from exposure
to poison gases in a
shaft at smith's cove.
- Shall I show you?
- Sure. -Definitely.
Four years ago,
lee shared a find
her family made
that just may be connected
to when the mystery began.
So, this was found on the beach.
It's the 1704 stone.
- It's almost mythic.
- Yeah.
Log books? By your father?
- Or bobby?
- These are bobby's journals.
- My father never wrote journals.
- Oh, my goodness.
Bobby's the only one.
During season one,
in an effort to aid rick
and marty's search,
lee shared the detailed journals
that her late brother kept
during all of his and
his father's tireless work.
Every day. Every day.
Wow.
It's like history coming alive.
And in season five,
lee returned with her brother,
ricky,
who had not visited the island
since the horrible
tragedy in 1965.
I brought you a present.
Wow.
This is my brother,
rick restall.
- Oh. -
The restall family played
a very prominent role in
the history of the search.
And to welcome lee and
her brother ricky back...
They have an intimate
connection here.
Oh, wow.
This whole corner,
as you'll see,
is the restall corner.
It's a key part of the museum,
and your family's a key part
- of the history. - Right.
I just want to say
that I'm really pleased
that my brother's original maps
- are on the walls here. - Yeah.
You really picked the
right things. All of it.
That's... Fantastic
job you've done.
One of the most
profound oak island connections
that was not only responsible
for rick and
marty's participation
in the oak island treasure hunt,
but also their late friend
and partner dan blankenship,
was a five-page article
that appeared in the January,
1965 edition
of the reader's digest,
entitled,
"oak island's
mysterious money pit."
it consumed the
imaginations of rick and marty,
who, at the time,
were just boys growing up
in northern michigan.
It convinced dan
to leave his life in miami,
florida,
and move to the island,
along with his wife jane,
within a year of reading it.
I have a special guest, indeed.
This is david macdonald.
So you're the one that
caused all this trouble?
During season three,
the article's author,
david macdonald,
met the men...
and now partners...
Who he had a personal
hand in bringing together.
I remember like yesterday
reading this and
I was fascinated.
I read the article and I
handed it back to my wife
and I said "read this."
in so many words she said,
"so what?" you know.
- - and, uh,
I said, "number one," I said,
"there's treasure
on oak island."
"and number two," I said,
"I'm going to be
instrumental in getting it."
Well, david, um,
you didn't change the history of the world,
probably.
But you certainly changed
the history of oak island.
Yeah.
There's no question about that.
Things would be a lot different
had this not been written.
I guess, yes.
Well,
you're directly responsible
for these two characters being here,
for sure.
At the minimum.
Yeah.
And I want to say thank you.
Thank you very much.
On the curse of oak island,
we often see rick,
marty,
and members of the fellowship meet up
at the mug and anchor pub
in the nearby town of mahone bay
to connect on their efforts
after a long day
of treasure hunting.
Wow. That is really cool.
The mug and
anchor is really glad
to host the curse
of oak island guys.
Love to have 'em here,
give 'em their suds
and keep 'em happy.
Cheers, guys. - All: Cheers.
Well, today,
rick lagina invited
me to join him
at the team's
favorite watering hole
to meet with island
historian charles barkhouse
and three men who
are also connected
to rick's late friend and partner,
dan blankenship,
who spent more than 50
years searching for the fabled
treasure on oak island.
This is great. I love any chance
to come to the mug
and anchor with you.
I appreciate it. I
know some faces,
and some are new to me,
rick, so who am I with?
This is steve millett.
He actually worked
with dan on 10-x.
And this is monty dorey. He...
If there was ever a
right-hand man for dan,
and for david, it was monty.
Steve, I'd like to go to you.
You must have been
a pretty young man.
When were you working with dan?
- I believe I was around 18 or 19.
- Wow.
- And you worked on 10-x?
- I was down at 10-x, yeah.
Tell me about that.
It was interesting
for somebody my age
to be going over,
and not knowing what I was getting into.
And, um... But there was
a paycheck involved, so...
I did a little bit of
everything over there.
I dug and repaired stuff.
And dan just always
commanded respect.
He just treated me well.
And back then you did
whatever you needed to do.
Did you grow up knowing
about the oak island mystery
- or is this all new to you.
- Yes. No, no, I...
Well,
we were five to ten minutes from there,
so we all heard it,
we grew up knowing it.
And I believed it was there
because I wouldn't have been
down in that hole
without-without believing
there was something
- down there, so... - Awesome.
Monty,
let's start kind of at the beginning.
Your connection to oak island,
how you came to
be on oak island.
All right, here it comes.
Okay, have a go at it.
Local contractor monty dorey
was not only instrumental
in aiding dan over the years,
with various excavations
around the island
from time to time,
he's also joined the
ranks of rick and marty's
current fellowship.
We all done, buddy, or what?
No. Now we have to use 'em.
Okay.
He was friends with my father,
and, uh,
he just lived across the causeway there.
The host going across
to the island was...
- Dan blankenship was friends with your father.
- ...My parents. Yeah.
Yeah, and, uh,
then I got in the excavation business
and started doing
some... Hauling some fill,
a little digging here and there.
It was a lot of work done there,
and dan put his
heart and soul into it.
Monty,
do you have a memory of-of dan
that kind of comes
up more than any other
or one that maybe represents
him that you think of a lot?
Well,
it just mostly the phone calls, uh,
"monty, I got to have you
over here in a couple of days.
- I got another plan."
- "another plan," I love it.
Did you know of oak
island growing up?
- Oh, yes.
- What was your, what was your...
Through-through my, you know,
through my grandparents
and everything,
it was always a...
There was always stories there.
Paul, I know your father
worked on the island.
Well, you know,
my dad was here in 1965,
and he worked with dan
blankenship and robert dunfield.
He had met robert dunfield
in california where he was...
He was building metal detectors,
had a few tv repair shops.
He was interested
in gold hunting...
That was kind of
a hobby for him...
So they had a common interest.
So,
he's brought on board by dunfield
to build metal detectors,
but also help with a little
bit of the engineering.
He was there when they were
digging out the stone triangle,
and also doing
the money pit work.
He always felt that
this was a great story,
great place,
he felt that something was there.
He first showed me the film,
and I first got into this
when I was age 11.
I would see dan
blankenship on tv,
I'd-I'd, I'd go,
"my father worked
with that guy?"
I couldn't believe it,
because he was a legend.
It was untouchable to me.
So, to even have this come
full circle and to be here,
to meet dan, to meet all of you
and continue this
work is incredible.
Rick,
what has connecting with past searchers
done to enhance you
and your team's search?
We always had a hope
that we could talk to people
like yourselves and
get bits of information.
And it's only by having dialogue
and-and talking about the past
and building on the past
t-that will eventually happen.
At least,
that's my belief. It certainly is my hope.
And it's been the hope
of... When you were in 10-x,
you said yourself,
what were you hoping?
I was hoping to
find the treasure.
There you go. Every
time your phone rang
and you saw dan was
on the end of that line,
what was your thinking?
- Yeah.
- That you could help him succeed.
- Yeah. He always...
- So we hope...
He always said today's the day.
Today's the day... that's,
he would always say that.
- That was the expression.
- Today's the day. -Today's the day.
This story that
you are a part of,
actually, physically a part of,
has endured almost as long
as the u.S. Has been a country.
Now, that's remarkable.
Spent a lot of time over there.
- Well, here's to you guys.
- Yeah.
Here's to the-the
current search.
- Cheers. - The past.
Move forward, and rick,
I hate to break it to you,
but, uh,
based on what you've been finding,
it's... might be a lot older
than the united states.
Oak island's
connection to history
and to the surrounding community
has impacted no one more,
perhaps, than the two men
currently leading the
quest to solve this mystery
and who join me now together,
brothers rick and marty lagina.
Guys,
thanks for meeting me out here.
You're welcome,
matty. Thanks for coming.
Well,
this trip was especially moving for me
because I've met with all
kinds of people in the community
who say this story
fundamentally changed their lives.
They were drawn to the
island just like you guys were.
I wanted you to comment on that,
about how you've seen
the change in attitude
in this community,
uh,
insofar as what you guys are doing.
It is folklore here.
It's part of the
zeitgeist of the area.
And, uh,
after the cameras showed up, matty,
I... the appreciation
just went higher.
It has built
a wider community
of enthusiasts.
Like, here,
in the south shore area,
lots of people grew
up with the legend,
it was taught in the school,
people talked about it,
but then that
community of people
who thought of oak island
as their "own,"
because the world
now thinks of oak
island as their own,
and that really has been
a-a paradigm shift, if you will.
And we know that because
of the people who come
to the island for tours
or they come to visit
the interpretive centre.
It's r... it's remarkable.
Absolutely remarkable.
When you think about the impact
on the community that this show has had,
um,
um, and-and your own fellowship,
like,
what kind of thrills
you the most?
We both know. The letters that come in,
right?
- Yeah. - "my family and I
"watch the show together.
It's one of the
ways that we bond."
or "my daughter never thought
she could run a company
till she saw vanessa at roc in
charge of her own company."
the inspirational aspect of it is really,
I think,
- impactful to-to all of us.
- And gratifying.
And gratifying.
And I was thinking that,
for future generations
in schools around here,
you guys have changed
the narrative of this thing.
And students are now going to see tangible,
hard evidence
that has changed
a lot of opinions
in the scientific community
about what might've
happened here
and what might've
happened in north america.
And that would generate
interest in sciences...
- Yeah, sure. - ...Archaeology.
And I know how much
you guys value education.
That must be pretty
cool for you guys.
Absolutely.
If young people are inspired to,
you know,
further their education in any manner,
that's great.
- It's all about cultivating imagination, right?
- Yeah.
And this is an island
born of that, right?
It's an island of
what-ifs and possibilities
and when you can cultivate
in-in a young person's mind,
especially, uh, to imagine.
And if that carries the day?
Wow. That's-that's
special for us.
Just talk for a second about
the fellowship, your team,
and the perspective
that you guys have
from those early days to now,
and how the show has
maybe affected your team.
Everybody comes from
such dissimilar backgrounds,
but some of the
guys are quite local,
uh, growing up with the story,
others have come lately to it.
The linchpin and the
thing that's always there
is that everybody's
striving for the same thing.
Everybody wants
all of us to win.
- Yes.
- N-nobody's rooting for failure.
I can tell you that for sure.
Now, they may have
different ways of going about it,
but rick does a really,
really good job of leading.
And especially given the fact
there are so many
different areas of expertise
coming together here
to try and solve this thing
that that becomes especially important,
I would imagine.
Yeah, well,
the island required it, didn't it?
- Hmm.
- It's-it's too complicated for just us.
- -wow,
that's a great way to say it.
Y-you can... tell him about,
you know,
what we really thought
when we first came.
Oh yeah, I've said,
I've said that before. I'll say again.
When you're on the
outside looking in,
it's like what are
these clowns doing?
- Yeah, just...
- You know, I mean, come on.
All you got to do is...
you know,
rick and I would talk about it,
and say we'll have this
solved. Just like everybody else.
- Wow.
- Taught us a lesson or two.
That's fantastic. I mean,
that-that's what
I want to end on,
is-is you guys, obviously,
treasure hunting ain't easy,
and I-I understand that... Disagreements,
yes,
but,
you coming apart as brothers,
you told me day one,
that will never happen here...
- No, we're not gonna do that.
- ...For your mother.
Because of that,
I want to focus on the positive.
You bonded over this
island as children and now,
all these years later,
here you sit,
this massive tv show,
worldwide fame,
how has it positively affected
your relationship, this journey?
You know, we used to fight
when we were kids, we fight now.
We've had some fights over
how to proceed on this island.
But I told you,
at the core, it's rock solid,
and um, that's all that matters.
So I don't,
I don't think it's changed anything.
I thought once this journey had-had,
perhaps, you know,
in some sense strengthened
your relationship, but-but,
the beautiful part is it
sounds like it didn't need
- a heck of a lot of strength.
- No, I don't think. No.
We realized we're not
as smart as we thought.
We're not as smart.
Well,
I can speak for millions of people
around the world who have
been drawn to this mystery
and say,
thank you for actually doing it.
And we're glad that you guys
were connected to oak island,
as you are 'cause
you've brought us all here.
Stay tuned, matty.
- We couldn't...
- We'll try and deliver.
- Couldn't do it without you.
- Thanks, guys.
Rick and marty lagina,
along with their team,
may still be searching
for a treasure of vast riches
on oak island,
but it's undeniable
they've already
discovered something here
that's enriching
in so many ways.
This 225-year-old mystery
has connected people
from all walks of life and
from all over the world.
And it's one that will
keep connecting us
as we follow their quest
on the curse of oak island.
As always, acorns,
stay faithful and thanks for watching.