Early residents included Edward Smith in the 1760s and Anthony Vaughn Sr. in the early 1770s. The islands subsurface is made up of soluble limestone anhydrite and gypsum rock, and the water table starts only a few meters below the surface, according to geologist Gordon Fader. Centuries of intrigue, turmoil and death: Why treasure hunters can't stay away from Oak Island, Famed N.S. "Even . Charles Barkhouse doesnt feel that rational explanations and complex theories have to be mutually exclusive. They own a 50 percent stake in this tiny plot of land. Sling is also considered one of the cheaper live streaming services available. usa has 33h/km2 - 85h/mi2. Here are some of the most interesting things about the series and the mysterious Money Pit that the Laginas and their business partners hope to uncover. Traditionally, the Mikmaq were seasonally nomadic. [14] Oak Island has been intermittently owned by treasure hunters ever since old legends were first published in 1857. [15] More recent archaeological discoveries in the Smith's Cove area have included an allegedly pre-15th-century lead cross and various wooden earthworks. Researchers Les MacPhie, and John Wonnacott concluded that the deep deposits at the east end of the Island make up the drumlin formations. You could make an argument that there is a common structure to buried treasure [stories], Downs says. She points out that curses and cryptic ciphers are often manufactured in service of legitimizing unproven claims. Speculation abounds over what exactly the Oak Island Money Pit is in the first place: a communal bank for pirates, a repository for treasure plundered by the British military, or a crude savings account to fund the American Revolution. Oak Island is a privately owned island in Lunenburg County on the south shore of Nova Scotia, Canada.The tree-covered island is one of several islands in Mahone Bay, and is connected to the mainland by a causeway.The nearest community is the rural community of Western Shore which faces the island, while the nearest village is Chester.The island is best known for various theories about buried . Plus, How to Visit", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Oak_Island&oldid=1150952329, This page was last edited on 21 April 2023, at 00:40. Fans on Reddit have speculated that Dave Blankenship might be dealing with some health issues, and might have steered clear of the season 8 production due to the risks associated with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The other owners of Oak Island not associated with treasures are Robert Young and J.D. Templar gold, a pirate vault, a natural sinkhole, or one giant hoax? But it wont be easy as the search is expensive and dangerous -- several people have died trying to strike it rich on Oak Island, inspiring the titular curse. Plus, How to Visit, You Don't Have to Watch 'The Curse of Oak Island' to Appreciate Dan Blankenship's Lasting Legacy. After Dan's passing, Dave has held the Blankenship torch up high but as Season 8 rolled in, Dave, too, was nowhere to be seen, and his profile on the show's official website (via History) offers no reason for his absence. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Oak Island Single-Family Homes for Sale; Oak Island Multi-Family Homes for Sale; Oak Island Townhomes for Sale; Oak Island Cheap Homes for Sale; Lot 5 on Oak Island is owned by Robert S. Young, but it does not appear that there is a house on that lot when looking at an . If shafts or wellbores are not packed back with impermeable clay or cased while drilling through sands above the bedrock, fresh water will naturally flood these excavations, Aitken explains. A post shared by Spirit Music Collective (@spiritmusiccollective), A post shared by Shannon O'Rielly (@true_acorn). Both men and women wore robes made of fur (later of blankets), while men typically wore loincloths and women dresses; clothing was generally ornamented with ample amounts of fringe. In the 140-acre area surrounded by forests, a treasure is thought to have been discovered. Webcams. All Rights Reserved. Wildlife in the Mahone Bay area includes great blue herons, black guillemots, osprey, Leach's storm petrels, and razorbills. All rights reserved (About Us). A second platform lay 20 feet down, but thats where the account of the first search ends. The closest airport to Oak Island is Halifax (code YHZ) so when you're setting up your travel itinerary, make sure you put that as your destination to minimize your travel time to the island. In 1784, the government made additional land grants, this time to former soldiers, which included parts of Oak Island. Rick and Marty Lagina, part of Oak Islands ownership group, host the History Channel series. While no treasure has been found, peripheral discoveriesapparent clues, possible traps, and geological curiositieshave compelled searchers onward, even as historians dispute the more sensational claims surrounding the treasure. Corrections? Collapse can be expedited by a sudden influx of water into the subsurface, or by freezing and thawing. 78 percent of the entire island is owned by the Lagina brothers, so there's a good chance that any digging you want to get done has to be completed with their say so. Meanwhile, David Blankenship is a current resident of Oak Island. The majority of Nova Scotia is a humid continental climate with hot and humid summers, and cold or frigid winters. As he and his friends dug, they discovered layers of logs and what were believed to be pick scrapings along the walls of a pit. What is Andrew Bradshaw's political party affiliation? 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. You can find which channel History is on by using the channel finders here:Verizon Fios, AT&T U-verse,Comcast Xfinity,Spectrum/Charter,Optimum/Altice,DIRECTVandDish. All these features can be explained with basic science.. "These are not man-made. Nova Scotia has an estimated population of 940,600, up from 921,700 in 2011. According to the show's description, Oak Island is a tree-covered island on the south shore of Nova Scotia that has intrigued treasure hunters for more than 200 years. Offers may be subject to change without notice. The average annual temperature given in Bridgewater is 7.1C (44.8F), while the precipitation runs at 1,536.7 millimetres (60.50in). Oak Islands peak elevation is just 36 feet above sea level. Nonetheless, the truth of Oak Island retains elements of intrigue. You probably wouldn't be too keen to see that unravel as you're looking out your bay window washing dishes, now would you? The Curse of Oak Island is a reality television series that viewers either love or hate. The Truro group dug shafts to intercept this drain, with no success. [24][25], More than fifty books have been published recounting the island's history and exploring competing theories. . Steven Aitken, Ph.D., a geoscientist with over 25 years of experience studying the Oak Island area, says natural evidence points to the Money Pit itself being a sinkhole. During dissolution, water permeates and erodes soluble minerals in the subsurface rock to create a Swiss cheeselike series of underground cracks, pathways, and chambers. The main difference between the two packages is the line of ESPN channels offered with Sling Orange as opposed to channels such as Fox News, MSNBC, Discovery and Bravo offered with Sling Blue. Ultimately, these are the only two locations that have not been explored by "The Curse of Oak Island" out of the 32 total lots. The flooding seems to have ended Onslows efforts; the company dissolved in 1805. [16], The most recent owners include a treasure hunter named Dan Blankenship, who initially partnered with "Oak Island Tours Inc.," run by David Tobias. In the 1860s, a professor of languages from Nova Scotias Dalhousie University examined the stone and determined the code was a substitution cipher saying: Forty Feet Below Two Million Pounds Are Buried. But another attempted translation in the 1970s interpreted the code as a Coptic Christian warning not to forget your duty to the Lord. Get the details here. The show sees the Lagina brothers and others attempting to discover the legendary treasure. They have searched the island over eight seasons of "The Curse of Oak Island." Six have perished in the search for billions in gold, but the danger has only fueled exploration and speculation. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. [10], The first known indigenous people in Nova Scotia were the Mi'kmaq, who have lived in present-day Nova Scotia and Newfoundland for several thousand years. His son Dave lives on the island. $149,000 CAD . Oak Island. The Onslow Company kept digging, and at 98 feet they hit what sounded like a hollow containerassumed to be a treasure vault. Today, the History Channels Curse of Oak Island hosts Rick and Marty Lagina use seismic testing, ground-penetrating radar, drilling, and dye tests, says Barkhouse. While the show ostensibly focuses on brothers Rick and Marty Lagina, who have dedicated their life to the project, arguably the most fascinating people in the "The Curse of Oak Island" roster have been veteran treasure hunter Dan Blankenship and his son, Dave. Chester South-East: Yacht Club Known as the Money Pit, the small island off Canada's Nova Scotia coastline is rumoured to have millions of dollars of treasure hidden on it. From the Halifax airport, it's about another 20 miles or so until you're on the island. It was thought their digging had triggered a booby trap. Some believe one of the greatest treasures of all time is hidden on this mysterious Island off . Downs says these theories are driven by the same mechanisms that propel belief in conspiracy theories. Its the same as if in your house, someone cut out the posts that hold the walls up. Oak Island is located on Nova Scotia, on the east coast of Canada, so if you're traveling to there from the U.S., you're going to need a valid passport to get there. This article is about the island in Nova Scotia. here you pay 50 to 100 per m2 of land to construct a house (in a small village not close to any city) : (. The allure of real treasure, be it the Holy Grail, the Ark of Covenant, or a massive pirate bank, subsumes all other findings on Oak Island. Users can access the History Channel with any of these packages. You can watch a sinkhole develop and a 60-foot pine tree fall down [into it] in two seconds, he says, illustrating how the pit could accommodate items as large as British ship masts. This creates a system of underground fractures and caves (a karst system) prone to collapse and the formation of sinkholes. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated 4/4/2023), Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (updated 1/26/2023). [9] Dr. Ian Spooner of Acadia University has stated that the current triangular swamp on Oak Island was once been a cove. The roof would collapse, Fader says. What Steven Aitken sees when looking at evidence turned up by decades . Oak Island property owner Robert Young has launched a website offering a look at the historic artifacts he has found on his lot. [4] These coasts are also vulnerable to powerful storms which include nor'easters and hurricanes. "To me personally, the treasure on Oak Island has already been found in the form of archeological artifacts that have been discovered," Aitken said, "As a collection, these artifacts tell a rich history about activity on the island. Aitken started watching the show when it first aired, but as the years progressed grew frustrated that there "was not enough of a geological interpretation.". Oak Island is split into 32 different lots (viaOak Island Treasure). This Picture of an Atom Is a Scientific Marvel. That crew was reportedly able to bail out the water in the pit and reinforce its walls before drilling into the vault. The drill penetrated successive layers of wood and loose metal, suggesting a treasure chest, and according to a newspaper account published years later, surfaced three small links of gold chain. The six memorials here are cenotaphs. Buy newspaper front pages, posters and more. Frustrating, fascinating, enticingyou put any adjective you want in front of Oak Island and thats what it is, says Charles Barkhouse, historian for the History Channel show The Curse of Oak Island, which has chronicled an ongoing search for the treasure for eight seasons (with few results). Both David and his father appeared in The Curse of Oak Island, but David has now left the show, possibly due to tensions between him and the Lagina brothers about how they treated Dan over the years. The island has also been the subject of a History Channel television show The Curse of Oak Island. The Laginas hope to avoid the curse long enough to find the treasure before they run out of money or worse.. The Oak Island curse says seven men must die before the island reveals its legendary treasure. . Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Various objects including non-native coconut fibre have been found there. One on the lots owned by Fred Nolan and two on the Blankenship lots: one that was Dan Blankenship's house and the other that is Dave Blankenship's house. The "treasure" has also been prone to criticism by those who have dismissed search areas as natural phenomena.[23]. In the monumental 10th season of The Curse of Oak Island, brothers Rick and Marty Lagina, along with their team returns to make the most strategic effort ever attempted to solve the 227-year-old Oak Island mystery. Thats what they were doing on the island. Following the end of the American Revolution, the free man relocated to Canada. If youre not prepared for the emotional ride, you can pack up your toys and go. Hunts for the Oak Island Money Pit, a 100-foot hole on an island in Nova Scotia, allegedly containing anything from pirate treasure to the Ark of the Covenant, date back to 1795. He points out that the U-shaped structure buried on Smith's Cove was likely part of a storage shed for keeping the pine tar in barrels and out of the sun. Copyright 2023 Distractify. Although early European chroniclers described them as fierce and warlike, they were among the first indigenous peoples to accept Jesuit teachings and to intermarry with the settlers of New France. Weather forecasts and LIVE satellite images of Oak Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. Oak Island is half owned by the Lagina brothers. The island is believed to be home to a secret shaft dug by early explorers that contains a precious treasure trove. But who owns the islet, and why are treasure hunters there? Even so, Barkhouse says, the amount of evidence were finding [on Oak Island] leads you to believe that some group or some person did something special there.. The show airs on The History Channel with new episodes landing on Tuesdays . The hunt might never end. The mystery of the money pit is known around the world, thanks to the success of the History channel show The Curse of Oak Island. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Research conducted by historian Joy A. Steele and retired marine geologist Gordon Fader demonstrates that Oak Island housed a covert British industrial center. The Oak Island Tours website states that the majority property interest in the islet is held by Oak Island Tours Inc,a duly registered incorporated company,withheadquarters in Traverse City, Michigan. However, the purchase amount hasn't been disclosed. Memorial Inscription: [18][17][19] Blankenship owned the island with the Michigan Group until his death on March 17, 2019, at the age of 95. According to Sky HISTORY, Rick Lagina was fascinated . [12] Land was made available to settlers in 1759 through the Shorham grant, and Chester was officially founded that same year. The Oak Island is located on the Atlantic shore of Nova Scotia, Canada. According to History.com, David was seriously injured in a workplace accident about 30 years ago, which impacted his mobility. Four more fatalities, a result of noxious underground fumes, followed in 1965. He said there are also other sinkholes nearby, which further shows the so-called tunnels and pits are not engineered, as the show suggests. Here are a few of their top finds on Oak Island: Rick Lagina was a postal worker until he retired and took up endeavors on Oak Island. The islands bedrock is prone to dissolution by the sea and water table, Fader says. The Nolans have allowed the Laginas to dig on their property; a recent Reddit comment suggested that the Oak Island crew accidentally broke the Nolan family's backhoe. Monster who made raping and abusing 11 victims 'his life's work' over 45-year campaign of terror dies from Covid in jail, Black magic healer butchered bridegroom with axe when 'occult ritual to save his marriage went wrong', Car-mad Liverpool bomber called himself GT and was obsessed with Johnny Cash - he was no extremist, say pals. The origins of the curse are muddledthe decades between the searchs beginning and the curses first mention confuse the storybut the first recorded fatality tied to the Oak Island treasure is dated to the early 1860s, when a steam-powered pump used to drain the Money Pit exploded, killing one man. Obviously, if the Templars reached Nova Scotia within a few years of 1312, history needs a rewrite. The pair examined business records and contemporaneous correspondence to conclude that in 1720 the Crown chartered private companies together with the British military to do business on Oak Islandincluding pine tar works, brass making, and wire drawingto help clear debt. Mikmaq clothing was similar to that of other Northeast Indians. News . The tree-covered island is one of several islands in Mahone Bay, and is connected to the mainland by a causeway. The island is 140 acres and has a maximum elevation of 36 feet. Humans like to believe there is some kind of order to the world around us, she says. A post shared by Robert Rhodes (@robdrhodes). The island has yielded plenty of valuable and interesting finds in that time for the Lagina brothers. According to History channel's official synopsis, "Oak Island is a tree-covered island on the south shore of Nova Scotia that has intrigued treasure hunters for more than 200 years. They were part of the Abenaki Confederacy, a group of Algonquian-speaking tribes allied in mutual hostility against the Iroquois Confederacy. Most other 19th-century accounts of Oak Island are as told to recollections by men claiming to be involved in the digs. Special permissions must be afforded to foreign nationals, and the guidelines for entering the country are still fairly rigid. It is believed that the island is hiding one of the greatest treasures of all time, but no one has been able to find it. The brothers bought half of the island tour company in 2006. The answer, of course, takes some digging. The Money Pit (a pit assumed to be used for hiding jewels), A Roman sword (later shown to be a replica), Possible remnants of the Knights Templar, Artifacts possibly owned by Samuel Ball, a slave who won his freedom by fighting for the British. All Rights Reserved. Because their Algonquian dialect differed greatly from that of their neighbours, it is thought that the Mikmaq settled the area later than other tribes in the region. What you're left with is essentially a cavity in the bedrock, or a kind of cave. Check if it is currently sunny, rainy, cloudy or even snowing in Oak Island . 'The Curse of Oak Island' airs on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on the History channel. Permits were hard for the brothers to . He is adamant this phenomenon is the true origin of the Oak Island Money Pit. How Fast Is Warp Speed, Hypothetically Speaking? THE hunt for treasure on Oak Island has captured the nation's imagination. treasure hunter brought about new era in Oak Island mystery", "The Curse of Oak Island breakthrough: Lead cross is pre-15th century and could have Knights Templar connection", "The Curse of Oak Island recap: Team discover a second mysterious structure at Smith's Cove", "Rick and Marty Lagina: The Last Treasure Hunters", "Do They Ever Find Anything on Oak Island? According to the Oak Island Tours website, which is owned by Rick and Marty Lagina, the Nova Scotia island is entirely privately owned. Before you start packing your bags filled with metal detectors and shovels and begin finding out ways to get spelunking equipment shipped to the island, you need to remember that it's privately owned. Oak Island itself is located on the south shore of Nova Scotia, Canada. Mikmaq social and political life was flexible and loosely organized, with an emphasis on kin relations. Often, those who suggest treasure on Oak Island have stakes in its land. [17] This group consisted of brothers Rick and Marty Lagina, Craig Tester, and Alan Kostrzewa who had been purchasing lots from Tobias. [11] The area that encompasses Oak Island was once known as the "Segepenegatig" region. He started building his approximate $100 million net worth with the company Terra Energy in the 1990s, which he later sold to CMS Energy for $58 million. Efforts to restore their habitat, such as curbing the population of other bird species, have been undertaken. An all new episode of "The Curse of Oak Island" premieres Tuesday, April 25 at 9/8c. The show, The Curse Of Oak Island, has been running since January 5, 2014. released Wednesday moves people with disabilities in Nova Scotia a step closer to the end of an era when many had to live in large institutions. Until these travel bans are lifted, only people with dual passports or those who have family members who are Canadian nationals can freely enter the country. In those days, pine tar was of equal importance to oil today: Your ship didnt go to sea unless it was soaked in pine tar. It is believed that the island is hiding one of the greatest treasures of all time, but no one has been able to find it. There are at least three observable sinkholes on Oak Island, and the areas geography suggests it is susceptible to these natural hazards. Rick and Marty Lagina, American brothers, own a 50 percent stake in Oak Island Tours, Inc., which in turn owns the rights to the island itself. Oak Island is a small private isle located off the shore of Nova Scotia, Canada, in Mahone Bay. "Given the right conditions, such as temperature, pressure, pore fluid composition, quite often these minerals, especially gypsum, they're prone to dissolution," Aitken said. Another expedition to Oak Island launched from the nearby town of Truro in 1849. 1. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. N95 Vs. KN95 Masks: Whats the Difference? Population estimates indicated some 14,000 Mikmaq descendants in the early 21st century. Fans of the hit series who dont have traditional cable services but want to stream its newest series can watch it throughPhilo, orFuboTV. Off the chilly coast of Nova Scotia lies a tree-covered island shrouded in mystery and lore. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Lagina also acknowledges that the Oak Island quest he's been dreaming of since the age of 11 might end in a disappointment, and as such, he's fully prepared to join the long line of failed Oak . In 2014, they started documenting their search with the History Channel show The Curse of Oak Island. To me that's the treasure. By using our Services, you agree to our use of cookies. According to the shows description, Oak Island is a tree-covered island on the south shore of Nova Scotia that has intrigued treasure hunters for more than 200 years. [15] The hunt for treasure got so extensive that in 1965 a causeway was built from the western end of the island to Crandall's Point on the mainland, two hundred metres away in order to bring heavy machinery onto the island. According to the History Channel's UK website, Oak Island Tours Inc owns 50 per cent of the island. Offers may be subject to change without notice. These non peer-reviewed reports include a Portuguese style cobble road, carbon dating indicating European activity as early as the 12th Century, and European and Middle-eastern DNA purportedly extracted from two bones recovered from drilling operations at approximately 90 feet (27m) below ground. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Fans on Reddit have discussed a mysterious, since-deleted Facebook comment (viaImgur), ostensibly by Blankenship. View rain radar and maps of forecast precipitation, wind speed, temperature and more. We often create narratives to make sense out of a world we have trouble understanding. Archaeological and geological counterevidence concerning Oak Island and the Money Pit point to something well short of an Indiana Jones movie. Why is the STAPLES Center changing its name? Johnson. Latest The Curse of Oak Island News and Updates. It is also available to watchon Hulu Plus and Peacock. no wonder they are rich countries with so many resources for so few. Fader mapped the underground conditions along the coast of Nova Scotia while working as a marine geologist for the Canadian government, and says sinkholes are common in the area.