Oak Island on fire!

Drama on Oak Island - News that fire broke out yesterday with three fire departments and a helicopter being deployed.

Those who were at Explore Oak Island Days last year and saw the new drill holes will know the area which caught alight.

Oak Island resident Garnette Blankenship explains

'They had not been burning since last Sat. and they burnt in the rain,.so we are not sure what happened yet. They always had a genorator out back with a pump to soak the fire at the end of the night. They are still investigating.We were so lucky Dan and Rick had been out there and came in around 1:30 and no smoke ,thank god Rick had people coming and they went back out with in the hour and it was burning bad'.

Watch a video of the fire crew on Oak Island - http://southshorenow.ca/newsnowclips/play.php?vid=587

The great myths of the Oak Island mystery - part 2

Myth 2 - There's a video of a severed hand down Borehole 10X

Here at Oak Island Treasure HQ we receive many emails from people asking questions about the Money Pit mystery. One of the most popular things we're asked concerns a video shot down Borehole 10X in which a severed hand was rumoured to float past the camera lens.



Yes, it is true a camera was lowered down into Borehole 10X, and at the time those watching the monitor did see what they thought to be a hand, but this was never recorded.

The images on the monitor were being relayed in real time and not recorded. Although this would be very simple to do nowadays, back in the 1970s, video recorders were not commonplace, and to rig up such a network of technology would have been expensive and specialised.

Whether or not there really are body parts under Oak Island (if indeed they would still be preserved) remains an issue up for debate. However, there does exist a video which is available to see at the Oak Island Tourism Society's Explore Oak Island Days.

In this film, narrated treasure hunter Dan Blankenship, the camera is lowered down into Borehole 10X and Dan describes what he believes to be man made structures, and at one point, even treasure chests.

The quality is poor namely because of the amount of silt in the water but you are able to see a number of things. We have some stills of this video available for you to see on the website, so you can decide for yourself.

This is not the only instance which mentioned bodies being discovered on Oak Island. The excavator M.R.Chappell mentions burned bone ash being discovered beneath a boulder on Oak Island in a letter dated May, 1974.

As a closing anecdote, I have spoken with a one time Oak Island resident stating that a body was removed from one of the excavation sites. He claims this was never made public knowledge as the police would have to have been notified which would have delayed the dig. Facts on this matter are sketchy to say the least, but it is something I intend to investigate further in June.

So, in conclusion, there certainly is no video of the severed hand. Whether or not there is indeed a hand, (or any other body part it may have once been attached to) beneath Oak Island, remains to be seen.

The great myths of the Oak Island mystery - part 1

The first in a series of posts where we will be considering the biggest myths of the Oak Island Money Pit mystery.

Myth 1 - Oak Island is open to the public

Oak Island in privately owned and has not been open to the public since it was a tourist attraction a few decades ago.

Here at Oak Island Treasure HQ, we've heard from some adventurous characters who have chanced their luck and sneaked on to the Island. Some have done this by cover of darkness, others by boat and lets not forget the confident few, bold enough to drive straight across the causeway in defiance of the 'no trespassing' signs. 

Needless to say, those who actually set foot on the Island were soon greeted by owner Dan Blankenship and asked to leave. 

The Island is home to two generations of Blankenships, lucky enough to call the site of the world's greatest treasure hunt their home. 

However. Don't despair if you've been captivated by the Money Pit mystery and think you will never see it. The Oak Island Tourism Society organise the annual Explore Oak Island Days event. For one weekend, with kind permission of the Island's inhabitants, Oak Island is opened up to the general public for escorted tours amongst a variety of other events. 

This year the event will be taking place 19 - 21 June 2009. You can find out more about this popular event, a must for any Oak Island enthusiast. 

In the next post, I'll be considering the popular myth that there is a video of a severed hand waving at the camera from an underground cavern, deep beneath Oak Island. It may sound unbelievable, but this is often the most asked question by visitors to Oak Island Treasure.

Oak Island Tours Inc - 2009 dig update

The following update was posted by D'Arcy O'Connor on the Oak Island Treasure forum (http://forum.oakislandtreasure.co.uk):

UPDATE:

Oak Island Tours Inc. (Dan and the Michigan Mob) have been given a go-ahead by the NS Department of Natural Resources to dig on Oak Island from now until June 30, 2013. The only steps left now are for the TTL application to be cleared by the NS Justice Department (which is pretty well automatic) for approval by Cabinet, and then have it rubber-stamped by the NS Governor General for her approval. I'm told that this should all be acomplished within the next three weeks. So it seems that the OIT syndicate can legally begin drilling and digging as early as this May. 

After unsuccessfully fighting the need for a Heritage Research Permit and an archeological reconnaisance of their lots, Fred Nolan and Robert Young recently acquised to this stipulation, and have now applied for the NS Museum permit. But they still have a lot of bureaucratic hurdles to overcome before being able to conduct any major work on their lots this summer.

If you are at EOID'09 in June, you'll hear first-hand on Sunday afternoon how Rick Ratcliffe (who this month is retiring as Registrar of Minerals and Petroleum Titles - which covers TTLs) has had to deal with all of this pencil-pushing work concerning Oak Island exploration during the past 30 years.

Oak Island treasure found on eBay

John Borkowski became interested in the Oak Island mystery about two years ago and decided to look on eBay for a copy of R.V.Harris' book, The Oak Island Mystery.

You can imagine his surprise when the book arrived complete with original newspaper articles form the 1960s, photographs and correspondence from the Restalls who were excavating on the island at this time.

"I feel like I own a little piece of the story", says John from New York. "The letter is from Mildred Restall to a Mrs Geiser. It talks about the trouble the "boys" were having on the shore, and the terrible storm that came up and wiped out their work. It's really a little piece of what she was thinking at the time."

The collection of documents includes a letter from Mildred Restall, whose husband and son later died in a tragic accident on Oak Island.

Her letter paints a picture of how hard it must have been living on the island away from the mainland and open to the elements in the quest for treasure. It is also tinged with tragedy as she writes with such confidence in her husband's desire to solve the Oak Island mystery.

John contacted Oak Island Treasure via our facebook group to inform us his discovery, and with his kind permission, we've been able to share the material online for the very first time.

John has also contacted Lee Restall Lamb, daughter of Mildred Restall, and author of Oak Island Obsession, in which she shares anecdotes of her family's time on the island, photographs and a collection of amazing sketches drawn by Robert and son Bobby.

To view these documents, please view the links below:

• 1965 newspaper articles relating to the Restall tragedy on Oak Island.



• Photographs taken in July 1960 showing life on Oak Island.



• Letter from Mildred Restall to Mr & Mrs Geiser dated November 16th 1960.



• Letter in reply to Mildred Restall from Mrs Geiser - part I.



• Letter in reply to Mildred Restall from Mrs Geiser - part II.



• Newspaper article: Look for Pirates' Treasures Left on Isle 200 Years Ago - The Times Record, Troy, New York from December (exact date is obscured).



• Newspaper article: Privateer Hoard Eludes Seekers, December 1st, 1961.
  

You are invited to the Oak Island Treasure Party!

Come and join the Oak Island glitterati to discuss your favourite mystery over a beer or three!

When: Wednesday 17th June 2009

Where: The Henry House, Halifax, Nova Scotia

Who: Anyone interested in the Oak Island mystery who wants to meet with other members of the Oak Island Treasure Forum and our Facebook group. 

Despite this year being my forth visit to Oak Island, I have never actually ventured into Halifax so it seems long overdue that I see what your city has to offer!

So, on the evening of Wednesday 17th June I'd like to invite you all to come along to theorise our favourite mystery. 

For those ho haven't met me, I'll be the jet-lagged one with an amusing British accent. 

For more information, check out The Henry House website, or email me with your questions.

Hopefully see you there, swine flu notwithstanding!