The Oak Island mystery refers to stories of buried treasure and unexplained objects on Oak Island in Nova Scotia. A number of attempts have been made to retrieve the reported treasure and artifacts, and treasure-hunting was authorized in the early 21st century. In addition to treasure, reported artifacts on the island include Marie Antoinette's jewels, Shakespearean manuscripts and religious artifacts.
Although treasure was reported on Oak Island during the 19th century, physical evidence of the initial excavations is unavailable. The original lot owners' names were mapped for the Nova Scotia Crown Lands office by William Nelson and David W. Crandall on July 6, 1818. According to the most widely-held story, a man named Daniel McGinnis (the island's first settler) discovered a depression in the ground around 1799 while he was looking for a location for a farm. Early settlers told a story of a dying sailor from Captain Kidd's crew who said that treasure worth £2 million had been buried on the island.
McGinnis, who believed that the depression was consistent with the Captain Kidd story, sought help with digging. With the assistance of two men identified only as Smith and Vaughn, he excavated the depression and discovered a layer of flagstones two feet below. According to later accounts, oak platforms were discovered every 10 feet (3.0 m); however, the earliest accounts simply mention "marks" of some type at these intervals. The accounts also mentioned "tool marks" or pick scrapes on the walls of the pit. The dirt was noticeably loose, not as hard-packed as the surrounding soil. The three men reportedly abandoned the excavation at 30 feet (9.1 m) due to "superstitious dread".
The McGinnis excavation first appears in print in the Liverpool Transcript in October 1856. One of the first full newspaper accounts, which mentioned a group digging for Captain Kidd's treasure on Oak Island, was published the following year. A more complete account, by a justice of the peace in Chester, Nova Scotia, followed in the Liverpool Transcript, the Novascotian, British Colonist, and A History Of Lunenburg County (the latter based on the Liverpool Transcript articles). Investigator Joe Nickell reviewed the original accounts and interviews with descendants of McGinnis and the original Oak Island landowners. While later sources said that the treasure had been discovered by three young boys, Nickell reported that the story was about three adult lot owners who discovered the depression on the island and began digging.
they have made a series of the hunt thats going on for the cursed treasure and it is call the curse of oak island
The Curse of Oak Island is an active reality television series that first premiered in Canada on History on January 5, 2014. According to the marketing of the show, the show "details the efforts of brothers Marty and Rick Lagina from Michigan in their attempt to solve the Oak Island mystery. Using modern technology and independent researchers, they search for treasure and historical artifacts on Oak Island off the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada
The Curse of Oak Island follows brothers Marty and Rick Lagina, originally from Kingsford, Michigan, through their efforts to find the speculated treasure or historical artifacts believed to be on Oak Island. The series discusses the history of the island, recent discoveries, theories, and prior attempts to investigate the site. Areas of interest include the "Money Pit", Borehole 10-x, Smith's Cove, "Nolan's Cross", the "Hatch", the "Watchtower" and the "Swamp".
The Lagina brothers became fascinated with the island after reading the January 1965 issue of Reader's Digest magazine that features an article on the Restall family's work to investigate the so-called "Money Pit". Marty and his brother Rick obtained a controlling interest in Oak Island Tours, which reportedly owns most of the island. The brothers were later approached by Prometheus Entertainment to do a reality show. Rick and Marty have engaged the assistance of father-and-son Dan and Dave Blankenship, permanent residents of the island who have likewise been searching for treasure since the 1960s
heres a link to watch a trailer of the series