06x22 - Lost and Founding

[bunniefuu]

Tonight on The Curse of Oak Isand
Everything's closing in.

We're running out of time.

...it's the exciting
season finale.

No record of this?
No.

Maybe there's something
on the other side of it.

(excited shouting)

The Rochefoucaulds shared
the truth of Oak Island

with the Founding Fathers.

BRUCE:
They used the treasure

to finance
the Revolutionary w*r.

MARTY: Holy smokes.
-RICK: What's that symbol?

DOUG:
George Washington designed it.

JUSTIN: It matches perfectly.
GARY: Holy schmoly.

-There's a wall here!
-Isn't that something?

I mean, that's evidence.

NARRATOR:
There is an island

in the North Atlantic

where people have been looking
for an incredible treasure

for more than 200 years.

So far, they have found
a stone slab

with strange symbols carved
into it,

mysterious fragments
of human bone,

and a lead cross whose origin
may stretch back

to the days
of the Knights Templar.

To date, six men have died
trying to solve the mystery.

And, according to legend,

one more will have to die

before the treasure
can be found.

-MARTY: There he is!
-DAVE: How you doing, Dad?

(laughter)

DAN:
What do you say, Marty?

How are you, bud?

I thought you had a little sense

and had gone home.

No, I'm here on Oak Island.

Doesn't that tell you something?

NARRATOR:
It is an exciting moment

for brothers
Rick and Marty Lagina

as they join Dave Blankenship
to share with Dave's father

and their partner,

veteran Oak Island treasure
hunter Dan Blankenship,

the most significant
breakthrough yet

in their team's quest

to solve
a 223-year-old mystery.

Daniel, we do have
some information

I think you're
gonna find interesting.

Okay.
-So, in Smith's Cove,

we cut the ends
off those big logs,

on the U-shaped structure.
I saw the logs.

Do you know
what dendrochronology is?

Do you know what that is?

-Oh, yeah.
-Yeah, okay.

We cut discs off 'em.

Yeah?
And the slipway.

And the slipway.
The slipway. And we sent it

to this guy at the
University of Saskatchewan.

World's expert in this area,

in dendrochronology,
and he got a date

that he says-- get this--

it's 99.99% accurate,

to the year.
(Dan chuckles)

They believe in what
they're doing, obviously.

Exactly.
The date they came up with

was 1769.

25 years before the Money Pit.

25 years before
the Money Pit

was discovered?
Yes. Yes.

Yes.

Okay, now...

now i-it's starting
to register.

Wow, that's a heck of a wall,

-isn't it?
-Yep!

NARRATOR:
Over the past several months,

Rick, Marty and their team

have conducted the most
extensive investigation

of Smith's Cove in the history

of the Oak Island
treasure hunt.

Although their prime objective
has been to locate the place

where five stone box drains

first discovered in 1850

converge into
a single flood tunnel

which feeds ocean water
into the Money Pit...

RICK:
It's very strange.

This is totally undiscovered.

...they have unearthed
a number of incredible

and mysterious
man-made formations.

Some of these,
such as a concrete wall,

were never reported
by previous searchers.

Although, two others,
known respectively

as the "L-shaped"
and "U-shaped" structures,

and which are both
made of wood,

were first discovered
by Dan Blankenship

when he conducted his own
large-scale investigation

of Smith's Cove
in the early 1970s.

Somebody was building
something big in Smith's Cove.

I thought that was old,
but, I mean,

I was never clear, Rick,

on that structure--

whether It was original or not.
Right.

But what Marty just said
are the facts. 1769.

I don't think I ever had anyone
that's come in and said

-they're 99.9% sure...
This guy did.

...of-of the date.

I have the written results
right here.

The dendrochronology results.

The main ones are here.

That is interesting.
Yeah.

Marty finds it
incredibly interesting.

I do.
Dan: Yeah.

I thought everything
we were finding here

was searcher, but not that.

Something was original there.

Yeah.
-RICK: Dan's life has seen

all kinds of changes,
and they've all centered

around Oak Island
and the mystery.

So, you know, to give him
these answers this year

is important,
because he's always said,

"Look, I just want answers,
yay or nay."

Well, hopefully, maybe this
might provide him those answers.

You're up to speed now.
We want to make sure

you know what we know,
so we're going to, uh,

get back to work.

All right?
I hear you.

(laughter)

MARTY:
Thanks for the time, partner.

We'll be back with more.

NARRATOR:
Following their meeting

with Dan Blankenship,

Rick and Marty join
other members of their team

at Smith's Cove,

where they are continuing
their massive excavation

underneath the beach area

in search of the so-called
flood tunnel convergence point.

Billy wants to figure out how
far back we want to go to dig

to get rid of the crane pad.
I want to...

I want to dig right there.

I want to dig
right in the center

of the U-shaped structure

as soon as you can.
Right.

If we're gonna get this,
let's get it.

I just think whoever built it
had information

and put it there on purpose,
'cause it's relatively small.

Then there should be something

within the arms of it
coming this way.

Right. Yeah.
I want you to dig There

soon as you can.

-All right, see you.
Okay.

NARRATOR:
Although the team

is more than encouraged

by the dating analysis of the
U-shaped structure and slipway,

they have less than a week left

before they must shut down
operations for the winter.

We are absolutely
running out of time.

The weather's closing in,
our permit's about to run out,

we're very fatigued,

and we still haven't
got back far enough

to follow all these structures
to where they sort of converge.

RICK:
I agree,

but we still have
a window of time,

and I'm hoping that
we'll get some answers yet.

LAIRD:
Whoa...!

(indistinct chatter)

Holy crap!

Billy, we've got something here.

What does That
look like, Laird?

Well...

It's clay. There's
another board down there,

but it's clay
that's coming out in chunks.

Wow.

See? Look here.
There's another board here.

I think this one's
pulled out a bit.

All right.

And then we have the third one.

They're not just loose boards,
that's for sure.

-No, because there was clay
on both sides.

-It's well packed

with clay behind it.
Yeah. Yeah.

RICK:
Why put the clay in back?

NARRATOR:
Wooden boards?

Packed with clay?

Could it have been put here
by searchers in 1850

trying to block off
the flood tunnel

that leads directly
to the original Money Pit?

Or was it done even earlier

by those who constructed
the flood tunnel

and the Money Pit
treasure shaft?

I have no idea
what to make of it.

There is such
an incredible amount

of structures
just in this one defined area,

where all the busywork
has been done.

BILLY: Yeah.
-It's-it's right here.

You know? Well, I-I'd say dig
the front of this, follow it,

see-see What happens.
Yeah.

Got an upright.

CHARLES:
Whoa.

That's a big one.

LAIRD:
Yeah.

That's one of the biggest ones
we've seen yet.

LAIRD:
Yeah, and it continues.

RICK:
Which is confusing,

because the brace,

then, behind means the force
was coming this way.

Yeah. So were they looking

for the converging point
of the flood tunnels?

And maybe that's the reason
for the heavy clays was to try

to block it going back into
the converging point, maybe.

I-I don't know.

RICK:
We've come to the belief that,

as we proceed,

the most interesting structures
will be in the upland.

You know,
that's bearing some fruit,

because we've found what
we're calling the mystery wall,

and we certainly need
to continue digging.

Well, all we can do
is track it back.

We've got a lot of work to do.

LAIRD:
And not a lot of time.

MARTY:
Well, what do you make of this?

NARRATOR: At Smith's Cove, on
the eastern end of Oak Island,

brothers Rick and Marty Lagina,
along with members

of their team, are continuing
their investigation

of a mysterious wooden wall

found buried beneath
the edge of the beach.

A wall that sits
right in the area

where they are searching
for evidence

of a man-made flood tunnel

designed to feed seawater
deep into the Money Pit.

RICK:
Charles, from a historical

perspective,

no record of this?

No. No, no record at all.

I think the fact that
we have these vertical cuts

has to predate Restall,
so this goes back quite a ways.

CRAIG:
You can see they dug down

at least this length

into the sea level
for some reason.

MARTY:
Well, then if all that

makes sense,
back there ought to be

-the flood tunnel, right?
-That's what I'm wondering.

And the water's coming
from there.

RICK:
But here's the curious thing,

though.

We marked down the middle
of the U-shaped structure,

the Billy's wall,
that rock formation,

this one and this one.

See those flags on the sheet?

MARTY:
Yes.

All in one line right here.

Great. It's another mystery.

LAIRD: Absolutely.
We keep finding structures.

GARY:
The more we dig, the more chance

we've got of finding something.

-Yeah, I know.
RICK: Whenever you can make

an observation
that one structure

might be aligned
with another structure,

your first thought is: well,
there's some relationship here.

Some of these might be
part of the work

to introduce water
into the Money Pit.

CRAIG:
Looks like there's

a higher board up there.

Does it keep going there, guys?

CRAIG:
Like it was all of a sudden

gotten a lot more rocks.

Isn't that something?

That would be
an effective sealant.

RICK:
If that doesn't seal off water,

nothing will.
-MARTY: And you know what,

looks like there's clay

packed behind here, too.

How about taking some
right here, Billy?

NARRATOR:
More packed clay?

When the Money Pit
was excavated

to a 90-foot depth in 1804,

in addition to platforms
of oak logs every ten feet,

they also discovered
a large amount of packed clay

at the 40-foot level, likely
placed there to protect the pit

and whatever was buried below
from groundwater.

Could the discovery
of packed clay

around the mysterious
beach wall

be more evidence that Rick,
Marty, Craig and the team

have discovered workings

connected to the original
pit's construction?

What is that?

There's a wall here.

GARY:
Oh, man. Another day,

another structure.

Yeah, it's coming at an angle.

GARY:
I told you, the further

you go digging,

the more structures we'll find.

NARRATOR:
A second wooden wall?

Just five feet behind
the first?

Could the team be close

to finally uncovering
the main flood tunnel?

RICK:
Well, all we can do is

track it back,
see what happens.

NARRATOR:
After a long day of exploration

at Smith's Cove...

Hey, how are you doing?

How are you guys doing?
Howdy. Howdy.

NARRATOR:
...Rick, Marty and Craig,

along with Charles Barkhouse,

meet with representatives
from Eagle Canada

to check on the progress
of an operation,

which they hope will identify

any large objects--
or structures--

buried deep beneath
the mysterious,

triangle-shaped swamp.

We're ready to go.

We got about 400 sh*ts
to, uh, sh**t tonight.

So that's why we have,
actually, eight sh**t.

Where are we starting
and where are we ending?

ALEX G.:
So, uh, we're going to start

on the east side.

We should reach
the peninsula tonight.

Okay, everybody steady up.
Here it comes. Steady up.

NARRATOR:
One week ago,

the Laginas and their partners

commissioned Eagle Canada to
begin an underground survey

of the swamp area using
a process known

as "seismic testing."

This technology involves
creating sound waves

below the earth's surface

by detonating expl*sive
charges,

each containg 20 grams
of dynamite.

(expl*si*n)

As more than 2,000 total
charges are remotely set off,

the sound waves that they
generate will be measured

by geophone recorders to create
images of any anomalies

which could include man-made
objects and structures.

So are we ready?

Yeah. Let's get going.

JEFF:
81-56.

(beeping)

MARTY:
Oh, yeah, that was a splatter.

NARRATOR:
Due to sound interference

created by heavy winds,

which have grown more frequent
during the day

as the winter season
approaches,

the Eagle Canada team
has chosen

to continue their work at night
when the ambient noise

above ground will be
less likely

to contaminate their results.

RICK:
So when you sh**t

these lines tonight,

are you a third done,

a quarter done?
Counting What you already have

in the can, you should be
about half, shouldn't you?

JARED:
Yeah, we would be -if we

shot everything we had tonight,

We would be close to half shot.
Yep.

RICK:
Would you see disturbed ground,

like, if a channel had been dug
through the middle of the swamp?

would you see that?
-They'd likely see that.

ALEX G.:
Yeah, we're hoping

imaging pretty good

at 20 feet and below.

So we believed in our science.

We were confident, but now we
are even more confident

that we'll get you
something good.

NARRATOR:
Although seismic technology

was originally developed
to map features

located miles deep beneath
the earth's surface,

Eagle Canada has pioneered
a technique

that can obtain seismic data
at much shallower depths.

MARTY:
Eagle Canada is confident

they can image even better than
they did in the Money Pit.

If there is some kind of massive
structure in the swamp,

which Rick believes is possible,
uh, I think we'll see it.

I'll make a prediction
right now.

Whatever you end up sh**ting out
out here,

it'll probably be something
we're not thinking about.

RICK:
There'll be some strange stories

about Oak Island tonight.

Strange lights And-And sounds.
Yeah.

MARTY (chuckling):
If there's something here

we ought to find it.

(whooping)

NARRATOR:
As a new day begins

on Oak Island...

BRUCE: Greetings.
-MARTY: Hello, gentlemen.

How's everybody doing?

NARRATOR:
...brothers Rick

and Marty Lagina,

along with members
of their team,

have welcomed treasure hunter
Justin Cannady

and researcher Bruce Lindahl
to the w*r room.

Also joining them
via video conference

from his home in California

is Bruce's brother
Cort Lindahl.

-Hi, Cort.
-Hello, Cort.

(overlapping greetings)

NARRATOR:
As an author, researcher,

and professional land surveyor,

Cort Lindahl has spent
more than 40 years studying

the history and archeology of
both Europe and North America.

He believes he has made
an important connection

between the work
of Rick's friend,

the last author Zena Halpern,
and his own research

chronicling the possible
connections

of American's Founding Fathers
to the Knights Templar.

CORT:
Zena Halpern did a great job

exposing all of this.

And, uh, all of her research
may well apply

to what we're talking about
in many different ways.

MARTY: How so?
-CORT: Well, you know,

first of all,

the-the map that Zena Halpern
supplied you all.

Right.
-From examing the map itself,

I think that map could serve
as a bridge

that really does connect
Oak Island

to those French mysteries.

NARRATOR:
Two years ago,

Zena Halpern presented Rick
and the team

with what she believed to be

a transcription
of an ancient French map

showing possible treasure sites
on Oak Island.

NARRATOR:
Although the actual authorship

of the map is unknown,

it references the name
Rochefoucauld,

a French noble family
with direct links

stretching back to the days
of the Knights Templar.

The Rochefoucauld family
even has connections

to the Duc d'Anville
and the possible construction

or visit to the Money Pit.

Yeah.

I found eight pages of a ship--
what looks like a ship's log.

NARRATOR:
One year ago,

Doug Crowell found a transcript

taken from an
18th century ship's log,

reportedly authored by a member

of the 1746 naval expedition
to Nova Scotia,

led by the French admiral known
as the Duc d'Anville,

and which described
the construction

of a treasure shaft
eerily similar

to the original Money Pit.

a secret entrance

by a tunnel from the shore."

I mean, it fits
in every aspect.

Interestingly enough,
the Duc d'Anville,

his real name was
Jean-Baptiste Louis Fr\d\ric

de Rochefoucauld.

CORT:
Louis, uh,

Alexandre Rochefoucauld

was the son
of the Duc d'Anville

that lost his life
on the d'Anville expedition.

And Alexandre is a very
interesting character

because of his associations
with Thomas Jefferson

and Benjamin Franklin.

There is, uh, some degree
of probability

that Louis Alexandre
Rochefoucauld,

in his friendship
with Benjamin Franklin

and Thomas Jefferson,
may have actually told them

of Oak Island
or whatever secret was there.

NARRATOR:
Benjamin Franklin?

Thomas Jefferson?

Two of the Founding Fathers

of the United States
of America.

BRUCE:
They could have had part

of the treasure from Oak Island

as a way to finance the w*r,

and help, you know,
establish the new country.

MARTY: Holy smokes.
Wow.

CORT:
I've been amazed

by seeing all the connections

between the first families
of Virginia and New England

and these French patriot
families that all assisted us

in the Revolutionary w*r.

Throughout Thomas Jefferson's
time in France,

there's some chances
that he was even initiated

into a form of Knights Templar
in France

that the Rochefoucaulds
and others

may have been members of
at that time.

BRUCE:
All these families

were all involved

in secret societies
like the Templars.

MARTY: Right.

-That's true.
Like the Freemasons.

CORT:
We know Freemasons

who were Knights Templar,

that they had a hand in the
creation of the United States.

And that also in turn links us
back to George Washington,

who was a Freemason.
Yeah.

These French families who came
to settle in Nova Scotia,

actually corresponding

with George Washington
prior to the w*r

to try to convince him that
Nova Scotia should be part

of the American colonies.

And indeed,
Nova Scotia may have even

been planned to be
the 13th colony.

MARTY:
That's interesting.

CORT:
We know, uh, the number 13

in the colonies

came up because
they split Vermont

and New Hampshire in half

to make that number possible.

That's remarkable.

JACK:
Why was the number 13

so important
to the Founding Fathers?

I believe that number 13
was important

because it has kind
of sacred overtones

that we do associate
with Friday the 13th

and the story
of the dissolution

of the Knights Templar.

NARRATOR:
By the beginning

of the 14th century,

the military order
of the Knights Templar

had grown incredibly powerful
and wealthy,

fighting to protect
the interests of Christians

in Europe and the Middle East
during the Crusades.

But after falling into
great debt to the Templars,

King Philip IV of France
conspired

to have the order
falsely charged with heresy

and disbanded.

On Friday the 13th, 1307,

thousands in the order
were arrested,

tortured and ex*cuted.

Although a large number
of survivors

were known to have escaped
to Scotland,

there are many who believe
that they eventually set sail

for the New World
with ships loaded up

with treasure
and sacred objects taken

from their Crusades
in the Holy Land.

Is it possible
that the Templar treasure

was eventually deposited
on Oak Island

by members of
the Rochefoucauld family?

And if so, could a portion
of this treasure

have been offered
to George Washington

and the Founding Fathers

as a means of helping
to finance

the American Revolution?

BRUCE:
Do you think there was a time

when Washington actually
may have come

to Nova Scotia and Oak Island?

I-I'm not so sure

that George Washington
ever came there,

but we do know that as, uh,
Doug was telling me

about that, uh,
Appeal to Heaven design

that might be on Oak Island.

I see. Is that what you're
referring to right there?

-What's...?
CORT: the pine tree design?

-Yes. What's...
Yes.

Where does this appear

and where does this come from?

DOUG:
Appeal to Heaven.

It's the belief
in the right to revolt.

NARRATOR:
Although presented

in various forms,

the "Tree Flag,"
or "Appeal to Heaven" flag,

was commissioned
by General George Washington

when he became
commander in chief

of the Continental Army
in October 1775,

and came to symbolize
colonial resistance

toward Great Britain during
the American Revolution.

Well, there is something
like that.

PAUL:
It's in that, uh,

-stone that says "Evan" on it...
Yeah.

...that's on the north side
of the island.

I think it's towards
the Boulderless Beach,

but Charles could tell you
exactly where it is.

Yeah, it's down
on the shore, yeah.

NARRATOR:
Located on the northeastern

shore of Oak Island,

the so-called Evan's Stone

is a large boulder upon which
several words have been carved,

along with what appears to be
a branch or tree.

But is it possible
this crude symbol

has a more profound meaning,

one connected
to the United States'

most famous Founding Father

and first president,

George Washington?

So, you guys want
to go see this stone?

Okay.
-Yeah, I'd love to see it.

Yeah.

MARTY:
Okay, let's go out

in the field.

Following their meeting
in the w*r room,

Marty Lagina
and historian Doug Crowell,

along with Justin Cannady
and Bruce Lindahl,

head to Lot 14,

located on the northeast end
of Oak Island.

JUSTIN:
Beautiful out here.

MARTY:
The stone's down there.

Watch your step.
This stuff is slippery.

They are investigating
if a carving found

on the face of a large stone

on the island's northern shore

may actually depict
the Appeal to Heaven flag,

a battle flag commissioned
by General George Washington

during the American Revolution.

MARTY:
There you go.

JUSTIN:
Wow.

MARTY:
That's it.

JUSTIN:
I don't know.

This is really strange.

DOUG:
It does look like a tree though,

doesn't it?

JUSTIN:
It does look like a tree.

BRUCE: Yeah.
MARTY: Wow.

One, two, three, four, five,

six, seven, eight, nine, ten,

11, 12, 13.

JUSTIN:
Right. That's crazy

that it's got 13,

just like the picture does.

NARRATOR:
Is this stone carving of a tree

featuring 13 branches proof

that Cort Lindahl's
incredible theory is true?

Could some
of the United States'

most prominent founders,

such as Thomas Jefferson,
Benjamin Franklin,

and George Washington,

be connected
to the Oak Island mystery?

MARTY:
Cort Lindahl and Justin

and Bruce think

there may be
some connection between

Oak Island and maybe
the fledgling United States.

There's a symbol of a tree

on the eastern end
of the island

that was significant
to George Washington.

That's a connection.
That opens up my thinking

about what happened here.

Thank you for coming out.
Appreciate it.

Been a pleasure.
-JUSTIN: Yes, sir.

Been a pleasure, man.

NARRATOR:
Later that afternoon,

Rick and Marty Lagina head
to the Oak Island swamp,

where the team from
Eagle Canada are completing

their extensive seismic survey
of the entire area.

There they are.

-Hey, how you doing?
Good.

(chuckles)
you got It

pretty well worked up here.

Good morning.
-Hey. Jared, how you doing?

Yeah, we shot everything
last night.

So, how's the data quality look?

-Well, we only see
the raw data from here,

Right.

and the raw data
looks really good.

So we'll see what the power
of the stack does

when We put
everything together...

Right.

-...and we send it
to processing.

How long before

we might see something?

I'm guessing the processor's
gonna need about a month.

Then, after that,
Jeremy's gonna need

about two weeks to actually give

his report.
Okay.

NARRATOR:
Although Rick and Marty

are excited by the news

that the team from Eagle Canada

has completed their seismic
survey of the swamp,

they will have to wait
until next year

to act on the results.

All right, guys. Well, again,
thank you very much.

-Yeah, man. Thanks.
It was a pleasure.

Safe-Safe travels.

NARRATOR:
As Rick and Marty conclude

their meeting

with the Eagle Canada team...

BILLY:
I may try to go up this way.

NARRATOR:
...at Smith's Cove...

LAIRD:
I'm gonna just grab the shovel

and dig away a bit.

...area archaeologist
Laird Niven

and heavy equipment operator
Billy Gerhardt are continuing

to excavate the beach area

in search
of the main flood tunnel,

which, if found,
could lead the team directly

to the original Money Pit.

LAIRD:
Holy crap!

You got it there.

-BILLY: What's that?
the wall.

BILLY:
That's a third one then, right?

Yeah.

-There's this one here.
Yeah.

And then there-- but then
there's the one outside.

LAIRD:
Then there's a parallel one.

-That's number three.
Yeah.

-It's definitely running
parallel to this.

This one

-we didn't know about.
No.

NARRATOR:
A third wall

found just a few feet
from the other walls

discovered just one day ago
at Smith's Cove?

Could the team
have found evidence

of the main flood tunnel
that feeds

seawater into the Money Pit?

Continue to uncover it.

BILLY:
See how deep it goes.

Uh, it's a box.

There's a board on this end.
Look.

Got something here.

MARTY:
All right, what do we got here?

BILLY:
Well,

we're hoping
you can maybe tell us.

MARTY:
All right, I will.

I'm coming down here
to tell you what this is.

Okay, first tell me
where we were yesterday.

-Here, right?
Yeah.

We saw the front

of this wall yesterday.

So, our logic was
to dig behind it,

you know, and profile it down.

But then there was another wall,

which turns out to be

a shaft.

MARTY:
Is it a shaft?

LAIRD:
We assume so,

Yeah.
Looks Like

a sluice box or something,
doesn't it?

NARRATOR:
A sluice box?

Traditionally made of wood
or metal,

a sluice box is a device
designed to channel

and regulate the flow of water.

Could the team have found
a structure

that was put here
by previous searchers

as a means
of attempting to redirect

the flow of ocean water away

from a flood tunnel
guarding the Money Pit?

Or could it be much older

and actually be a part

of the booby-trapped
flooding system itself?

I'll tell you
what the problem is.

You can't finish
your dang job here

'cause you keep finding stuff.

BILLY: This is the trouble.
Yeah.

BILLY: This is the trouble.
-Tell you what, Rick,

whatever that is,
it's beautifully done, isn't it?

Artfully done.

MARTY:
That could be paneling

in your study.

Those boards are thicker
than these though.

LAIRD: Yeah.
-MARTY: Oh, yeah.

-RICK: So we've got

three structures
in very close proximity.

Someone was endeavoring
to do something substantial.

Needs more digging.

And until that happens,
I-I don't think

we can assess properly
what this may mean.

NARRATOR:
With another mysterious

but also promising discovery,

Rick, Marty and the team
can only draw one conclusion.

Their investigation of
Smith's Cove is far from over.

However, there is
another unfortunate reality.

Their time to explore
on the island this year

has come to an end.

Guys,
here's the unfortunate truth.

And facts are stubborn.
We're out of time this season.

Everything's closing in. We're
running out of permit time.

We're running out of weather.
We're basically done.

Let's get back to the w*r room
and discuss this.

-Let's assemble the guys.
BILLY: Yep.

RICK:
Let's go.

NARRATOR:
After another year of hard work

but also one filled
with surprising new discoveries

and compelling revelations,

brothers Rick and Marty Lagina
gather

with their partners
and other members of the team

in the w*r room
for their final meeting

on Oak Island this year.

-Hey, guys.
Sorry I couldn't be there.

(overlapping greetings)

NARRATOR:
Also joining the fellowship

via video conference

from Muskegon, Michigan,
is Marty's son, Alex.

Well, gentlemen,
it is that time again.

(chuckling)

Winter is closing in.

The weather is getting nasty.

We're running out of time.

The equipment has to go back.

So, it's time
that we all get together

to talk about Smith's Cove

and, most importantly,
where in the heck

are We going with it.
(chuckling)

GARY:
I think it's been a big success.

You've seen all the structures
we've uncovered,

sometimes on a daily basis.

Yeah.
DAVE: Yeah.

You cannot look at this picture
and say

we weren't successful
in accomplishing

What We wanted to do.
(chuckling)

I mean, there it is,
all laid out.

We ran into all kinds of
heretofore unknown structures

and what very much appears
to be an intact box drain

and a big slipway that
goes well out into the ocean

and the-the so-called
U-shaped structure.

Clearly massive structures.

Clearly well engineered.

And where we are right now
is we just uncovered,

as I believe everybody knows,

yet another structure
in Smith's Cove.

(chuckling)
-A big structure,

a massive structure.

And Craig-- I think
it was Craig who noticed.

They're vertical cuts.
This is dimensional lumber,

-but they're not circular...
Yes.

...saw cuts. So this was done,

perhaps, by hand.

ALEX:
I feel like, last year,

we found a lot of items,

but we didn't have
any information about them.

But, this year, I mean,
we have evidence that,

you know, something unrecorded

happened prior to the start
of the search process.

You know? Right in line
with the theories.

That actually is my biggie
for the year.

Absolutely.
MARTY: We had the wood samples

tested and the results dated
to 1769,

25 to 30 years prior to
the discovery of the Money Pit.

Right.
-I will say this, gentlemen.

Uh, before that revelation,

I was mulling this all over
in my head,

and I was thinking
there's nothing here

but searcher evidence
and was ready to sort of say,

"I'm sorry. Nothing happened
here except collective madness."

LAIRD:
Oh, no. I agree.

The U-shaped structure--

I was kind of excited about it
at the beginning of the season.

Assumed it was searcher

right up until...
Mm-hmm.

...we got the dendro result,

and then it just reset
everything to me.

Yeah.
you know?

Now we have a narrative we can--

We have a place to start.

MARTY:
Yeah, well, I have to say,

something did happen here.
Very significant.

Yes.
I have to.

The data says that.

So, the obvious question is,

were the structures in Smith's
Cove built by the depositors

of this treasure or was it

-an attempt to, um...
Recover?

...recover the treasure?

So, it's 1769, sir.

Are you here to make a deposit
or a withdrawal?

(laughter)

My assumption
would have been a deposit.

The evidence is there.

MARTY:
Dave, what about you?

They did not come
to retrieve it.

They came to put it.
(laughs)

MARTY:
All right.

Charles, I think I know,

but say it.
I think It was

-depositors, not retrievers.
GARY: I am in agreement

-with you, Charles.
-MARTY: Yeah, but wait a minute.

Let me ask it this way.

-If you had to bet,
Mm.

which way do you bet?

Is there still something here
worth finding?

CHARLES:
I would bet my life.

you would bet
your life savings?

-I would bet my--

No, I'd bet my life.

Based on what, Charles?

Based on a belief
that it's there.

MARTY: Okay.
I would bet my life.

I would.

Absolutely. Absolutely, Marty,

we definitely find something.

And I would bet my house and
my car and everything like that.

MARTY:
All right, okay.

How 'bout you, David?

Yes, I think
there's something there.

All right. Gary, which side
of the bet you taking?

I know there's something
down there. I mean,

that's like--
When I watch the hammer grab

going down there and coming up,

it reminds me
of one of those arcade games

where you're trying
to get a teddy bear.

(chuckling)
-We've all done it.

We couldn't do it.

Just need that lucky one grab.

MARTY:
How about you, Alex?

ALEX:
The question isn't,

Is there treasure there?

because there's no way
of knowing one way or another

until we're so lucky
as to find it.

The question is,

That's kind of what I'm trying
to get to, though, Alex.

That 1769 structure
says that to me, anyway.

Unless it was a withdrawal
and not a deposit.

God bless us.

NARRATOR:
After finding strong evidence

that a major operation
was conducted

on Oak Island
some 25 years prior

to the first reported discovery
of the Money Pit,

Rick, Marty and their team

are debating
a critical question.

Was the construction
at Smith's Cove the result

of someone depositing something
of great value on Oak Island

or evidence
of their removing it?

If it was deposited here
by the French

and the French were helping
the Americans

in the American
Revolutionary w*r,

which they clearly were.

Yeah.
-MARTY: So, they say they know

a rebellion's brewing.

They say, "You guys need money?

I can tell you where some is."

So they come up.
They dig it out.

They know the British are...

probably just two steps
behind them.

This is a British colony.

Sure, it is.

MARTY:
They know that those guys

are gonna get swamped
in the muck 40 feet below,

don't they?
They know that for sure.

It could tie up an entire couple
British warships

with people trying
to dig up a treasure

that is no longer there.

JACK:
But if they were withdrawing,

wouldn't they have shut off
the booby trap?

Yes.
Yes.

of course.
-There's no question about it.

DAVE:
If they took whatever's here,

you think they'd police
the areas

and cover everything up
as good as they did?

Why? Why?
-Why? What's the point?

You just dig it up, and you go.

-LAIRD: Oh, absolutely.
BILLY: Right.

You don't know for sure
if it's a deposit

or maybe it was taken

or whatever, but you could go
on another island

in Mahone Bay,
and I don't think you'd find

near the things
that we found here.

Yeah.

So, I-I really believe
that there's

definitely something
in Oak Island.

RICK:
If we had found nothing,

I'd probably be done right now.

Well, we found them coins.

Found a good number of those.

The bones were older
than any known searcher,

and the parchment.

JACK:
Yeah, what about

the bookbinding
that we found last year in H-8?

I rest my case on that alone.

CRAIG:
I agree completely.

The whole story, the whole quest
started at the Money Pit.

And after they...
You know, it flooded out,

then they went to Smith's Cove,

And then they felt
there was a flood tunnel.

Yeah.

Well, we've proven

that there was activity going on
at Smith's Cove.

Yeah.

MARTY:
I don't know, Craig.

I don't know.

But it sounds like a very strong
consensus around this table.

There's something
still worth looking for.

Uh, I could easily land
on the opposite side of that.

DAN B.:
Marty, i-in my opinion,

there's evidence
that has come out

where these people have worked.

And, I mean, when you can see it

and have it
and put it in your hand,

I mean, that's evidence.

You can't take that away.

And, I mean, if you want
to ignore it, ignore it.

But, I mean, at your own peril.

RICK:
I mean, look,

I think we have all respected
what-- Dan's advice

from a couple years ago,
you know?

Let's take a deep breath.
Let's sit back.

Let's think
about what we've done,

think about what we might care
to do in the near future.

So... it's a lot

to look forward to
in the near term

and-and as we look outward.

Right.

Okay.

It's been a great year.

I certainly want to thank

each and every person
around this table

for just a tremendous effort
and a job well done.

I feel really good
about what we did.

I feel really good
about what Rick led us to do.

Um, you know, we accomplished

the things
we set out to accomplish.

We explored where
we needed to explore.

So, Rick,
do you have anything to add?

RICK:
First and foremost,

to look around the table,
not only to see people

in pursuit of a common goal,

but friends, you know?

Family. And I'm grateful

that we're all here together.

And I also think that

it's been a long,
long year of discovery.

But to that end,
I am not dismayed.

I am very much looking forward
to the upcoming year.

And, uh, I would ask everybody

to put their hand in.

So, one in, all in,

once in, forever in.

Again, thank you very much.

-Let's go.
Amen.

Yeah.

NARRATOR:
For the Laginas and their team,

it has been
an extraordinary year.

Gary, you're the man.

Thanks, mate.

NARRATOR:
They not only conducted

the most ambitious efforts
in the history

of a 223-year search

for treasure on Oak Island...

see you later.
-Laird, you're the best.

...but they revealed
more pieces

to this complex puzzle
than anyone before them.

MARTY:
Been a great season.

NARRATOR:
And as the search for the clues

that will complete the picture
goes on,

one thing appears more certain
than ever.

MARTY:
Next year, the breakthrough.

NARRATOR:
Something profound happened

centuries ago on this
tiny North Atlantic island.

Take care, Dan.

NARRATOR:
Something that may have

impacted the fate

of the entire world.

All right, guys. Let's roll.

RICK:
There are significant questions

which remain to be answered.

But if there really is
a connection

to the American Revolution,

it is indeed a national treasure
for the U.S.

because it rewrites history.

It is a national treasure
for Nova Scotia

because the mystery is here.

MARTY:
It started out

as a bit of a lark, didn't it?

And then all of a sudden,
it became pretty intense.

(chuckles): I've been
kind of forced to pay attention

because of the magnitude
of this thing.

And I really believe
we are the only searchers

in 200 and whatever years

that have proved that something
substantial happened here

prior to the discovery
of the Money Pit.

To me, I-I can't overstate
how significant that is.