The Curse of Oak Island (2014) s01e02 Episode Script

1
Previously on The
Curse of Oak Island
There it is.
Is this the spot where
they died?
Several generations risked life
and limb and died looking for
something here on Oak Island.
Here we are, borehole 10-X.
My brother and I want to see
just what is down there.
Whoa, whoa!
Stop!
There's something here.
Look at the films we
took.
That could be the top
of the tunnel.
We need to try and
bring up all the stuff that's
down in that cavity.
Wait.
That's metal, Rick.
Inside a rock.
Very cool.
It all started in
1795, when three young men
discovered a strange indentation
in the soil which, when
excavated, revealed bits of gold
chain, a small piece of paper
with writing on it, even a large
stone slab with curious codes
and symbols carved into it.
Dubbed "The Money Pit," the
strange hole was eventually
excavated by treasure hunters to
a depth of 90 feet, when one of
them hit a booby-trap which
flooded the shaft with seawater.
What was down there?
Nobody knows.
But three things are certain.
The island becomes an obsession
for all of those who try and
solve the mystery.
Six men have lost their lives in
the process.
And according to legend, one
more will have to die before
the treasure can be found.
So, is this where you
remember this anomaly to be?
No.
Over there.
Rick Lagina has
been obsessed with solving the
mystery of Oak Island since he
was 11 years old.
When I was growing up,
I would read adventure books,
Treasure Island books, Hardy
Boys mysteries, because they're
meant to fire your imagination,
your interest, your passion,
your willingness to explore,
and that's why I've always been
fascinated by Oak Island.
We're almost over
there.
His younger
brother, Marty, is a successful
engineer in the energy
business.
He has spent millions of dollars
of his own money in an effort to
finance his brother's dream.
It has its roots in
our boyhood.
We followed it together.
It was a thing that was exciting
to us in a period that you kind
of want to recreate, right?
Everybody wants to go back and
have that excitement you had
when you're a kid.
So, here's a chance to do that.
Together, they
represent what is probably the
best and possibly the last
chance the Oak Island mystery
has of getting solved.
Wait.
Now, that that's metal, Rick.
After finding a
strange metal object in one of
the island's many abandoned
treasure shafts, Rick, Marty,
and Marty's son, Alex, are now
investigating Smith's Cove.
Located just 500 feet away from
the original Money Pit, Smith's
Cove has long been thought to be
connected to the Oak Island
mystery.
Years ago, it was discovered
that the cove was man-made and
that at one time, there were
five stone box drains jutting
out to the ocean.
Box drains that may have fed
water to a tunnel that flooded
the Money Pit back in the 1800s.
Coming down!
Okay, guys, let's go
look at some maps.
All right, skipper.
Let's do it.
Show us where we're at.
Maybe go and find some
treasure.
Joining the Laginas
is Tony Sampson, an area
resident and professional
Divemaster.
So, right here, at the
moment, we're in on Oak Island
here.
Tony has been
exploring these waters for
years, and is eager to share
the results of one of his recent
dives near Smith's Cove, when
he found what appeared to be a
series of man-made stone
markers.
And if we flip over
here
What do you make of
this?
There's so much weird
stuff in here, you could start
up with myths and conjecture
forever.
Yeah.
We've got this anomaly
down here, which we thought may
be a shipwreck, but because of
the depth of the silt in this
area, we're not gonna pick up
anything there without using a
magnetometer.
Mm-hmm.
So what we're going to
focus on today is this anomaly
up here, this square rectangle
sort of shape that comes in off
the shore there.
Mm-hmm.
They possibly are
boulders, so you can see if you
look through the shore, you can
pretty much line her up with
that flat boulder and that
fallen-down tree that's on the
shore there at the moment.
All right.
So, basically, we're
gonna start here at 31 feet,
work our way in through here.
What you're expecting to see
down there is the rock, bearing
in mind it's been down there for
God knows how long.
If there is any little crevices,
any little holes, you know
Don't go there
Don't go sticking your
hand in there thinking you're
going to come out with Spanish
gold.
We're all gonna be
swimming like this.
Okay, so, what we're
gonna do, get kitted up on the
back there, run through our
gear, and make sure everything
works.
Then we're gonna splash.
Let's go look at this.
Okay, let's get ready.
Let's get suited up.
While Marty and
Alex prepare to dive off Smith's
Cove, their fellow treasure
hunters, Dave Blankenship,
Dan Henskee and Jack Begley
arrive at the 10-X shaft.
Yeah, it's nice and
light.
Good seasoned wood here.
What you think we're
going to find, David?
Dirt, rocks.
You want to set up over here?
While efforts to
pump water out of 10-X continue,
Dave, Jack and Dan Henskee
begin sifting the debris that
has been brought to the surface.
Debris that may contain
artifacts that haven't seen the
light of day for hundreds of
years.
I'm getting out of
the way when I see water coming.
That actually
That improves it quite a bit.
A lot of wood in this stuff.
Is this a piece of oak leaf?
Looks suspiciously like it.
If it can be
determined that the bits of wood
found in 10-X are from oak
trees, then it might be a
significant piece of the Oak
Island puzzle.
Oak trees are not indigenous to
the region, although they were
once plentiful on Oak Island.
How did they get here?
It has long been speculated that
Henry Sinclair, whose family
assumed leadership of the
Knights Templar, came to the
island from Scotland in 1398.
He is believed to have hidden
the treasure and then planted
oak trees to serve as a beacon
for other Templar members who
would follow.
The wooden planks that were
found at ten-foot intervals
during excavation of the
original Money Pit in the 1800s
were also made of oak.
If the wooden shards found in
10-X are similar to the oak
planks that were used to create
the Money Pit, then Dave, Jack
and Dan Henskee may be close to
discovering another important
clue.
It may be proof that the legends
describing a vast network of
underground mines and treasure
tunnels, all using oak beams in
their construction, are true.
Does this look like
brass or metal to you?
Is it magnetic?
Check and see if
that is.
I think it will be.
It feels like it's more steel
than anything else.
Yes, it is.
It jumped two inches.
I guess it's magnetic.
But do you think it's
rust or?
No.
No, you can see the
actual color of the steel if
you get it clean and look at it
at the right angle.
What do you think this
steel's from?
There's a tendency to
drop tools, obviously, when
you're working over the hole.
Oh, oh, wait, wait,
wait, wait, wait.
Oh, my gosh!
What does that look like to you?
Looks like a bone.
Small bone.
Oh, oh, oh,
another bone.
Here's what I'm wondering:
if there is the possibility that
these are actually human bones.
Human bones?
Down at the bottom of 10-X?
If so, how did they get there?
It could be a grave
down there.
What'd your dad see on film
that one time?
He'd seen a hand.
When Dave
Blankenship's father, Dan,
recorded video images at the
bottom of 10-X back in the
1970s, he was convinced they
revealed ancient tools
treasure chests
and also the headless torso of a
man half-buried in silt,
remarkably preserved by the cold
salt water of the
North Atlantic.
Is it possible that what Jack
found are bones from that
mysterious dead body?
If so, could it mean that the
island legends-- about slaves
being used to dig the tunnels,
then left to die-- are true?
That looks a lot like
a bone.
Oh, my gosh.
Uh, yeah.
That's a nice one!
It's got some distinct markings
on it, so I wonder if there's
someone who can analyze it and
figure out if it's human.
Yep.
Possible.
I'm gonna go package at least
these up that I've found.
All right, you guys
keep looking.
Maybe a little bit
tighter.
Back at Smith's
Cove, Marty and Alex prepare
to dive.
There's an anomaly
underwater that's supposed to
be pretty much right
underneath us.
We want to get down there,
we want to get eyes on it.
How's your mask?
Suck in.
The anomaly's supposed
to be some kind of a square
formation underwater there, and,
uh, but I don't know.
I don't know what it's gonna
turn out to be.
Alex, okay, hand on
your rig, hand on the mask,
then just roll backwards.
How you feeling?
How you looking, Marty?
I'm ready to go in.
I'm really looking forward to
scuba diving.
This will be the first time
I actually dive with the
intent to discover something.
It's exciting.
Unlike his brother,
Marty has always been somewhat
skeptical about Oak Island.
Before he commits the millions
of dollars needed to reexcavate
the Money Pit, he needs proof of
man-made activity that dates
before 1795, the year the Money
Pit was first discovered.
There you go.
Marty, Alex and
Tony begin their descent into
the frigid waters of the
North Atlantic.
Reaching a depth of 25 feet,
they begin scouring the ocean
floor, searching for evidence
of the mysterious stone
anomalies Tony claims he found
during a previous dive.
We're looking for
perpendicular structures, things
that don't seem to be natural.
But the dive conditions out
there are tough.
It's a very silty bottom.
It's very cold.
Visibility is low.
And those are all problems.
Suddenly, Marty
sees a large rectangular stone.
It's covered in dense undersea
vegetation.
Is this one of the anomalies
Tony was referring to?
Or could it be evidence of one
of the five ancient box drains?
Moments later, another
rectangular stone is found,
slightly smaller than the first.
Is it a coincidence?
Or were they placed here
deliberately?
And, if so, for what purpose?
Guy, do you feel
anything on that line?
No.
Marty and Alex are
down there.
I mean, it's, uh, all I see is,
uh, I see the cable.
I have no clue where he is.
I know they're certified
divers, they've done this
before, but if there's any
trouble down there, I'll be the
first one in the water, just
like they would be for me.
I believe, yes, he's coming up.
He's coming up.
But I'm also hopeful that
they'll actually get data back
on the boat.
That's what we're doing it for.
I'm a little worried right now,
because Alex, my nephew, was
buddied with his father Marty,
and, uh
Oh, there they are
Okay, he made the "okay" signal,
so everything's fine.
Keep going along that
line, Marty.
You're almost there, buddy.
No problem.
Beautiful thing, man:
three go out, three come back.
My day's good.
What did you see?
You know everything's
covered in plant matter
and stuff.
Right.
I was able to see two
rectangular rock structures.
One was larger than the other.
And then the Divemaster saw a
third one.
And apparently, they all
line up, kind of point
towards the island.
Which way is it going?
Large up there,
smaller, small.
It lines perfectly up with
that flat rock that's just
coming up out of the water there
now, and if you go up the hill
from there, towards the
Money Pit.
If you draw a line on the map,
it's almost perfect.
Really?
Yeah.
Three
rectangular-shaped stones lying
off the coast of Smith's Cove
and pointed directly at the
Money Pit?
A coincidence of nature?
Or could it be a link to
another earlier discovery
found here.
In 1967, Oak Island treasure
hunter, Dan Blankenship,
discovered a large stone
with the letter "G" carved
inside of a rectangle, similar
to the Masonic symbol for God.
Could it have been a key piece
of evidence that the Freemasons
played an important role in the
Oak Island mystery?
Or, as many historians believe,
could it prove to be an
important link between the
modern Freemasons and the
Knights Templar of the
14th century?
It's very interesting
that it lines up with that rock,
because everything of
significance on the island
relates, seems to relate
to rock.
When I got out of the
water, I really was sort of
shrugging my shoulders because I
thought, "Okay, so why would
anybody make structures
underwater?"
But if you want to hide a
pointer, it would actually work
really well.
Well, that's
interesting, 'cause these
are flat.
What do you think?
A lot more exploration
needs to be done.
Okay, so let's wrap up.
Let's get on in.
Fantastic.
Not a worry.
Thanks so much, mate.
All right, thank you.
At the nearby
Fo'c'sle Tavern, Rick, Marty and
their fellow treasure hunters
have gotten together to review
the day's progress and
strategize their next moves.
The thing that we
really found out that was
relevant, and I think the
Divemaster explained it to you,
was that there were four of
these anomalies in a line, and
what we need to do, what we
should do, is snap a buoy out on
one of them and connect that
line to any known anomalies
on land.
Look, I'm willing to
go down that road a certain
amount, Rick, but I don't get
it.
I don't know.
Let's say they line up
perfectly.
How would ancient peoples have
even done it?
I (chuckles)
If I had that answer,
we wouldn't be doing this.
(all laugh)
All right, what else?
Well, we've started
Jack on the sediment.
So what's your perception of
where that sits and where we're
gonna go?
It took us a little bit
to get going, but very quickly
we discovered something, and I
actually brought it here, if you
guys want to see.
It might brighten up your day,
Marty.
Yeah, yeah.
Would you do that, please, Jack?
It's kind of weird.
Go ahead and brighten
up my day?
Here's what looks like
metal, kind of like what you had
found earlier.
I know metal is
difficult to date.
Yeah, but it's real
easy to date bones.
We can see if they're actually
human bones, opposed to some
sort of animal's.
How many animals could
have fallen down there?
Well, he said he had a
couple cats, but
Yeah, I've lost
kittens down 10-X, you know.
You did?
Yeah, the kittens get
there and they go, "What's
this?" and they don't have any
sense of height, 'cause they're
just little kittens, and down
they go.
They jump in there?
I made a specialty
a net device for fishing the
dead ones out, but, you know,
uh we try to keep the thing
covered, but they get in there.
Well, there's a source
of some bones.
Yeah, yeah, as I say,
well, I got
I think I got
them all out.
(laughter)
I know
I know Dan
can speak to this.
There's supposedly a body down
in that cavern in, in 10-X.
That's completely
true.
Basically, Dan Blankenship saw
the hand and, uh, Dan always
said that at that particular
time, the water wasn't
particularly murky and they had
a good image.
David actually believes
that.
Right, David?
Yeah, well, I believe
what Dad said.
Leave no bone
unturned.
I mean, I
Anything, any bone you find,
yeah, you collect it.
And you give it to a scientist
who specializes in such things
and it's a human bone?
My excitement goes way up again,
because it would be a, uh, game
changer.
But you know, it is somewhat
disappointing, because what I
wanted you to put on that napkin
is shards of gold.
Me, too.
There's a camaraderie
that, I think, always develops
on a quest.
Charles and Henskee and the
Blankenships.
We've had a bunch of family
members come out here, and it's
like a platoon, all on a common
quest, and that's a neat thing.
All right, do we have anything
else?
With Dan Henskee's
help, we're gonna search for
coconut fiber up in Smith's Cove
tomorrow.
Okay, good.
Anybody else?
Anybody else got anything?
Okay.
Can we get down to serious
drinking here?
All right, guys.
I think this meeting is
concluded.
To success.
Yeah, finally.
Drinking time.
Back at Smith's
Cove, Jack Begley and Dan
Henskee begin looking for
coconut fiber.
You ready for a coconut
fiber hunt today?
You bet.
You think we're gonna
find anything?
I hope so.
You found this coconut
fiber before, right?
Dan is convinced
that he found coconut fiber
several years ago during an
earlier search at Smith's Cove.
Ah, yeah.
I was exploring a magnetic
anomaly, and found a trench.
And, uh, and checking that out,
I found this little swatch of
apparent coconut fiber, and, uh,
it looked exactly like the
picture in the book.
Apparently, coconut fiber was
used for stabilizing cargos and
ships for many years.
But just why is
finding coconut fiber on Oak
Island so important?
When workers in the 1850s
discovered that the water that
flooded the Money Pit was rising
and falling with the tide, it
was thought that Smith's Cove
might be the source.
Digging into the sand, they
found evidence of five stone box
drains covered with several
layers of coconut fiber, each
converging on a point leading to
the Money Pit.
The coconut fiber acted as a
sieve to allow water in while
keeping the drains from becoming
clogged with sand and other
debris.
But how did such a large amount
of coconut fiber end up on the
shore of Oak Island when the
nearest coconut trees are
located some 1,500 miles away?
Was it really brought here to
help in the construction of an
elaborate booby trap?
If so, who built it?
And perhaps even more important,
what was it designed to protect?
Let's get started
here.
How far?
Till I tell you to
stop.
I hope this works.
That looks good, there, the way
you got that stake.
Once again, ocean
water is proving to be the
single biggest obstacle the Oak
Island team faces in trying to
solve the mystery.
This is the spot that
I want to mark.
This could very well be the spot
where I was digging, but, uh, we
also have to beat the tide
coming in, so we'd better get
working fast from here on in.
Let's get to digging.
All right.
Let's see if we can
find anything other than more
stones, gravel, and mud.
Jack Begley and Dan
Henskee are in a race against
the tide.
Dan is convinced they are
getting close to finding a mass
of coconut fiber he remembers
seeing at Smith's Cove 20 years
ago.
Finding it could be an important
step in proving to Rick and
Marty Lagina that at least one
of the many Oak Island legends
is true.
But a lot has changed over the
years, and Dan only has his
memory to rely on.
Heard you guys needed
some help?
Yeah!
You guys good at digging rocks?
As good as you can get
at that, I guess.
We're slowly trying to
drain this down, so we can get
at where, uh, the coconut fibers
are.
Where do you think
they are?
Kind of right by that
big rock.
Just in the water, just past it.
All right.
Yeah.
We only have maybe two
or three hours, because the
tide's coming back in.
So we're under the gun.
We're digging like crazy, and
we're trying to get the water to
drain, and we know after we do
that, we still have to dig a big
pit and look for coconut fiber.
This what you guys expected,
coming out here?
Did you think you'd be doing
this all summer?
Oh, yeah.
Oh, I love the way
the water's clearing.
I just don't think we
have much time to do this.
By the time we get
done, it will start filling
back in.
How's it look, Dan?
The coconut fiber
should be in this general area,
and if I'm right on the
measurements, this line right
here, and probably right about
here, where I'm finding all this
sand
So we know this is
the spot?
It's definitely the
area.
This is very much where where
we should be digging.
We're making progress
here.
Let's keep doing this.
Yeah.
The tide left a lot of
small tidal pools in the area
that we're trying to dig.
So, basically, we built these
little coffer dams and we
started bailing water on our
own.
Dan Henskee's digging a pit
where he thinks the coconut
fiber is.
But we're really just hoping
that we find anything.
Dan, what exactly does
coconut fiber look like?
Well, if you can find
a supermarket that has coconuts
which are not quite as
completely peeled, that's the
fiber that you're finding on
coconuts.
So, we're looking for
the outside of a coconut
in here.
Yeah, it's the
same obviously the same
color, the same type of fibers,
pretty much like somebody's
brown hair.
Dan Henskee has
been searching for treasure on
Oak Island for more than four
decades.
Along with Dave Blankenship, he
helped Dave's father, Dan
Blankenship, dig 10-X to a depth
of more than 235 feet.
To this day, he insists he's
seen ghosts, demons and other
strange occurrences on Oak
Island.
One time, several years ago, he
became so frightened he stripped
off his clothes and swam naked
back to the mainland.
All he took with him was a globe
of the Earth, a text book on
advanced calculus and a copy
of Elvis and Me by Priscilla
Presley.
Guys, the tide's
getting close.
We gotta hurry.
Dan and the boys
have cleared enough water away
so they can finally dig, and see
if Dan's plan to find coconut
fiber will actually work.
Oh, what's that?
Let's see if we can
get this down a little farther.
Don't hold your breath, though.
This is Oak Island.
Right there, eh?
Uh, that's quite like it.
Whoa!
Whoa!
Whoa!
Is that the mother
lode right there?
That looks like it.
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, there it is!
No way!
No way.
I think that is.
Coconut fiber on
Oak Island?
Could it really still be here?
Yeah, that's it.
Buried in the
ocean, sand, and rocks after all
these years?
Looks like it to me.
And just a few
hundred feet from the Money Pit?
It looks like the
fiber, doesn't it?
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah!
Guys, the tide's
getting close.
We gotta hurry.
I mean, we got maybe
ten minutes tops.
Well, as long as
everybody keeps doing what
they're doing.
This looks like more
right there, right there.
Ah.
Check that out.
That's, uh
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Well let's find out.
It's the same.
Is it?
Then, this must be,
too.
That's what I was looking for.
It looks like heavy brown hair.
I was really excited to
find the coconut fiber.
I was really surprised
to see it there.
I couldn't believe it.
(laughs)
Ah, yeah, the water
is rapidly arriving.
I can count the seconds now
until we get flooded out.
Wow.
It's coming in quick.
Now, you suppose that
anybody can walk in here and not
see that if you're looking
for it?
Uh, yeah.
Hey, guys?
All right, guys, get over here.
I gotta say as the skeptic, I
didn't think we'd find anything.
But I can't believe we found
what we did.
So, I mean, I would say this was
a success, guys.
We gotta go tell Uncle Rick.
I mean, he won't believe this.
He's gonna be ecstatic.
Let's go tell him.
Can't wait.
Let's go.
You got everything?
Yeah.
Can't believe it.
Okay.
Nothing but good news, right?
We got good news and we
got bad news.
Uh, I'll take the bad
news first.
We were having some
trouble with the tide.
Yeah, I know that.
And we didn't have a
lot of time.
Even with it cleared out and
draining, you've got water, you
know, seeping out of the ground.
If we want to look there again,
we should get like some kind of
a pump to make it easier to
drain.
We're gonna get a
three-inch pump tomorrow.
And the good news?
You guys actually found
coconut fiber?
It was in the same spot
as Dan thought.
That's incredible.
How deep?
We had to dig about two
feet down.
It's beautiful stuff.
I didn't think we'd
find anything.
Always keep your eyes
open on Oak Island.
You'll never know when the
island gives you a clue.
There's a story here.
I believed it when I was 11
years old, and I believe it now.
And for me, it's not just the
retrieval of whatever's been
buried on Oak Island.
The endgame is to solve
the mystery.
We got proof.
Yeah.
Cool.
Yes!
Great!
I know, I know!
That is great!
You, sir, are gonna give that to
your dad and make him eat it!
Yeah!
The first words out of
his mouth are gonna be, "Are you
sure it's coconut fiber?"
I guarantee it!
That's cool.
I'm proud of all of you.
It's a great job.
Wonderful day.
We're not giving up.
If you give up, you
know you're not going to
to succeed.
No, I guarantee you
we're not giving up.
Tomorrow's another day.
Let's have at her
and get it done.
After finding what
they believe to be coconut fiber
at Smith's Cove, Alex, Jack,
Peter and Oak Island historian
Charles Barkhouse head to nearby
Acadia University to get the
samples tested.
Oak Island
is like a thousand-piece
puzzle with 400 pieces
missing.
Yeah.
You know, and this
is just one piece that we could
put into the puzzle, you know.
Right.
If the samples they
found do, in fact, turn out to
be coconut fiber, then the
stories of ancient box drains
are very likely true.
It could be the first step in
proving that there were visitors
on Oak Island prior to 1795
visitors who might have buried
something of great value there.
So, let's go through
our top theories for this thing.
Okay, one of the
more popular theories is the
Knights Templar.
So, theory one,
Knights Templar.
Yeah,
Knights Templar.
On Friday the 13th
of October, 1307, several
members of the Order of the
Temple of Solomon-- or the
Knights Templar-- are about
to be put to death.
It seems the Templars have grown
too rich and too powerful
after centuries of fighting in
the Crusades.
They are believed to have
captured millions in gold and
precious religious artifacts.
Now the Templar are seen as a
threat, particularly by Philip
IV of France, and with the
blessing of Pope Clement V,
they are rounded up
tortured
and burned at the stake.
But not before Jacques de Molay,
the Grand Master of the Order
of the Knights Templar, issues
a curse on the heads of both
Philip and the Pope.
Within a year, both Philip and
the Pope are dead, and to this
day, no one has ever found the
hiding place of the vast
Templar treasure.
In 1307, when the
Templars were arrested in France
and throughout Europe, we know
at least 12 to 14 treasure ships
left La Rochelle, France.
And where those treasure ships
went, we have no idea.
They might have gone to Scotland
first, and then from Scotland
they might have come to
the New World.
That's one of the theories
that could be on Oak Island.
Okay, what's theory
number two?
It's a Spanish ship
that ended up in Mahone Bay,
possibly from a storm, did
repairs on Oak Island, and then
buried some of their
treasure there.
That's Dan's theory: some kind
of a conspiracy between Spanish
captains to siphon off.
All right, this looks
like it, 427.
Here we go.
Hey, how's it going?
Hi.
Good.
Hi, I'm Roger.
I'm Alex, nice
to meet you, Roger.
Hi, Alex.
Dr. Roger Evans is
a biologist at Acadia University
who specializes in the physical
characteristics of plants and
how they reproduce.
And so I hear you have
some fibers.
We do.
Of all things,
coconut fibers.
Yes.
The members of the
Oak Island team are hoping that
he can verify that the samples
they found buried in the beach
at Smith's Cove are, in fact,
coconut fiber.
If they are, it will be the
first time coconut fibers have
been discovered since Rick and
Marty purchased most of Oak
Island six years ago, an
important sign that stories of
priceless treasure being hidden
on this island might very well
be true.
Wow.
Here's everything that
we've found in here, and then,
um, this is some that was
confirmed to be coconut fiber.
Okay.
This was looked at, and
we thought it would be easy to
compare the two that we found
now with that one.
Okay.
These look good and dry.
Fibers are really just normal
cells, and then what happens is,
this chemical lignin enters that
cell wall material, and it makes
it like steel.
Only bacteria and fungi can
break down lignin.
So that's what makes it
so strong.
It's that strong.
Interesting.
And that's what makes
it last hundreds of years.
Okay, this is what
we've got here.
This is wet.
Excellent.
You can choose a sample
out of there, yeah.
This also feels like
hair.
Because I know what the anatomy
of the end of a coconut fiber
looks like, we can take some of
the specimens and look at them
with a scanning electron
microscope and look at the end
of them, to see if we can see
the straw within a straw in the
two samples.
And so I'll show you on the
chalkboard what I mean by a
straw within a straw.
Okay.
All right.
Great.
So we have a bunch of
fibers, right?
They essentially look like that.
So, if you were to take one of
these and look at it end-on--
we'll magnify it-- each
individual fiber is made up of a
number of other fibers.
And we'll see if we can see this
pattern in the fibers that you
guys brought with you.
Great.
I'm ready for that.
Let's go take a look.
Yeah, let's go see it.
Lead the way.
This is the pre-screen
stuff that came from down below,
right?
While waiting for
the results of the coconut fiber
test, Rick and Dave go back to
sifting the debris that has been
collected from 10-X.
What are you looking
for, Rick?
You know what we're
looking for.
Stuff like that, you know we can
get
Rust!
Yeah, but who knows
where it came from?
Come on, it's the steel
that's fallen into the water.
You think that.
You don't know that.
No, I know it.
No, you don't.
Yes, I do.
No, you don't.
We're putting all the finds over
here.
No, you don't know it, how would
you know it?
'Cause I know what rust
looks like.
There, look at that.
Chicken bone.
Somebody can look at
that and say, "You know what?"
It's a bottle of
whiskey.
You're wasting your money.
Well, how come, with
you, everything is, you know,
'Cause it ain't!
That ain't true.
All right.
You want to save all
this (bleep) or what?
Yes, we are.
We're saving all of it.
Not only that, but here's the
thing
I'm gonna go back to
the barn and try to come up with
an idea, something that can sift
this through en masse.
This is not gonna work,
scale-wise.
Come see me two hours later and
I'll have something figured out
that's better than this system,
I guarantee it.
So you design it, and
I'm going for a drink.
Go, off you go.
Right.
Back at the lab,
Alex, Jack, Peter and Charles
are eager to find out if what
they found at Smith's Cove
really is coconut fiber.
First, they look at a sample of
known coconut fiber.
Okay, there it is.
It's in focus now.
We can increase the
magnification.
That is so cool.
Wow.
Yeah.
So the magnification
is now 650.
Oh, wow.
Okay?
Way better.
You can see it, eh?
Yeah.
So remember, this is
the one that was confirmed as
coconut fiber.
Yeah.
Yep.
You can see the
individual cells and those
bundled together.
So now the real test is
let's go down to the wet one.
And I would say without a word
of a doubt that's coconut fiber.
Oh!
Yep.
Absolutely.
Yeah.
Yeah, so we found it.
Genuine coconut
fiber!
And found at Smith's Cove!
If it can be dated to before
1795, the Oak Island team may
have found their first important
clue one that could
ultimately help them solve this
200-year-old mystery.
This'll be a story to
tell the students in my, uh,
second-year course, when they
ask me why they need to know
botany.
That's pretty cool.
All right, so let's
get some pictures.
You guys can take them back to
your skeptics, you can take them
back to your museum, and, uh,
you can show the world that you
found coconut fiber on Oak
Island.
Awesome.
Hello?
Rick, hey, Rick.
Yeah, Alex, what's up?
I'm calling with some
news for you.
Okay.
What do you got?
Well, we, uh, we
checked those coconut fiber
samples out under a scanning
electron microscope.
Yeah?
They're confirmed to
be the same, man.
Really, he told you
that?
That's what he said?
He-he confirmed it?
He actually confirmed it?
You're not you're not kidding
me, right?
Nope.
This is for real.
Wow.
That's great news!
I'm proud of you guys.
I was proud of you the day you
found it, and you hit a home run
today.
Yeah.
And maybe, just maybe,
the tide has turned.
Maybe we caught a break.
Do you want to tell my
dad or should I?
You make the call.
Okay.
Hurry up and get back,
okay?
Sounds good.
We'll talk later.
All right.
See you.
Hurry back.
It was a tremendous moment.
I could hear the rest of the
boys going, "Yeah!"
So it was a great, great moment.
Because there's skepticism with
my brother, one of our agendas
was, hey, let's find
something one thing.
Yes!
Finding coconut
fiber at Smith's Cove could be
the first real breakthrough for
Rick, Marty and their fellow
treasure hunters.
It might also be the tangible
proof Marty needs if he is going
to pump more time and money into
his brother's dream.
But three big questions remain:
How old is it?
Who brought it here?
And for what purpose?
Shortly after
getting the lab results which
proved that the dark, fibrous
substance found at Smith's Cove
was, in fact, coconut fiber,
Marty and Rick sent the sample
to Marty's business partner,
Craig Tester, back in Michigan.
All right, guys.
Craig has some results.
So he's agreed to share those
with us.
Craig!
Craig.
Hey, Craig.
Look out!
How you doing?
I'm doing real well,
doing real well.
Craig has been
conducting further tests to see
if the fiber can be dated to
before 1795, the year when the
original Money Pit was
discovered on Oak Island and the
200-year search for treasure
began.
Make us happy.
Okay, I got test
results in on coconut fiber
found on the beach.
They're dating it between 1260
and 1400 AD.
So, it's old, old, old stuff.
That's what I figured.
Did they give you,
like, a degree of accuracy?
A 95 percentile.
That's what I'm
wondering
95%.
Well, that's good.
I hope you write that
down.
I'm writing it down.
In big letters.
Big letters.
Well, now, here it is.
In your face.
This is real coconut fiber.
What do you think about that?
Just a minute.
I'm digesting it.
That is very, very interesting.
There's no denying this
now.
I don't care how great my
brother's skepticism is, he has
to come around at this point.
That's great news,
Craig.
That's wonderful.
Because if it was 1920, we were
all gonna be hanging our heads
in here.
The coconut fiber revelation was
exciting.
It makes you say, maybe there's
some validity to all this.
And that's fun.
Because what drives me, really,
when I think about it, is I'd
like to have some fun.
I mean, if this quits being fun,
you know, I'm going to try and
talk big brother into into
getting out of it.
I'll make sure it's
fun.
Yeah.
Look, Craig, thanks a lot.
We'll keep stuff coming your
way, we'll keep you informed,
we'll talk to you later.
See you.
Take care.
Thanks, Craig.
Yep.
Okay, let's go.
We got stuff to do back in the
field, right?
Yep.
For Rick and Marty
Lagina, finding coconut fiber on
Oak Island is a big event.
But getting lab results which
date that fiber to between 1260
to 1400 is even more exciting.
It means that the substance was
most likely brought here nearly
400 years before the Money Pit
was discovered.
Does this evidence validate the
stories of Spanish pirates-- and
possibly the Knights Templar--
frequenting the island back in
the 1300s and 1400s?
But why would they-- or anyone--
bring coconut fiber, and massive
amounts of it, all the way to
Oak Island?
Was it to build the box drains
that would feed flood tunnels?
Flood tunnels that would serve
as booby traps for anyone who
dared to dig here?
And what was so valuable-- or so
dangerous-- that it needed to be
protected in such an elaborate
way?
Those are the questions that
Rick and Marty Lagina
Join that one to that
one.
along with their
fellow treasure hunters, are
determined to find out.
I don't see no gold
nuggets.
No gold nuggets.
Questions that have
obsessed those who have dared
try and defy the curse of
Oak Island.
Next time on The
Curse of Oak Island
Someone's coming to
visit the island.
Her father and her brother died
looking for the treasure.
They were too close.
Oh, God
I'm just afraid you
might get stuck there.
The spirit of a dead priest
has entered my body.
I feel like I'm constantly
looking over my shoulder.
Like there's something
watching you from behind.