At the heart of the Oak Island mystery is the original pit first discovered by Daniel McInnis, John Smith, and Anthony Vaughn in the summer of 1795. Soon and forever after known as the “Money Pit”. Undoubtedly named for what was expected to come out of it but alas, a name equally appropriate to represent the vast sums of money which have been poured into it over these many decades of searching.

Like many of Oak Island’s secrets, it is not known whether a “treasure” still rests at the bottom of the Money Pit, or once existed but was previously removed, or whether it was, as some speculate, a cunning diversion from the real location of the treasure, in whatever form that may take.

As previously stated there are conflicting views as to what was encountered at various levels as searches excavated the original pit, but it is reasonable to say that there were at least two or three oak log platforms and possibly more, as well as “marks” to denote ten foot intervals i.e. putty or charcoal.

From 1804 onward, when the search had resumed, there appears to have been more detailed records kept. This allowed for a more accurate picture of the shaft to emerge and yet there are still conflicting facts. One of the most intriguing of the early finds occurred at the 80-90' level. A stone with crude symbols cut on the surface was found face down in the shaft. You can learn more about this "inscribed stone" in another article.

It was shortly after encountering the stone that the searches were introduced to Oak Island’s most enduring and frustrating defense mechanism… water. In an excerpt from a highly regarded book on Oak Island, "The Oak Island Mystery" written by R.V. Harris in 1958, we learn that:

"Until the ninety-foot level was reached, no water had been encountered. At ninety feet, however, the earth in the centre of the Pit become softer and water began to show itself. At ninety-three feet it increased and they took out one tub of water to two of earth. Night coming on, they, as was their usual practice, probed the bottom with a crowbar to if they could strike anything below. At the depth of ninety-eight feet, five feet below, they met a hard, impenetrable substance, bounded by the sides of the Pit. Some supposed it was wood and others called it a chest. Then they left for the night to resume in the morning, when they fully expected to solve the mystery. This circumstance put them all in good spirits and during the evening a good deal of discussion arose as to who should have the largest share of the treasure. But their great expectations were shattered, for the next morning they found sixty feet of water in the Pit! Nothing daunted, they set to work to clear the water with their bailing buckets, but all to no purpose, for there it stood at the same height. They soon found that their appliances were not sufficient for the emergency."

The searches had unwittingly sprung the trap set by the original architects of the Money Pit to conceal and protect whatever it is they were protecting. The “Flood Tunnel” as it was deemed triumphed over numerous attempts to dig around it, under it, or avert its flow. The flood tunnel system is covered in greater detail in another article.

Many questions are often put forward regarding the Money Pit:

• Did the original builders/architects of the Money Pit have a way to turn off the water?
• Was the actual treasure buried in another chamber above the high water mark and yet concealed from the surface?
• Was there another way into the “treasure chamber(s)” that did not involve the Money Pit?
• Is the Money Pit simply a decoy to avert and occupy the searcher’s efforts i.e. why leave the tackle block (if it actually existed)?
• What if "what" was deposited there, was never intended to be recovered?

Regardless, reaching the bottom of the Money Pit should expose a connection to what was created on the Island and hopefully the nature of its purpose.

Even the circumstances surrounding the beginning of this story cannot be known with absolute certainty. There were no Facebook posts or Tweets to announce the event, no selfie photos or iPhone videos to capture the sequence of activities. These were far simpler times wherein even the written word was not always the norm in rural communities. Much was left to the oral tradition.

What we do have is the testimony of each generation of searchers who readily shared their knowledge with each subsequent generation. From 1795 onward, the story, while undoubtedly embellished, was never lost and eventually began to be documented.

Two of the earliest written accounts come to us in newspapers, the Liverpool Transcript of October 16, 1862 and the Colonist of Halifax in January 2, 1864, almost 70 years following the initial discovery.

Judge Mather B. DesBrisay’s History of Lunenburg County (1870) was the first to include the Oak Island story in a book and his introduction is as worthy as any, notwithstanding a preference towards the Captain Kidd theory prevalent at that time (and remains a viable candidate today). It is also worth noting that the daughter of one of the original discoverers, Ms. Mary Smith, lived with the DesBrisay family for many years and reasonably would have been a source of information.  We also have the Oak Island Treasure Company’s public share offering of 1893 which chronicles the newer discoveries made up until that date.

Those familiar with the Oak Island story will recognize that certain details in these early accounts do not fully align with other written versions of the circumstances by which Daniel McInnis first came to be on the island in 1795. Likewise is the case regarding the question of whether the old tackle block actually existed, the diameter of the shaft (7, 12, or 13 feet) or at what specific intervals oak platforms, charcoal, and putty were encountered in the shaft.

These specifics will never be known because the oral history is no longer verifiable. Regardless, we humbly submit that it simply does not matter because what was subsequently discovered at lower levels within and surrounding the “Money Pit” on Oak Island render those details moot.

Like any mystery, and to be certain Oak Island is one of the world’s greatest, there are fundamental questions to be addressed. Simply stated, one seeks to discover the Who, When, What, Where, Why, and How of the matter.

Incredibly, after two hundred and twenty plus years of research and investigation, we do not know Who and can only approximate When. There is no proof of What but we can entertain a notion of Where (but not exactly where). We do not yet understand Why because we don’t know the Who and the What. Finally, our understanding of How is predicated only to the extent by which we understand the workings thus far discovered… and that is likely not a complete picture.

Recognizing that the original workings on the island date back some three hundred, four hundred, or even more years, we still do not have definitive answers to these fundamental questions. While new information continues to be unearthed, discerned, and speculated upon, the mystery steadfastly remains.

How is that possible you might wonder? Indeed, how is it possible that such an undertaking, requiring what was surely a well organized cast of characters and resources has remained hidden from the pages of history? People talk, secrets are betrayed and yet in the case of Oak Island, nary a whisper of a clue has echoed down to us these many long years. One might begin to speculate that the old pirate philosophy of “dead men tell no tales” was employed with great precision.

The Oak Island mystery has outlived generations of searchers and yet there are always ready hands to pick up the torch. Individuals who have read the stories, studied the history, and remain convinced that the work undertaken on this small island off Nova Scotia’s southern coast hides a secret of epic proportions. Be that treasure of a mere financial nature, historical artefacts, or perhaps something of even greater value to our collective humanity.

Theories abound and this website will touch upon several of the more popular and credible of those put forward. There are of course people who do not believe in the mystery of Oak Island and many articles exist which debunk claims and put forth alternative theories to explain what has been discovered on the island. This is human nature and it remains the inherent right of each and every person to arrive at their own conclusions. Hopefully, any conclusions or opinions arrived at will be after due consideration is given to the amassed evidence spanning over two centuries of endeavour.

What the record does show is that from the original discoverers up to the present day many people have spent their entire lives fully committed to their belief that the mystery is real. Not only the original discoverers but in many cases, the children and grandchildren of those early searches and numerous other credentialed individuals throughout the ensuing decades. As the nature of the workings became known and various artefacts uncovered, their faith was buoyed and commitment strengthened. Some have lost fortunes in the pursuit of the answer and others have forfeited their lives. Such is the power and the attraction of Oak Island.

This website is not intended to be authoritative nor exhaustive on the subject of Oak Island but rather to provide a worthy introduction. There are many excellent books written about the Island and we would encourage all who share the adventurer’s spirit to partake of one or more of these books. As you acquaint yourself ever deeper with the facts, the discoveries, and the perplexing mystery surrounding Oak Island, you too may choose to pick up the challenge of matching wits with the mastermind(s) who so many years ago set in motion this great enterprise.

We offer a tip of the hat to all those who have come before and to those who yet toil in the search.