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THE MYSTERY OF THE MONEY PIT POSTCARD, PART 1


Oak Island Treasure UK Website

The Money Pit Postcard is a very iconic piece of Oak Island history that captures work at the Money Pit with a boiler and several people around it in the background. The biggest question that has been attached to it is when was the picture taken? In Season 1 of “The Curse of Oak Island”, Episode 3, “Voices from the Grave”, the picture is shown, and attributed to 1861, which was during the time of The Oak Island Association operation when reportedly the boiler exploded, and a man was killed. This opinion was backed up by Dan Blankenship, and many other very notable current and past researchers. In this picture, there is a building to the right that is believed to have been John Smith’s Barn. It was also believed to be the earliest known picture of work at the Money Pit. Compendium Investigations noticed something very intriguing about the picture which launched our research into it.


Nova Scotia Archives


Compendium Investigations located what appears to be an original picture of the scene that was used to make the postcard. You can notice what appears to be fog or haze on the left side of the picture in the background. The Compendium believes this is most likely a discharge of steam from the boiler that showed up in the picture. It appears whoever made the postcard edited and airbrushed the original picture to make the finished product very pretty and neat. This seems to have been standard practice at the time and not anything out of the ordinary. Although, Compendium Investigations located another picture of the same scene that appears to indicate that this steam in the picture is hiding a very significant structure.


World Wide Magazine, May 1920


World Wide Magazine, May 1920

The Compendium located an article from the Wide World Magazine, May 1920 called “Pirate Gold. The Buried Treasure of Mahone Bay” by Walter Noble Burns. The picture in the beginning of the article is the exact same scene as the postcard picture but at a slightly different moment and angle. In the left side of the picture there appears to be a roof of a house with a chimney in the middle of it. This structure matches the same description as John Smith’s House, with the position of the chimney in the same spot that supposedly held the 90ft stone. It appears that the house is at a slightly lower elevation. There is no known picture of John Smith’s House that has been confirmed. This is important because Smith’s House and Barn were always used as landmarks to locate the original Money Pit, and if this is correct, the picture could potentially be used to pinpoint the exact location of the Money Pit.

The Curse of Oak Island, The History Channel

As our series continues, we will examine some more details from these pictures and others that reveal some very interesting observations. This includes evidence that reveals when the postcard picture was taken. We will also be looking at several maps and surveys of the Money Pit area that do not agree on the exact location of Smith’s house/foundation. This indicates a real possibility that Smith’s house/foundation was being obscured and the exact location of the Money Pit was not where everyone thought it was. This harkens back to the famous quote from Indiana Jones and Raiders of the Lost Ark, “They’re digging in the wrong place!”. To be continued…


And Happy Birthday today to the best research partner in the world, Charlotte, who is an absolute pleasure to work with and the better half of the Compendium. Enjoy your special day.


Good day from the Compendium!



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