Yes. Lots of it. for real
Last summer, exactly 300 years to the day after a hurricane destroyed 11 Spanish ships off the coast of Florida, a salvage company made an incredible discovery worth $4.5 million.
And yes, there are real, modern day treasure hunters, who dive every day, finding treasure right up the road from Island Beach Resort and Shuckers.
Divers Dan Beckingham (left) of Sebastian, and Jonah Martinez, of Port St. Lucie, were working aboard the treasure hunting boat Capitana on June 17 when 21 silver coins were found (2015)
The Treasure Coast is a region of Florida on the state’s Atlantic coast, comprising Indian River, St. Lucie, and Martin counties. The region, whose name refers to the Spanish Treasure Fleet lost in a 1715 hurricane, emerged from residents’ desire to distinguish themselves from Miami and the Gold Coast region.
The term Treasure Coast was coined by writers at the Vero Beach Press Journal newspaper shortly after salvagers began recovering Spanish treasure off the coast in 1961. The discovery of treasure from the 1715 Treasure Fleet, lost in a hurricane near the Sebastian Inlet, was of major local importance and brought international attention to the area. Since the 60’s, locals, professionals, and tourists have had gold fever!
The S/V Capitana crew of Dan Beckingham, Jonah Martinez, William Bartlett and Brent Brisben show the treasure (Photo: 1715 Fleet/Queens Jewels LLC) 2015
Yes, treasure is still, to this day, found all the time along the Treasure Coast. Most of it is literally a stone’s throw from the shore in 10 ft of water. Don’t believe me? Sometimes it washes up on the beach and handheld metal detectors can reveal gold, silver, and other artifacts.
Click on the links below to read the full story about the recent motherloads found along the Treasure Coast.
National Geographic
Time
CBS
USA Today
TC Palm