By Hannah Pennington, Published on Jul 28, 2022. Dimitrios Shipwreck. After La Salle's exploits in the Great Lakes, he led his followers down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico, claiming all he'd seen for France. Shipwreck Island starts out promisingly, with the mostly authentic voices of Sarah and Marco alternating chapters. It is believed to be the location of a treasure of five chests filled with gold bullion and coins worth today around $400 million. The ship was left stranded there in 1981, on the beach known as Valtaki. However, historian Chuck Feltner disagrees. It is near tiny Poverty Island in northwestern Lake Michigan and about 50 feet below the water's surface. Most of what you may read in the near future about this subject will be gleamed from a new book that has just been printed. A underwater tow sled is far more efficient. The Mystery of New York's Renegade Subway Psychic, Forget About What We Know About Roswell: It's What's Missing About the Case That We Need to Look For, Archeologists Discover Another Secret Corridor Inside the Great Pyramid of Giza, Why and How John Keels The Mothman Prophecies Got its Name, "What's the Creepiest Thing You've Ever Seen or Heard?" But off Poverty Island, a dot of land in northern Lake Michigan near Escanaba, French-Canadian brigands attacked the treasure ship and sank it, the legend says. Thegroup's search team has discoveredseveral shipwrecks, including that of the 172-foot schooner-barge Atlanta, found just last yearand deemed "still beautiful after 130 years on the bottom of Lake Superior" by society Executive Director Bruce Lynn. DON'T MISS:Mountain range disappeared into Yellowstone supervolcano magma chamber[INSIGHT]Scientists stunned at 'perfect' Ice Age discovery: 'Could have died[REVEALED]Mary Rose breakthrough: Ship was 'six minutes from being saved'[QUOTES]. (The program is free to the public but advance registration is required; search under calendar.rhpl.org, move the cursor to May 12 and click on "Solving the First Great Lakes Maritime Mystery."). The Poverty Island Wildfire ignited June 26, 2016 by a lighting strike on a 200 square-acre island off Michigan's Garden Peninsula in Lake Michigan. The story seems consistent, there were witnesses, and maybe it was real, but in the end,it is really just alegend. Similarly, in 2014, treasure hunters Kevin Dykstra and Frederick J. Monroe claimed the discovery of the wreck near Frankfort, Michigan. May I get to know you sir. As shipping traffic increased on the Great Lakes it was decidedthat a light was needed to guide ships safely thru the chain of islands at the entranceto Green Bay. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. It wasthe first big ship to sail the Great Lakes. Biology, nature, and cryptozoology still remain Brent Swancers first intellectual loves. Yet the battle to find The Griffin has been riddled with issues. Download our app for the latest, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Subscribe Today! He has spent many years in the Great Lakes searching for shipwrecks. In order to aid his driven search, he has enlisted the best equipment he can get his hands on, including a fiberglass homemade mini-sub to comb the gloomy depths at the bottom. Legend says the Island is the final resting place of four chests of gold once sent by the French to the Confederate Army during the Civil War. The State of Michigan continues to prevent an in-depth excavation. poverty island shipwreck. They want what theyve found preserved. Nevertheless, Bennett is quite confident that he is very close to the treasure. That s interesting. On November 21, 1996, a search team from the private research firm Intersal, Inc., operating under a permit from the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources found a cluster of cannon and anchors on the seabed near historic Beaufort Inlet. There are always five chests, and its always the same scenario., Records of 1863 shipwrecks are well preserved. Richard Bennett. Will Richard Bennett ever find the Poverty Island treasure? "Adventures on Forty-one Islands: Island No. La Salle and Father Louis Hennepin set out on the Le Griffon's maiden voyage on August 7, 1679 with a crew of 32, sailing across Lake Erie, Lake Huron and Lake Michigan through uncharted waters that only canoes had previously explored. Data on another 4,981 ships were . According to this tale, the Emperor arranged a secret shipment of gold bullion and coins to be brought overland through Canada and loaded onto a ship to be sent down the St. Lawrence River and into Lake Michigan en route to Chicago, where it was to be brought overland down South. It was then spirited down the St. Lawrence River and into Lake Michigan. Poverty Island lighthouse. It was built with the intention of finding a route through North Americas Great Lakes to reach China and Japan. I for one started before we had any formal search devices, side scan, GPS that sort of equipment. Support of that kind coming through the North was not probable. The advantage today is the sophisticated equipment available for such endeavors its available however not inexpensive. The best part are the flow charts, five pages with arrows pointing to what may have happened next. In 1679, La Salle ordered his ship built in the wilderness above the great falls, launchingLe Griffon five months later in early May. Without dreams life would be pretty boring. So you spent 35 years looking for this treasure, are you any closer to finding it? Mr Libert said: The ship has no indications of fire damage to the wooden remains. Since I began my latest job Ive been interested in it more as we have tech available that can discriminate gold returns from other metals. Its cold. That's a lot of our country," Steve Libert said. | Special to USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin, Traveling Back: Witnesses watch bridge lift car, police search for driver, Traveling Back: WWI vets honored fellow doughboys to the last man, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Local talent was used as the story was played out. Bennett has devised an ingenious underwater sled to comb the murky . At 3 a.m. on September 19, 1933, a sudden wind blew the vessel onto the rocky shore of Lake Michigan's Poverty Island. Beat of luck be safe and careful. The built-in tension in their family structure helps move the pace along initially, even though there's no sign of a story arc. Better to make it known and use the courts to reap a reward. Very interesting story. Extra Notes: This case originally ran on the November 11, 1994 episode. The Lake Serpent, an eight-year-old, 47-foot schooner, left Cleveland in September 1829 for the 55-mile trip to the Lake Erie Islands.Upon arriving at the island rich with limestone, the ship's . If they survive 100 years, they probably have an 80, 85% chance of being true.. But alas, lifes priorities and age dissolves their dream. Behrens and his crew of four escaped and took refuge on Poverty Island. . Today, Richard Bennett feels confident that he will succeed where others have failed. The Society's website, viewed last week, hadthree paragraphs about the Griffon, including the sentence: "In 2001, a famous Great Lakes shipwreck hunter, Steve Libert, claimed her wreck in northern Lake Michigan near Poverty Island." Or my brother Jim. Luck is as important as working capital. had a conversation with a salvage captain out of green bay many years ago whos father hunted for this treasure. There is a reason why this book is accruate if not so well definded. Even went so far as to buy a 2-man submarine in 1964 from a company in Fort Wayne called Nautilette, for the search. Part II If there' s treasure keeping cool among the rocks, boulders, and shipwrecks that litter the underwater mud around Poverty Island, it has led a charmed or perhaps cursedlife. Hopefully they do some side-scan sonar on it and they can get to the Bottom of the story! People believed the earth was flat for longer than that. Their hope is to prove that this is the ship that went missing for 343 years. The discipline it takes to write a screenplay is daunting at best. The Griffin, Mr Libert believes, was caught in a four-day storm. The treasure is believed to rest deep beneath the cold waters of Lake Michigan. But then it becomes clear that this is the book's major flaw. The cargo of furs, with an estimated value of 640,000 in todays money, likely sank with her. Sailors and divers have had odd experiences near this wreck. poverty island shipwreck. In Gytheio, you can find 'Dimitrios', a 67-meter-long ship, sunk and rusty, quite near the shore, easy to explore up close and swim nearby. Now that he believes he has found the clue to the location of the fabled Poverty Island treasure - five chests of French gold reputedly lost when pirates sank the vessel carrying the cargo in the 1860s - Libert finds himself in court attempting to prove he is the rightful owner of another shipwreck he says holds the key to the treasure's . What say you, Mate. The PADI 50 year Contributions Award 2016 Background: In 1863, as the tide of the Civil War was turning in favor for the Union, the Confederate States of America appealed to French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte III for a secret shipment of gold to bolster their economy. But, while delivering a valuable cargo of furs, it vanished amid rumours that she had been cursed by a prophet from the indigenous Iroquois tribe. At 3 a.m. on September 19, 1933, a sudden wind blew the vessel onto the rocky shore of Lake Michigan's Poverty Island. We are only talking about adding weeks to delivery time. Both the Door County Maritime Museum and the Wisconsin Maritime Museum inManitowoc were utilized for historical aspects of the story. They discovered the trunks while pulling up anchor, but before they could get it aboard, the anchor chain snapped and treasure and anchor were lost in the water. The Griffon had seven cannons, according to old French records, Kathie said. They must have a source where it could be integrated into a normal flow of gold supplies. Above in this page talked about the sea stories he heard as a young man. Even better than the equipment is luck Mel Fisher had this and it made him very successful where others failed. He's written articles for MU and Daily Grail and has been a guest on Coast to Coast AM and Binnal of America. But how could $400 million in gold end up on the bottom of Lake Michigan? The wooden and steel vessels didnt sink, they floated onto the rocks, were smashed to pieces, and distributed by currents and waves all around the bays half under water until they became waterlogged and sunk. The wreck was found near Poverty Island on Lake . By early 1864 the Union blockade was so strong only one in three blockade runners made it though. Distribution of shipwrecks globally North Atlantic - 3002 South Atlantic - 198 Mediterranean - 305 Indian - 313 Arctic - 124 Pacific - 3276. Many people dream about winning the lottery or being a great sports figure. Taking a new approach, Rick Lagina and Matty Blake return to Poverty Island in Lake Michigan to search for millions in missing Civil War gold. In June 2019, further misfortune befell the 200-acre island, which was struck by on-and-off fires throughout the land. La Salle named the shipLe Griffon, after the mythical creature whose body of a lion has the head and wings of an eagle. The Liberts' book also uses interpretative history color photosshot above water and below; Kathie's line drawings that depict the Griffon buffeted by the storm that sank it, as well as showing details of its likely hull design, and numerous contemporary maps of northern Lake Michigan. Le Griffon. Rrrrrrrrrr/shiver me timbers/another treasure story/ Im hopeing this ones true/all I can say is/PLEASE/PLEASE/BE CAREFUL/Ive personally saved 5 children from drowning / including myself twice/true story/ MAY GOD BE WITH YOU /and PLEASE donate/some of the findings to /ST. Scientists stunned at 'perfect' Ice Age discovery: 'Could have died Mary Rose breakthrough: Ship was 'six minutes from being saved', Archaeology: Shipwreck so well preserved you could walk down steps, 'Ship swallower' off British coast has claimed '50,000 lives', Bermuda Triangle bombshell as probe uncovered 80-year-old shipwreck. The Light was permanently deactivated and abandoned in 1995 and the old discarded lantern room laying on the ground was retrieved and used to restore the Sand Point Lighthouse ( you can see my post HERE). Learn how your comment data is processed. As we know the story of Poverty Island treasure has been around a long time. The production of cotton made the Confederacy's success of prime importance to the French leader. A fourth-order Fresnel lens was used in the lantern room to produce a flashing red light at a focal plane of seventy-eight feet above the lake. The story says several chests of gold, worth an approximate $400 million, were brought overland through Canada and loaded onto a schooner on Lake Michigan. Shipwreck hunters have been desperately searching for The Griffin since it sank to the murky depths of Lake Michigan while carrying a valuable cargo of furs in 1679. . Fire Island, N.Y.: Tony . The Lagina brothers, Rick and Marty . Wisconsin. Weve not been able to find any evidence that any of these vessels that were recorded to have been lost were sunk in the vicinity of Poverty Island or that they were French vessels, as the legend would have it to be.. There are several theories of where the chests came from, one of them being, Jesse Strang the King of Beaver Island and the leader of a Mormoncolony on Beaver Island with the gold was collected from his followers. According to Mr Libert, the state feels we are encroaching upon their sovereignty and feels we are nothing more than treasure hunters intruding on the rights of academia and archaeologists. The wreckage lies approx. so i thak people shood stop triying and this is my apinyin, i dont beleve this trezer reley egzists and i havint senn iny thing to shaing my mind. Steve Libert, a well-known Great Lakes shipwreck hunter and president of Great Lakes Exploration Group LLC, claimed he found the Griffon in 2001 in Northern Lake Michigan near Poverty Island. . I new book will be available in a few weeks, Some of the add-ons on this site are powered by. It sank in the North Atlantic Ocean during its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City on April 14th, 1912. Bring anything up remotely resembling an item from a shipwreck and they'll seize everything. I think you sent me an e-mail about your Poverty Island screenplay. I think it was cases of rifles, now they would be contraband. The ship log might also contain information regarding the treasure. Archive of past shows: 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2000 1999 1998 1997 You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. 2020 MYSTERIES & HISTORIES. I wrote a screenplay about a scuba accident and it was the thing sleepless nights are made of. Shipwrecks is a short novel translated from the Japanese by Mark Ealey. No new facts were discovered during filming,nor was any gold. Dean Anderson, the Michigan State Archeologist, examined the object, an alleged "bowsprit," and determined it to be a fishing net stake. Since its disappearance, it has been widely considered the Holy Grail for Great Lakes shipwreck hunters. Only time will tell. I spent my summers for 57 years snorkeling swimming and fishing in bay de noc. Pounded to pieces, the ship eventually sank. The Poverty Island Treasure story has been arranged and rearranged with the same slim two sentences or at most a few paragraphs. However I believe it to be factual regardless of what the naysayers say. We just had a basketball celebrity here in Milwaukee return to his childhood part of the inner city and consul youngsters in following their dreams. More info. He mentioned this ship. [2][3], On June 16, 2013, U.S. and French archeologists began examining an underwater object first discovered in 2001 near Poverty Island that could be the wreck of Le Griffon, although it will take time to determine if it is even a shipwreck. A 2272-ton cargo ship that wrecked off Namibia's . A coast guard boat carrying bodies arrives in port after the shipwreck. On November 2, 1933, Behrens filed a "Record of Casualties to Vessel." I have read the above comments and hope to provide you a feature movie someday. Likewise, they claim a bowsprit discovered a few miles away in 2001 is another part of the vessel. The island is about 250 km west of Athens in the Ionian Sea. The ship was 64.8 metres (212 ft 7 in) long, with a beam of 9.9 metres (32 ft 6 in) and a draft of 3.7 metres (12 ft 2 in). Now, the program was on its way toDoor County. It also lies in Michgan (the state) waters. I remember when we were working on raising the Alvin Clark from Green Bay Wisc.someone took our buoy off. This might seem like wishful thinking until you realize that in that era France coveted the steady cotton crop they received from the South, something it was thought would be disrupted with a Union victory. While closed to the public, a drone video from Eddie Verhamme allows viewers to explore the many wonders of this one-of-a-kind destination. Dear Richard, Ive also have read, years ago, in newspapers about the five sunken treasure chests linked together in bottom of Lake Michigan. Then you and I can conclude that persevering faith in hoping dreams to come true exists, to the non-believers. Now they're retired in Charlevoix, a four-hour boat ride from the dive site that they hope will someday disprove thenaysayers. He met Kathie in high schoolwhen he returned on crutches after a football injury and teachers asked her to carry his books. i beleve the boxis of gold will never be found or brat up for the simpel fakt The distance of 3.8 miles between the bowsprit and main sections highly suggests the Indians did not sink it either, nor did La Salles men mutiny and sink the ship. The best part- Courtesy Steve Libert "Probably 99 percent of that . It disappeared with a crew of six on its maiden voyage in 1679 after La Salle had disembarked near the mouth of Wisconsin's Green Bay. Poverty Islandis currently owned by the federal government. They allegedly reached out to none other than the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte III to request funds. A few years later, Karl Jesson, the son of the Poverty Island lighthouse keeper, reported watching a salvage crew that seemed to make an exciting discovery in Lake Michigan just before their ship was sunk by a storm.