My underwater treasure hunt

[oceancorpD59]

Hi everyone, my name is Justin and I'm a former commercial diver in the Gulf of Mexico. I worked mostly as a pipeline diver/tender in the early to mid 90's for a company called Norman offshore pipelines, Lafayette, La. as well as Offshore Diving and Salvage out of Pasadena Tx and Houma La.

Before hurricane Andrew there wasn't a great demand for divers but the diving schools were cranking out new trainees. I was fortunate enough to be contacted by a fellow classmate who asked me if I was interested in diving on a treasure ship ! Since there wasn't much work in the oil field I took the job.

The pay wasn't great, $50 a day for a tender, $75 for a diver/tender and $100 for a diver, all personnel ran the decompression chambers. I started as a tender but had moved up to diver status by the end of the 30 day operation.

Everyone involved had to sign 10yr. N.D.A's and were entitled to a small percentage if the search was successful. Unfortunately after 30 days and a million dollars spent we weren't able to recover anything of value or physical proof of exactly what ship we were diving on. I definitely saw some interesting, otherwise unexplainable things and I do believe that the site needs further investigation.

I found this website and I'm hoping to possibly find some of the crew I worked with. I was the youngest crew member so I may be the only one alive that knows the details !

I've never seen anything to make me believe that the site has been explored or treasure recovered. Someone spent a lot of money, a million dollars in the early 90's which certainly means someone knew something.

The company I worked for claimed to have salvage rights. I guess my first question here is... Does anyone know of a searchable database of salvage rights that go back to the 90's ?

Also, unfortunately there seems to be a need to lawyer up. I won't be naming names or location until then. Anyone know a credible salvage attorney ?

Good luck to all !
Justin

 

[pepperj]

Hi everyone, my name is Justin and I'm a former commercial diver in the Gulf of Mexico. I worked mostly as a pipeline diver/tender in the early to mid 90's for a company called Norman offshore pipelines, Lafayette, La. as well as Offshore Diving and Salvage out of Pasadena Tx and Houma La.

Before hurricane Andrew there wasn't a great demand for divers but the diving schools were cranking out new trainees. I was fortunate enough to be contacted by a fellow classmate who asked me if I was interested in diving on a treasure ship ! Since there wasn't much work in the oil field I took the job.

The pay wasn't great, $50 a day for a tender, $75 for a diver/tender and $100 for a diver, all personnel ran the decompression chambers. I started as a tender but had moved up to diver status by the end of the 30 day operation.

Everyone involved had to sign 10yr. N.D.A's and were entitled to a small percentage if the search was successful. Unfortunately after 30 days and a million dollars spent we weren't able to recover anything of value or physical proof of exactly what ship we were diving on. I definitely saw some interesting, otherwise unexplainable things and I do believe that the site needs further investigation.

I found this website and I'm hoping to possibly find some of the crew I worked with. I was the youngest crew member so I may be the only one alive that knows the details !

I've never seen anything to make me believe that the site has been explored or treasure recovered. Someone spent a lot of money, a million dollars in the early 90's which certainly means someone knew something.

The company I worked for claimed to have salvage rights. I guess my first question here is... Does anyone know of a searchable database of salvage rights that go back to the 90's ?

Also, unfortunately there seems to be a need to lawyer up. I won't be naming names or location until then. Anyone know a credible salvage attorney ?

Good luck to all !
Justin

Welcome to TreasureNet

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Moved to our Shipwreck Forum. Thanks for heads-up PJ.

 

[Mackaydon]

Many questions to ask:
Is the wreck in US or foreign coastal waters?
Off what country or off what state?
Do you have a copy of the Business Plan?
If so, what was the vessel's country of origin and your specific target?
Were mixed gases necessary to dive the target?
Salvage rights given years ago may not be available today.
If you are looking for a searchable database of who held salvage rights many years ago--my doubt is that info is not available.
Don in So Cal.
(former owner of an Oil Patch service vessel converted to treasure hunting)

 

[oceancorpD59]

Many questions to ask:
Is the wreck in US or foreign coastal waters?
Off what country or off what state?
Do you have a copy of the Business Plan?
If so, what was the vessel's country of origin and your specific target?
Were mixed gases necessary to dive the target?
Salvage rights given years ago may not be available today.
If you are looking for a searchable database of who held salvage rights many years ago--my doubt is that info is not available.
Don in So Cal.
(former owner of an Oil Patch service vessel converted to treasure hunting)

Hi Don,
I do plan to start a thread with as much detail as I'm willing to share at the moment. Aside from immediate family I have never discussed this with anyone. Until I have the time to post...

I was told this was a sister ship to the Atocha. We worked out of Texas but it was very far offshore. I was only 19 at the time so I probably didn't even know what a business plan was. Fortunately I kept a daily log (like all divers) and I managed to get the ships engineer to give me the specific location in the Gulf of Mexico down to the grid name and number. We were diving on a 170' air schedule so very short work times and full decompression dives. However the wreck had come to rest atop a salt dome and the surrounding water was 350-400 feet deep.

More to come...

 

[Darren in NC]

This sounds like something Billy Kenon and his crew would have been involved with. There's few names that would have solicited 1m USD in the early 90s. They could have. Maybe they thought they had found another ship from the 1554 fleet.

 

[ARC]

• Michael J. Frevola of Holland & Knight has advised clients on various maritime disputes, including those relating to access to navigable waters and Rule C arrests (vessel seizures), a common procedure in admiralty cases.
• Sebastian Gibson is an attorney in California specializing in art, treasure, and antiquities law, handling complex issues involving state and international law.
• Holzberg Legal, based in Florida, specializes in maritime and personal injury cases, with a proven team in the field.
• Liskow & Lewis is a full-service firm located across the Gulf Coast, known for handling high-stakes litigation in the energy, environmental, and maritime sectors, including cases involving the law of finds.
• Frank D. Butler, PA in Florida focuses specifically on maritime salvage of treasure and shipwrecks.

 

[oceancorpD59]

• Michael J. Frevola of Holland & Knight has advised clients on various maritime disputes, including those relating to access to navigable waters and Rule C arrests (vessel seizures), a common procedure in admiralty cases.
• Sebastian Gibson is an attorney in California specializing in art, treasure, and antiquities law, handling complex issues involving state and international law.
• Holzberg Legal, based in Florida, specializes in maritime and personal injury cases, with a proven team in the field.
• Liskow & Lewis is a full-service firm located across the Gulf Coast, known for handling high-stakes litigation in the energy, environmental, and maritime sectors, including cases involving the law of finds.
• Frank D. Butler, PA in Florida focuses specifically on maritime salvage of treasure and shipwrecks.

Thank you

 

[oceancorpD59]

This sounds like something Billy Kenon and his crew would have been involved with. There's few names that would have solicited 1m USD in the early 90s. They could have. Maybe they thought they had found another ship from the 1554 fleet.

Hi Darren, I don't recall that name and I'm far from knowing who is who in salvage now or then. Do you know a company name and where he was located and I can tell you if there is any relation?

 

[Darren in NC]

His treasure hunting company's name was the Platoro Group back in the 60s. I have no idea if he continued that name. His salvage company was Marine Salvage & Services. The Rio Bravo was the last boat he purchased, and ended up dying on her when he fell off a ladder. I dove off the Rio Bravo in Florida 20 years ago, but I don't think he had her in the early 90s.

 

[Crow]

Sounds like they were searching for the Santa Margarita, which sank on September 6, 1622, after being caught in a hurricane. in which Atocha sank during the same storm. Part of the 28-ship Tierra Firme fleet departing Havana, Cuba. The wreck of the Santa Margarita was discovered in 1980 by treasure hunter Mel Fisher's team, five years before they found the main wreck of the Atocha. The Santa Margarita shipwreck is famous for its immense lost treasure, its association with the even more famous Atocha, and the challenging underwater environment where its riches were scattered by powerful currents and shifting sands.

The Santa Margarita was a Spanish galleon that sank in 1622, part of the Tierra Firme treasure fleet carrying vast riches from the New World to Spain. The shipwreck, along with its sister ship, the Nuestra Señora de Atocha, was rediscovered in the 1980s, leading to extensive searches and the recovery of immense amounts of silver, gold, jewels, and artifacts, with much still remaining buried in the sands.

Over 10,000 pounds of silver, gold bars, silver coins (pieces of eight), jewels, and other goods, including contraband to avoid Spanish taxes. Detailed lists of registered treasure, including 166,574 silver "pieces of eight" coins, over 550 silver ingots, more than 9,000 ounces of gold bars, discs, and bits, and a large quantity of contraband. It is believed to be Scattered across the seabed in the Florida Straits, near the Marquesas Keys. Through extensive research by historian Dr. Eugene Lyon on behalf of treasure hunter Mel Fisher and his company Treasure Salvors, a portion of the wreck of the Santa Margarita was discovered in 1980. Blue Water Ventures, a search and salvage company, partnered with Fisher to recover artifacts from the wreck. There were later searches, but as far as I know, no one ever found the money hole.

This scatter occurred in an area of the Florida Straits where racing currents continually create and dissolve dunes of sand many feet deep. A high level of experience, proficiency and technology is required on such a widely dispersed and challenging site. MRR is contracted by Motivation, Inc., the permit holders of the site, to conduct a concentrated operational plan required for successful search and recovery on the Santa Margarita.

In 2006 Blue Water Ventures, secured the rights to search the area. Remote sensing technologies have progressed dramatically since a 23 foot section of the wreck was first discovered back in the 1980s. The Blue Water exploration team included three vessels for survey and excavation. Two of the vessels were equipped with sonar that searches the ocean floor for irregularities; cesium magnetometers that map buried object containing iron, such as anchors, chains and cannons, and global positioning equipment that pinpoints the location of anomalies for divers to investigate. With hard work and a dedicated team of divers these tools lead to a bounty that included gold bars, a solid gold chalice, silver coins, a golden reliquary, and a lead chest holding 16,184 still-luminous natural pearls. In 2011, Blue Water left the Santa Margarita site to follow other shipwreck projects.

Crow

 

[agflit]

Bluewater Ventures is now defunct as I understand it....believe it folded about 2-3 years ago.

 

[oceancorpD59]

Sounds like they were searching for the Santa Margarita, which sank on September 6, 1622, after being caught in a hurricane. in which Atocha sank during the same storm. Part of the 28-ship Tierra Firme fleet departing Havana, Cuba. The wreck of the Santa Margarita was discovered in 1980 by treasure hunter Mel Fisher's team, five years before they found the main wreck of the Atocha. The Santa Margarita shipwreck is famous for its immense lost treasure, its association with the even more famous Atocha, and the challenging underwater environment where its riches were scattered by powerful currents and shifting sands.

The Santa Margarita was a Spanish galleon that sank in 1622, part of the Tierra Firme treasure fleet carrying vast riches from the New World to Spain. The shipwreck, along with its sister ship, the Nuestra Señora de Atocha, was rediscovered in the 1980s, leading to extensive searches and the recovery of immense amounts of silver, gold, jewels, and artifacts, with much still remaining buried in the sands.

Over 10,000 pounds of silver, gold bars, silver coins (pieces of eight), jewels, and other goods, including contraband to avoid Spanish taxes. Detailed lists of registered treasure, including 166,574 silver "pieces of eight" coins, over 550 silver ingots, more than 9,000 ounces of gold bars, discs, and bits, and a large quantity of contraband. It is believed to be Scattered across the seabed in the Florida Straits, near the Marquesas Keys. Through extensive research by historian Dr. Eugene Lyon on behalf of treasure hunter Mel Fisher and his company Treasure Salvors, a portion of the wreck of the Santa Margarita was discovered in 1980. Blue Water Ventures, a search and salvage company, partnered with Fisher to recover artifacts from the wreck. There were later searches, but as far as I know, no one ever found the money hole.

This scatter occurred in an area of the Florida Straits where racing currents continually create and dissolve dunes of sand many feet deep. A high level of experience, proficiency and technology is required on such a widely dispersed and challenging site. MRR is contracted by Motivation, Inc., the permit holders of the site, to conduct a concentrated operational plan required for successful search and recovery on the Santa Margarita.

In 2006 Blue Water Ventures, secured the rights to search the area. Remote sensing technologies have progressed dramatically since a 23 foot section of the wreck was first discovered back in the 1980s. The Blue Water exploration team included three vessels for survey and excavation. Two of the vessels were equipped with sonar that searches the ocean floor for irregularities; cesium magnetometers that map buried object containing iron, such as anchors, chains and cannons, and global positioning equipment that pinpoints the location of anomalies for divers to investigate. With hard work and a dedicated team of divers these tools lead to a bounty that included gold bars, a solid gold chalice, silver coins, a golden reliquary, and a lead chest holding 16,184 still-luminous natural pearls. In 2011, Blue Water left the Santa Margarita site to follow other shipwreck projects.

Crow

Very interesting, I'm getting a history lesson here ! If the Santa Margarita was found in 1980 then we weren't looking for it in 1992. The ship we worked on was a lease so we weren't hired by salvage company. I believe it was a group of investors that somehow came across this information. There was talk about bringing out a magnetometer but it didn't happen.