SEASON 13, EPISODE 16, “RAISING THE STAKES” EPISODE ANALYSIS
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In this week’s episode, “RAISING THE STAKES”, the show began in the WAR ROOM, where the Oak Island team met to discuss their current situation with the operation in the Money Pit Area. Since the drilling efforts in the Borehole TPF-1 have stalled due to the drill being unable to penetrate the backfill, the team decided to move to another nearby area that produced an old drill pipe. They named the new borehole, Karma 1 and will begin operations there soon.
The action then took us to the NORTH SWAMP AREA, where the Oak Island Team continued to follow the direction of stakes and cobblestones in the area. Continuing on their strategy of following the stakes and cobble, the team unearthed another eight-sided cut stake. It appears these stakes were placed to mark the edge of the Swamp and to put cobbles down for a traversable pathway. Metal Detectorist, Gary Drayton scanned the spoils and had a non-ferrous hit. Gary found what appeared to be a coin or token which had visible markings but was unreadable. Initially Gary believed it was lead but then thought it was a Copper Alloy or Pewter. The artifact was bagged and tagged and sent to the Lab for testing and analysis.
We were then taken back to the MONEY PIT AREA, where the Oak Island Team began its new drilling operation in the borehole that was named Karma I. The team is hopeful this location will produce some treasure that theoretically dropped into the Solution Channel. This area has no backfill, so the auger should have no trouble being bored into the ground. The depth of interest is listed as 120-220 Feet.
We were then taken back to the LOT 8 where the Oak Island team met to have the boulder moved off its foundation of stones. The team assembled to watch the 13-ton crane move into position and move the boulder. The team suspects a tunnel may be underneath the area. The boulder was lifted away which exposed the depression. It was noted that there was no sterile subsoil and it appeared it was filled in. No visible structures were noticed. The plan is for the topsoil to be removed and the area excavated. It was clear that this boulder was not in its original position and had been moved to this location.
The scene shifted to the LAB, where the Oak Island Team met to discuss the token/coin that was discovered in the North Swamp area. It was immediately mentioned that the artifact was an example of Exonumia. This is a non-government issued medal or token that commemorated a special event. In this case it was determined to be the death of America’s first president, George Washington. He died in 1799 and this medal was made in 1800. It was explained that these pieces are rare and would have been worn at services, especially by Freemasons, which Washington belonged to the brotherhood. Jacob Perkins designed the token and it was mentioned that a person of high status would have owned this medal. This led to Researcher Cort Lindahl’s theory that Oak Island was used to store a great treasure that funded the American Revolution. Please see the analysis for more detailed information.
The action shifted back to the LOT 8, where the Oak Island Team continued its investigation of the area beneath the Boulder that has been removed. The team has brought in Geoscientist, Dr. Ian Spooner, to use a handheld XRF scanner to analyze the top portion of the soil to get a reading on any metals present. Dr. Spooner, after scanning, said he did not get this reading from the soil samples he took previously. It registered traces of Silver and Copper. The team seemed encouraged by the results. It should be noted that although visible signs of activity are not indicating any activity, the appearance of Silver and Copper indicate that mining occurred at this spot along with the attempt to hide it. The team plans to carefully excavate the depression. This author believes that once it is properly excavated, the team will start to see the images that were seen on the snake camera.
The episode concluded at the WAR ROOM where the Oak Island team met with Archeoastronomer Adriano Gaspani with some research that he worked on involving the stakes that were discovered in the Northern Swamp. Dr. Gaspani suggested that the stakes could have been used for an astronomical alignment with the stars in Sirius, Pleiades, and the lone star Deneb. This corresponds with the constellation of Cygnus, which many researchers, including myself, believe was a major part of the design of Nolan’s Cross. Dr. Gaspani suggests that it was the Knights Templar who were responsible, but no direct evidence was cited. If any of the stakes can be C-14 tested which indicate a date from the 13th Century, this may bolster this theory’s claims. Although similar stakes in the Swamp have been tested and have been determined to be from a much later time period. Until Next Week…
DANIEL’S ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY:
During this week’s episode, a very interesting artifact was found in the Northern Swamp. The Commemorative Medal of George Washington’s Death that left the team wondering how it got on Oak Island. The pages of history reveal some likely suspects for the appearance of this medal. The first would be Joseph Prescott, the son of Oak Island Lot owner Jonathan Prescott. Joseph was Jonathan’s second son from his second marriage to Anne Blagden. Although born in Nova Scotia, Joseph was sent back to Massachusetts under the charge of his maternal uncle, Samuel Blagden (aka Blackden) who would be a Lt. Colonel of the American Dragoons during the Revolution. He also was trained by his cousin in medicine, Dr. Samuel Prescott, who we will discuss next. Joseph volunteered for military service as a Surgeon’s Mate (Assistant) in 1776, at the tender age of 14. He served at Fort Ticonderoga, West Point, locations in New York and the Carolina’s. He elevated himself to being a surgeon during the course of the war. After the War he was a charter member of the Society of Cincinnati, a fraternal group of many Freemasons who were veterans of the Revolutionary War. This is where he was connected with George Washington. Joseph would later become the Vice President of the Society. It’s quite possible that he could have had possession of the medal and dropped it on Oak Island.
It’s also possible that the medal could have been dropped by Joseph’s brother, Charles Ramage Prescott. While Joseph took the occupation of his father as a surgeon, Charles adopted his father’s role as a merchant and privateer. He became very wealthy at a young age and retired by the time he was 40 years old. Although involved in legitimate merchant activities he also participated in illegal smuggling, blockade running and privateering enterprises during the War of 1812. The question becomes was Oak Island being used a smuggling spot during the American Revolution and War of 1812? Charles could have been involved with a continued smuggling operation on Oak Island, this time involving some of the British Loyalists who were somewhat disenchanted with empty promises made by the British regarding their service. The evidence does suggest this possibility, with Oak Island perhaps being used as a transfer point since the 1760’s, by their father Jonathan Prescott. Also, an incident concerning the Schooner Patty in 1776 which involved Prescott and Mahone Bay may indicate some smuggling activity.
This is further supported by the story of Dr. Samuel Prescott. Samuel was the nephew and cousin of Jonathan and Joseph Prescott. He was recognized as a High Son of Liberty and finished Paul Revere’s ride to warn Lexington and Concord the British (Regulars) were coming. During this famous ride, Amos Melvin, the first cousin of Oak Island Lot owner Robert Melvin was involved. The Prescott’s and Melvin’s, two major Oak Island Lot Owners, had deep ties to the American Colonies, being New England Planters themselves. Samuel also served at Fort Ticonderoga with his cousin Joseph. Interestingly, Samuel was taken prisoner after being on an American Privateer and put in prison in Halifax. He died there in 1777. The question is what was Samuel doing on a privateer and did it involve Oak Island? History has hidden the details, but this author is working to discover the answer. This aligns with the mysterious Raid on Lunenburg in 1782, where Prescott and the Money Pit Lot owner, Casper Wollenhaupt were involved in this intrigue that this author will reveal very soon.
Please follow our weekly episode analyses during Season 13, along with articles from the original “Compendium/Blockhouse Blog”, and special investigations and features involving Oak Island. Feel free to reach out to us for questions, comments, information and any theories to our email, theoakislandcompendium@gmail.com
Good day from Daniel of the Compendium!
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