Secrecy vs Inspiration

The world of treasure hunting is a nervous, secretive place. It is also a place of good friends and eager minds. So how do you reconcile the two sides? How much do you share? Why would you share?

Most people want acceptance and acknowledgment of their accomplishments. Some people like to “brag” about what they have done or are doing. Some people want to teach and share their knowledge.

When I first got into treasure hunting the amount of people that I encountered in the “business” was fairly small, there were a couple of local prospecting/metal detecting clubs and a couple of close friends and that was pretty much the extent of people that knew what I did and I could talk to about finds and stories. There were a couple of authors that I talked to on the phone, wrote letters to or met in the field, it was a relatively small circle.

With the emergence of social media and the internet, the circle that you can reach and that can reach you has grown, but the number of people you “trust” probably has not grown proportionally.

The treasure hunter has always had to walk a fine line between secrecy and disclosure. There have always been people who feel that they have a claim to your hard work, there are political, legal hurdles and bureaucratic mazes that you have to deal with but at the same time you want to share your adventures and help the next generation along.

I like to share information that I have found while I am researching, sharing history and research methods is fun, but, I am researching for a reason and giving out information I have found might jeopardize the project I am working on or some future project in the same area. I will keep the information I find close and after the completion of that project then I will share the information that I found.

One way that I have found to share information is to make sure I know what my interests and priorities are, If I have information on a story and it is in an area that I am not really interested in or a subject that I don’t think I will work on I try to freely give out that info. Be realistic with your future projects, if you get some information and it falls outside of your interests, keep a copy for future reference and the give that stuff away. There is no point in hoarding information and you never know when a project you give away, will lead to information that touches on a project you are working on.

Research methods are a good way to share info without compromising your project. I like to make copies of interesting stories I find while going through old newspapers and share them with people who I think will find them interesting.

Giving out specifics on an ongoing project is still a bad idea. Telling people what you are looking for, where you are going or details of the “treasure” story is a good way to get new partners, whether you want them or not.

Every time I put out stories of our adventures someone asks “what did you find?” Although I would love to show everything I find and show the video of the recovery this is a MONUMENTALY BAD IDEA.

Almost every “treasure” story with a “recovery” I have ever heard comes with a large portion of the story dealing with the fallout from telling too much. There are stories of theft, extortion, death, intimidation, bankruptcy, “accidents” lost time dealing with legal issues and loss or diminishing reputation. Look at Doc Noss, Frank Fish, Karl Von Muller, Jimmy Sierra Nomandi, Odessy Marine and the black swan project. Look into the problems that the people around Blanding Utah had with the BLM. These are just a few of the people and groups that have had no end of problems because of news of a “recovery”. People have spent hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars working on a project only to lose it all and more, because they made the mistake of telling people what they found.

I try to work with the local authorities, land owners and museums to make sure that I am doing things legally and ethically to limit and avoid any legal problems, but publicly announcing “treasure” finds opens up a whole new area of trouble unless it is handled very carefully.

I have tried to emphasize the “adventure” aspects of treasure hunting instead of the monetary. I encourage people to learn history, to get out and explore nature and find new and interesting places. I try to show by example the fun and excitement of exploring and searching remote areas. I have tried to help people get out and “find your adventure”.

And if I find something that furthers our understanding of history then I will announce it when I are able to.