Florida Keys Treasures (2024)

FAQs

Is there treasure in the Florida Keys? ›

The Keys' most famous wreck is immortalized at Key West's Mel Fisher Maritime Museum. The museum showcases artifacts and treasures from the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de Atocha, lost in a 1622 hurricane and discovered off Key West in 1985 by shipwreck salvager Mel Fisher.

As late as 1823 The US Government dispatched Commodore David Porter to the Keys to rid the coastline of pirates like Black Caesar and Jean LaFitte. Today, Florida is rich in the history of piracy and shipwrecks but the threat from piracy has practically disappeared.

The biggest shipwreck treasure ever found off of Key West is the Isaac Allerton, which was discovered in 1985. The shipwreck was found by a team of divers from the Key West Shipwreck Treasure Museum, and it is believed to have been a merchant vessel that sank in the late 1800s.

Mel Fisher (August 21, 1922 – December 19, 1998) was an American treasure hunter best known for finding the 1622 wreck of the Nuestra Señora de Atocha in Florida waters.

Florida isn't just known for being the state filled with sunshine, alligators, retired folks, and fruit trees; in fact, it's also known for its buried treasure. Many historians believe it contains more buried and sunken treasures than any other state; these lost treasures could hold a value around $165 million.

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.

Occasionally, Key West gets American Crocodiles. Croc's feel more at-home in our saltwater canals than 'gators. However, if you drive about 45 minutes up the Keys to an island called Big Pine, which has the largest freshwater lense in the Lower Keys, and head to the “Blue Hole,” you'll probably see American alligators.

These islands have been a historic landing spot for Cuban migrant rafters, who leave behind their rustic vessels known as “chugs” that contain batteries, fuel, oil, polystyrene foam, plastic, and other hazardous materials.

While the presence of crocodiles has become more pervasive along the island chain, did you know that alligators are native to the Florida Keys, too? It is no big secret that alligators are routinely seen at the Blue Hole on Big Pine Key.

Mel Fisher was the treasure hunter who discovered $450 million worth of gold, silver and other precious loot at the site of the shipwrecked galleon Nuestra Señora de Atocha, which sank in a 1622 hurricane.

Can you dive for treasure in Florida? ›

Many of these have been documented and either left in place or replaced with replicas to preserve Florida's archaeological sites and great dive locations. Florida law prohibits the excavation or removal of artifacts, but encourages anyone who notices something to photograph it and contact us.

Yes, there are certainly sunken ships filled with gold and other treasures out there waiting to be discovered. In fact, there are numerous documented shipwrecks that are known to carry valuable cargo, and many of these wrecks have never been fully explored or salvaged.

The San José, a treasure galleon of the Spanish navy, sank in 1708. A legal battle over ownership of its gold, silver, and gemstones is still underway.

Then, on July 20th, 1985, ten years to the day of the Northwind tragedy, Mel Fisher's words rang true! He and his crew discovered the “mother load” of Atocha's vast treasure, by some estimates, worth over $400 million!

Mel Fisher was a dreamer, a visionary, a legend and most importantly, the World's Greatest Treasure Hunter.

The day was July 20, 1985, when, after 17 years of searching, Mel Fisher and his crew recovered $450 million worth of buried treasure from ocean floor just offshore from Key West.

In fact, the Sebastian Inlet is at the center of Treasure Coast. Treasure seekers have had a lot of success finding loot at the high-tide line, where the softest sand lies. In 1988, $300,000 worth of treasure was found on the Sebastian Inlet.

Indian Key was an unincorporated community in Monroe County and, for a while, Dade County, Florida, United States. It was located in the upper Florida Keys on the island of Indian Key and is currently a ghost town.