Buzz
In the middle of 2018, while renovating his home in the UK, Chris Martin uncovered a hidden World War II bunker right in his backyard. This two-room concrete structure, located at his Middlesbrough property, was spacious enough to accommodate up to 50 people. Martin intends to repurpose it as either an office or a wine cellar.
Chris Martin isn't the first to uncover something remarkable in his garden. Over the years, people have stumbled upon all sorts of strange finds on their properties, ranging from stolen cars to bags of cash, ancient fossils, and even enigmatic objects. Below is a list of 10 incredible discoveries found in typical backyards.
10. A Stolen Ferrari
In 1978, a group of children were playing in a yard in Los Angeles, digging through the mud when they came across something peculiar underground. They immediately alerted a nearby sheriff's car and explained their strange find.
The sheriff returned with reinforcements and made an unexpected discovery. They uncovered a green 1974 Ferrari Dino 246 GTS, which was valued at approximately $18,000 when it was new. Authorities were baffled as to how the vehicle ended up buried in the yard.
The Ferrari had been bought by Rosendo Cruz in October 1974, only to be stolen on December 7 of that year. The police couldn't determine its whereabouts, but the insurance company decided to reimburse Cruz for the car. The identity of the person who placed the vehicle in the yard remains unknown.
Eventually, a mechanic bought the car from the insurance company for around $7,000 and restored much of its condition. The Dino has not been listed in any Dino registry, but hopefully, someone is out there enjoying a thrilling drive on some scenic roads.
9. 1,000-Year-Old Human Remains
While constructing a trout pond in his Utah backyard for his father, 14-year-old Ali Erturk stumbled upon something strange. Initially thinking he had discovered an animal bone, he continued digging and realized the bones may have belonged to a human. The first bone was found about 2 meters (6 feet) below the surface.
When the police arrived, they quickly recognized the bones were very old and referred the case to the Utah Department of Heritage and Arts. The department concluded that the remains belonged to a Native American who lived over a thousand years ago.
This part of Utah has been inhabited by humans for over 10,000 years. The department frequently receives similar calls throughout the year.
8. $10 Million Worth of Gold Coins
A couple from Northern California made a stunning discovery while walking their dog. Hidden beneath a tree was a cache of $10 million in gold coins. More than 1,400 coins, dating from 1847 to 1894, were unearthed, all in pristine mint condition. Though their face value only totaled $27,000, their rarity made them far more valuable. The couple realized they had just become incredibly wealthy.
Some experts speculated that the coins might have been stolen, but no evidence of theft was ever uncovered. The couple chose to remain anonymous and decided to auction off the collection. The first coin sold was an 1874 $20 double eagle, which fetched $15,000. An 1866-S No Motto $20 gold piece was valued at over $1 million. The full collection was estimated to be worth more than $11 million.
7. Mysterious Crystal Object
In Kitchener, Ontario, two sisters were digging in their backyard to collect worms for an upcoming fishing trip when they uncovered a large, transparent, shiny object with a bluish tint. Some speculated it could be a fragment of a meteorite that had landed just a month earlier, though no one could pinpoint its exact origin. The family hoped the object might be valuable enough to sell.
A local gem and mineral expert was unable to identify the object, so it was sent to the University of Waterloo for further analysis. The curator of the university's Earth sciences museum was able to determine that the object was not extraordinary—it was a type of glass, sold in various colors, used as a decorative garden ornament.
After the object was identified, it was returned to the two sisters.
6. Mammoth Bone
A family in rural Iowa set out to pick blackberries but ended up with more than just a bucketful of fruit. They discovered a 1.2-meter-long (4 ft) mammoth femur on their property.
This discovery was only the beginning. The father took the massive bone to the University of Iowa for identification. The university's Museum of Natural History then continued the excavation and uncovered several more bones on the property.
The excavation team found remnants of at least three woolly mammoths, though none were fully intact. The crew unearthed bones, teeth, and tusks belonging to the ancient creatures. After examination, scientists concluded that the woolly mammoth remains are approximately 13,000 to 14,000 years old.
5. World War II Explosives
In a Southern California neighborhood, around 75–100 residents were evacuated after authorities discovered several World War II-era explosives in the backyard of an abandoned house. The house had once belonged to a World War II veteran who had passed away months prior to the discovery. It remains unclear whether he was the owner of the explosives. The house had been vacant since his death, and transients had since occupied the property.
After a thorough search of the yard and home, authorities uncovered grenades, mortar rounds, rusty artillery shells, bullets, and more. While many of the devices were harmless, some of the ammunition raised concerns. Most of the explosives were carefully transported to a safe location for disposal, and residents had to wait several hours before they could return to their homes.
4. Cursed Money
In 2011, Wayne Sabaj discovered a nylon bag containing $150,000 hidden in his backyard garden in Illinois. The carpenter, who had been out of work for two years, was picking broccoli when he stumbled upon the cash.
He handed the money over to authorities, who told him that he could keep it if no one claimed it by the end of 2012. Eventually, his 87-year-old neighbor, Delores Johnson, and a liquor store came forward to claim the money.
Johnson, who suffered from dementia, later told her daughter that she had disposed of the money because she believed it was cursed. Johnson passed away before she could claim most of the money, but it was eventually given to her daughter.
Due to complications from diabetes, Sabaj passed away just 10 days before he could receive his share of the money. His father, upon learning of his son's death, suffered a cardiac arrest, but was still awarded the amount Sabaj would have received. Perhaps Mrs. Johnson was right after all—this money was truly cursed.
3. Cold War Bomb Shelter
John Sims stumbled upon a Cold War-era fallout shelter beneath the lawn of his home in Tucson, Arizona. The discovery came after he received a tip from a former homeowner about its existence.
Sims began by digging shallow holes in his backyard but eventually suspected that the shelter had either collapsed or was hidden under a bricked-up section of the yard. After consulting a specialist with metal detectors, they pinpointed the exact location, and Sims uncovered the metal cap that sealed the shelter's entrance.
The shelter, built in 1961 by Whitaker Pools, was constructed with concrete and featured a domed fiberglass ceiling. The entrance was accessed by a spiral staircase leading down into a large, unfurnished room.
It seemed the shelter had been intentionally sealed off after the Cold War. Between the 1960s and 1980s, 18 intercontinental ballistic missiles equipped with nuclear warheads were stationed in the desert around Tucson, making the area a prominent Cold War site. Sims hopes to restore the bunker to its former state.
2. Whale Fossil
As a teenager, Gary Johnson discovered a half-ton whale fossil while exploring a creek behind his family’s home in Southern California. The local museum declined to add it to their collection at the time. However, in 2014, at 53 years old, Johnson reached out to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County about the fossil after another sperm whale fossil was found at a nearby school.
A paleontologist from the Natural History Museum assessed the baleen whale fossil, estimating it to be around 16 to 17 million years old. There are only about 20 known baleen whale fossils in existence.
The fossil was embedded in a 450-kilogram (1,000 lb) rock, which was retrieved from a ravine by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Their search-and-rescue team utilized the fossil recovery as a training exercise, even though they typically assist in rescuing motorists and hikers who have veered off steep and rugged terrain.
1. Rusty Old Safe
A couple in New York had always noticed a piece of metal under some trees in their backyard, but they assumed it was just an electrical box or cable. However, when a landscaping crew came to work at their home, they uncovered that it was actually an old, rusted safe.
Inside the safe, they discovered damp money along with numerous pieces of jewelry stored in plastic bags. Among the items were several rings (including an engagement ring), diamonds, and other valuable jewelry. There was also a piece of paper with their neighbor's address on it.
The couple visited their neighbor to ask if they had ever been robbed. The neighbor confirmed that their safe had been stolen the night after Christmas in 2011. They were aware that the safe contained about $52,000 in cash and jewelry.
The couple returned the safe to their neighbor. When asked why they didn’t keep it for themselves, they responded, 'It wasn’t even a question. It wasn’t ours.'
