Ever wonder what secrets might be hiding just beneath your feet? For some lucky homeowners, a simple gardening project or a bit of digging turned into an adventure. Backyards aren’t just for barbecues and swing sets; sometimes, they’re treasure troves waiting to be discovered. People have unearthed everything from historical artifacts and valuable items to downright strange objects.
Imagine digging for worms and finding ancient remains, or stumbling upon millions in gold coins while walking your dog! These aren’t scenes from a movie; they’re real stories from ordinary people. Let’s dig into 10 fascinating discoveries made right in people’s own backyards.
10. Stolen Ferrari
Back in 1978, some kids playing in their Los Angeles yard made a startling discovery. While digging in the mud, they hit something hard. Curious, they flagged down a nearby sheriff. What did they find? A green 1974 Ferrari Dino 246 GTS buried underground!
This car, worth about $18,000 new, had been reported stolen just months after its purchase in October 1974. The police couldn’t solve the mystery of how it ended up buried, and the owner was reimbursed by insurance. Eventually, a mechanic bought the car from the insurance company for around $7,000 and restored it. Who buried it and why remains a puzzle.
9. 1,000-Year-Old Human Remains
While helping his father build a trout pond in their Utah backyard, 14-year-old Ali Erturk stumbled upon what he first thought was an animal bone. As he dug deeper, about six feet down, he realized the bones might be human.
The police were called, but they quickly saw the bones were ancient. Experts from the Utah Department of Heritage and Arts determined the remains belonged to a Native American who lived over a thousand years ago. It’s a reminder that people have lived in the area for over 10,000 years, and finds like these aren’t entirely uncommon for the department.
8. $10 Million Worth Of Gold Coins
Imagine walking your dog and finding a fortune! That’s what happened to a Northern California couple. They spotted something unusual buried near a tree – it turned out to be over 1,400 gold coins dating from 1847 to 1894.
The coins were in exceptionally rare mint condition. While their face value was only about $27,000, their rarity pushed their estimated worth to over $10 million! Theories about the coins being stolen circulated, but nothing was proven. The anonymous couple auctioned the collection, with some individual coins fetching huge sums, like an 1866-S No Motto $20 piece valued at over $1 million.
7. Mysterious Crystal Object
In Kitchener, Ontario, two sisters were digging for worms for a fishing trip when they found something odd: a large, clear, shiny object with a blue tint. Could it be part of a recently fallen meteorite? Excitement grew, hoping it might be valuable.
Local experts were stumped, so the object went to the University of Waterloo. The mystery was solved, but it wasn’t extraterrestrial or particularly valuable. The curator identified it as decorative landscape glass, often used as a garden ornament. The unique find was returned to the sisters.
6. Mammoth Bone
An Iowa family went out blackberry picking and came back with something much larger than berries. They discovered a four-foot-long mammoth femur! This incredible find was just the beginning.
The family contacted the University of Iowa, and an excavation began on their property. The team unearthed more bones, teeth, and tusks, belonging to at least three different woolly mammoths. Scientists estimate these giants roamed the area about 13,000 to 14,000 years ago.
5. World War II Explosives
A neighborhood in Southern California faced a tense situation when World War II-era explosives were found in the backyard of an abandoned home. The house previously belonged to a WWII veteran who had passed away.
Authorities evacuated about 75-100 residents while they searched the property. They discovered grenades, mortar rounds, artillery shells, and bullets. While many were duds, some posed a real threat. The explosives were carefully removed for safe disposal, allowing residents to return hours later.
4. Cursed Money
In 2011, Wayne Sabaj, an unemployed carpenter in Illinois, was picking broccoli in his garden when he found a nylon bag stuffed with $150,000 cash. He honestly turned it over to the police, who told him he could keep it if unclaimed by the end of 2012.
However, his elderly neighbor, Delores Johnson, came forward, saying she’d thrown the money out because it was “cursed.” A liquor store also made a claim. Sadly, both Johnson and Sabaj died before the money dispute was fully settled. Johnson passed away, possibly from dementia complications, and Sabaj died from diabetic issues just 10 days before he was due to receive a portion. Perhaps the money really was cursed.
3. Rusty Old Safe
A New York couple had always seen a metal object under some trees in their yard but assumed it was utility equipment. During landscaping work, it was revealed to be an old, rusty safe.
Inside, despite being wet, were plastic bags filled with cash and jewelry – dozens of rings, diamonds, and other valuables. They also found a piece of paper with their neighbor’s address. They asked the neighbors if they’d ever been robbed, and indeed, their safe containing about $52,000 worth of items had been stolen years earlier, right after Christmas 2011. The couple promptly returned the safe and its contents, proving good neighbors still exist.
2. Whale Fossil
As a teenager exploring a creek behind his Southern California home, Gary Johnson found a massive half-ton whale fossil. A local museum wasn’t interested back then. Decades later, in 2014, Johnson, now 53, contacted the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.
Paleontologists confirmed it was a rare baleen whale fossil, approximately 16-17 million years old! Only about 20 such fossils are known. Extracting the fossil, embedded in a 1,000-pound rock, required help from the LA County Sheriff’s Department search-and-rescue team, who used the recovery as a challenging training exercise.
1. Cold War Bomb Shelter
John Sims bought a home in Tucson, Arizona, and heard rumors from a previous owner about something buried in the yard. After some searching and help from a consultant with metal detectors, he hit a metal cap.
Beneath it was the entrance to a Cold War-era fallout shelter built in 1961! It featured a spiral staircase leading down to a concrete room with a domed fiberglass ceiling. The shelter was empty but intact, apparently deliberately closed off after the Cold War ended. Given that Tucson was surrounded by missile silos during that era, such shelters weren’t uncommon. Sims plans to restore this piece of history.
These stories show that incredible history and valuable secrets can be hiding just below the surface of the most ordinary places. You never know what you might find in your own backyard!
What’s the most interesting thing you’ve ever found unexpectedly? Share your stories in the comments below!
