Martin Bayerle is the subject of an eight-part series on the History Channel called Billion Dollar Wreck, which chronicles his latest attempt to discover the treasure he is sure awaits aboard the sunken ship RMS Republic.
Martin Bayerle organized an expedition in 1987 to explore the sunken wreck of the RMS Republic off the coast of Nantucket hoping to find gold. Over $2.5 million was invested in the expedition. Unfortunately, he only recovered wine bottles, plates and a toilet.
Mr. Bayerle went bankrupt, was forced to sell his Vineyard home and move to his in-laws’ farm in West Virginia. He later became estranged from his wife, was convicted of voluntary manslaughter, and served two and a half years in prison. But even while landlocked and locked up, Mr. Bayerle never gave up hope of finding the treasure. He is, after all, the only person deemed a pirate by the U.S. court system — in an affectionate manner, he says.
Mr. Bayerle is currently the subject of an eight-part series on the History Channel called Billion Dollar Wreck. The episodes air on Monday nights at 10 p.m. and chronicle his latest attempt to discover the treasure he is sure awaits him aboard the Republic.
The RMS Republic, a 585-ocean liner and sister ship of the Titanic, sank south of Nantucket in 1909.
The RMS Republic, a 585-ocean liner and sister ship of the Titanic, sank south of Nantucket in 1909.
A boisterous man with an eye patch and booming laugh, Mr. Bayerle has now been searching for the Republic in some capacity for over 35 years. He located the ship in 1981 after two and a half years of preparatory research. The ship, a 585-foot White Star ocean liner and precursor to the Titanic, went down on Jan. 23, 1909 after being struck by the SS Florida, an Italian liner, on a particularly foggy day. Six passengers died and no cargo was recovered. The wreck lay 50 miles south of Nantucket.
In 1978, Mr. Bayerle, then living in New York, received a hefty settlement in an anti-trust litigation suit and considered his options. “I could open a dive resort in the Caribbean or I could look for this big shipwreck with rumored fabulous treasure,” he told the Gazette by phone. He picked the treasure, and decided to make the Vineyard his base, buying an Oak Bluffs home from Vineyard contractor Paul Adler and opening a dive shop in Vineyard Haven across from the Black Dog Tavern. Though Nantucket was closer to the wreck, the Vineyard was better situated to receive supplies from the mainland.
Mr. Bayerle taught many Vineyard residents how to scuba dive as well as piqued people’s interest in treasure hunting, including underwater explorer Barry Clifford.
“Barry asked what I was doing on the Vineyard.” Mr. Bayerle recalled. “I said, I’m going treasure hunting.”
He remembers his time on the Vineyard fondly, and not just for the adventure.
“The happiest days of my life were living with my little family in my little house in Oak Bluffs on the Lagoon,” he said. But he could not ignore the siren call of the Republic’s mysterious treasure.
Mr. Bayerle says the Republic’s cargo holds a cache of 150,000 American Gold Eagle coins that would amount to $1.6 billion in today’s value. He maintains the treasure was a secret loan for the Russian tsar and its loss was covered up to keep stability in Europe. His research into the RMS Republic is documented in his 2013 book, The Tsar’s Treasure.
“It will be one of the greatest treasure recoveries of all time, if not the greatest,” he said.
In the book, he delves into international politics, internal banking documents and conspiracies. The depth of his research was one of the main reasons the History Channel had interest in the show, he said.
Paul Adler's footage is featured in Billion Dollar Wreck on History Channel.
Paul Adler's footage is featured in Billion Dollar Wreck on History Channel.
“I’ve proven the cargo with the research. Now we have to validate the proof with the recovery of the cargo,” he said.
The sixth episode of Billion Dollar Wreck, which aired Monday, featured archival footage of the treasure hunters loading supplies at the Steamship Authority shot by Mr. Adler, who joined Mr. Bayerle on his second expedition to the wreck site in 1983. More of Mr. Adler’s footage will be shown next Monday.
Mr. Adler remembers capturing the moment when the sonar detected the ship, the first time it was verified by equipment, he said.
“You can see all the needles jump when we went over the ship,” he told the Gazette. There is also a lot of footage of sharks as divers enter the water. Mr. Adler, though a certified diver, remained firmly on the boat.
In the series on the History Channel, Mr. Bayerle has returned to the water with the aid of his estranged son, Grant Bayerle, who now handles the financial and operational aspects of the salvage operation. Whether they found treasure won’t be revealed until the final episode.
“I came into this project thinking it would be three to five year project, and now, here 35 years later, I’m still doing it,” Mr. Bayerle said. “Be careful what you wish for.”
Billion Dollar Wreck airs Monday nights at 10 p.m. on the History Channel. Episode of seven of the eight-part series is on March 21. Past episodes can be viewed at history.com.
Comments
Nothing will be found, except
dick heath Chatham, MassNothing will be found, except for a few bottles, trinkets etc. These types of shows are interesting to watch, but very, very rarely produce results. The Curse of Oak Island" another History channel spectacle is another grabber..... all show... no dough!!!!
You're painting us with a
Capt. Martin BayerleYou're painting us with a very broad brush, and with a guilt-by-association color. There are two possibilities in the different treasure hunting shows. The first, the treasure which the particular group is seeking never existed and therefore can never be located under any circumstances. The second, the treasure does indeed exist and all that is required is the application of skill, determination and technology, to find and recover it. You can determine which shows of the several which are airing, are which type, on your own. But, for Billion Dollar Wreck, you should read my book The Tsar's Treasure. Here we have AT LEAST TWO (there are more) specifically identified gold cargoes, plus known passenger effects (from actual of-record insurance claims), and all the neat White Star Line items, china, silverware. Unlike other shows, this is not a "create your own reason, use your imagination, why gold is here" show with no support whatsoever. Here, we just have one immense ship to look through for only about 3-4 cubic yards of gold, ONLY. That's the difficulty. Here, we KNOW for what we are looking. At least it's not an entire island and adjacent waters or mountainous terrain looking for something that has the thinnest to no support whatsoever using the “many others have looked for it, so it must be true” logic. No. Here we have a very large ship at great depth (unsalvageable when she sank, now salvageable only with improvements in technology), and with PROVEN cargoes. We just have to find them within the ship, and recover them – not easy tasks, the significant reason why RMS Republic does indeed carry her cargoes. The difficulty for the recovery of Republic’s cargoes was not finding the wreck, nor, ultimately, recovering the gold – it was proving her cargoes. That was the primary reason she had remained undisturbed. Thanx for watching.
I think it's an absolutely
Debbie Tillery MarylandI think it's an absolutely fascinating show, and I believe in the research.
So how are things progressing
Robert Davidson Prince Frederick, MarylandSo how are things progressing Captain. I am interested in hearing about any updates. Maybe you can share a web page for those of us who would like to follow the venture!
I can assure you more than
JcI can assure you more than that was found and brought up.
At $2000 a plate for White
Mark Grant BostonAt $2000 a plate for White Star dinnerware and $10,000 for a pewter tea pot, I would like to find some of these trinkets.
You and me both.
JcYou and me both.
I have watched several of the
Wynn Burnett TennesseeI have watched several of the shows and wish you the best of luck. I worked my way up to an Open Water Scuba Instructor during my college days and regret that I never have continued anything associated with Diving. My family was fortunate growing up in Tennessee, to have a dive group that planned summer dive trips all over the continent. It was some of the best experiences of my life!
That is amazing, thanks for
Steve FalmouthThat is amazing, thanks for sharing!!
As a White Star Line and ship
Jason Atkin Camino, CAAs a White Star Line and ship buff, the Republic is one of those enigmatic ships, where there is comparatively little known about her by most enthusiasts. Looking forward to obtaining a copy of this book to learn more about her.
Keep at it Captain Bayerle. It takes guts and piles of determination to go after your dreams like this. There've been so many advances in recovery technology since your last expedition, something tells me you'll have the upper hand on the forthcoming expedition.
This show is barley worth
Bob EdgartownThis show is barley worth watching. So happy it is on DVR so I can fast forward to the dive parts only. The rest is all fill and boring rubbish. I went to go to Bayerle's book signing years ago on the island and he wanted money just to hear him talk about his book he was trying to sell. I have been to plenty of book signing talks and no one asks for money to hear them try to sell their book. I would not want to be a part of anything he touches.
Agree ......boring....I do
Tim Sherman Southern CaliforniaAgree ......boring....I do the same fast foward the non diving parts I don't think they are going to get to the area where the gold is.
Good hunting!
Horacio Pardo Buenos Aires, Argentina & Montevideo, UruguayGood hunting!
My best to all of you and specially to Paul (Adler).
Why not get a sub with arms
tim sherman southern CaliforniaWhy not get a sub with arms on it an they could stay down longer do better job with this recovery then clear out the area and then send diver down or they need a better bigger ROV or get more expert help
I was thinking the same thing
Jane G Katy, TXI was thinking the same thing! I haven't googled it but figured some of the technology they used to salvage the titanic might work here too.
Excellent story Gazette, well
Paul Adler West TisburyExcellent story Gazette, well done.
The reason Marty was broke for 30 years is because he is the most honest treAsure hunter I ever met, and I have met many. Marty always tells the truth, as much as it may hurt him. When he opens the Republic National Bank I will be his first customer, and your deposits will be backed up by gold.
My comment would be for the
steve Hawley Washington StateMy comment would be for the amount of money that it is costing for the hunt why not bring in a deep sea proven salvage company such as odyssey marine who have a proven track record of being able to into hard to reach places etc. I get the " I have done my research " and want to find it myself but if the gold is there at 1.6 billion there is more than enough $ to go around.
I agree 100% with Capt
dick heath Chatham, MassI agree 100% with Capt Bayerle, Oak Island will produce nothing. But it's good viewing in a cold New England winter. As far as the wreck goes, unless being there, under the water, it looks as if it's so flattened out, that getting a diver in there, or trying to get a diver in there, is much too risky. Oh sure, someone commented above how they would like to have $2K for a plate and $10K for other artifacts...but you have to ask yourself..you only have 30 mins of dive time..you have to stay focused. Do you want the gold? Or plates? What did you come all this way for? The gold? or plates? Hey I wish the Captain all the luck in the world. With two more episodes it doesn't look like they will find anything...So, do we see season # 2 next year? I hope so!
Eh, Oak Island, from the
Rob Bryan Steamboat Springs, COEh, Oak Island, from the little I know about it may produce, but I doubt there is the willingness to go as far ($$$$) as necessary to achieve it. The RMS Republic cannot be sensibly compared, though the issue is similar. IS there funding to go as far as needed? The Jobs Act of 2012 changed the environment completely. There very well may be. But I'm looking forward to the next episode to see the progress.
Marty is an interesting guy
S Lockwood MVMarty is an interesting guy with an interesting tale about a ship with a lot of mysteries. But why a series? Without the ads and the stupefyingly painful & endless repetitions I believe the whole this-year's season could be easily shown in about 3/4 of 1 episode. IMO, this type of presentation is not very respectful of the viewers.
I'd recommend just tuning in to the last episode of next season to see all that has happened up to that date.
What is needed to solve this
Mark C. Koch New Orleans.What is needed to solve this mystery is a Saturation diving system on a modern DP vessel. 22 hours of bottom time per day from the divers and no anchors needed to hold position. A DP Vessel with a Sat system starts at about $80,000 a day. I believe I heard that they were paying $60.000 a day for the current surface supplied system and the small supply boat that they were using. At best the dive team can get 3-4 hours of productive bottom time a day. For $20,000 to 40,000 more a day they could safely get 21 to 22 hours of bottom time a day. They needed a Saturation System on a DP vessel to ensure success. I hope you find what you are looking for. Good Luck
Loving the show and the story
Andrew Buskard Miami, FLLoving the show and the story in general. I think Capt. Bayerle is right on the money that the question isn't really about whether or not the gold is there, it all boils down to logistics. I really enjoyed episode 7 on Monday, I felt like it was produced differently from the first 6 episodes in that there was more of an emphasis on telling the story of the wreck than on Martin's history, which I feel was overplayed up to this point and not really relevant to the pursuit of Republic's gold. I did notice though, that there wasn't much coverage in general of progress being made on the wreck in episode 7. Am I looking too deeply into this. Also, does anybody have any sort of idea what the lag is between actual events and when an episode airs? It would be great to have a source of up to date information on how things are going. A twitter feed perhaps?
Why not use an atmospheric
MelissaWhy not use an atmospheric diving suit that can withstand diving at greater depths for longer periods of time instead of basically going down 10 minutes at a time? The History Channel sent 5 divers to Britannic to find an engineering change but only one at a time to the "billion dollar wreck?" So much air time is spent on Bayerle's personal life and repeating the same information. I'm glad I have a DVR also!
Keep going. All the world is
Denis BrazilKeep going. All the world is with you, Capt. Bayerle.
This is a good few in follow
Bekend Utrecht HollandThis is a good few in follow a lead on sea. I was a sailor miself and enjoyd every second off your seurch.
Wish you all the best and thanks again.
M v Sante
Have they made any dives this
janice kentuckyHave they made any dives this year 2016? Reports previously said they would go back in October.
I wrote a story about Mr.
Miodrag Milanović Belgrade, SerbiaI wrote a story about Mr. Bayerle and his quest for Republica's gold for the most popular magazine in Serbia "Politikin Zabavnik". Article on 3 pages (a4) will be printed in a two weeks.I would like to send magazine with that story to Mr. Bayerle.
I watch the show it
Patrice Carbonneau Chateauguay, CanadaI watch the show it Washington Nice but vert boring concernant the history or the murder. Was is important is the diving to found the gold , the should use some née diving technologies.
We wish you good luck and
Ian MacDonald scotlandWe wish you good luck and hope your next expedition is successful. Hope you find it so that you can sicken all the skeptical critics who like to give their negative opinions. They do not have the drive to follow their own dreams but are happy to down others for trying. Wishing you and your family all the best.
It would be nice to get an
Janice TennesseeIt would be nice to get an update on this expedition. Were any dives made in 2016 and results? When are any future dives planned?
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