Embedded Files
Other than my Great Grandfather's expedition to Cocos on the 'Vigilant' trawler, I have discovered that there are lots of other interesting stories of treasure hunts on Cocos Island. In the mid to late 19th and early 20th century, it seems that there were hundreds of people sailing to Cocos to try and find treasure. With reports held at the Foreign Office estimating that the value of treasure could be between £12 - 25 million pounds (in 1930's money), combined with the 30's Great Depression, it is not hard to imagine why there was so much desire to find Pirate Treasure on Cocos Island.
As popular as Cocos was, it seems to have been not unusual to have two or more separate expeditions pull up in Chatham bay and potentially end up arguing or even fighting. Some expeditions ended in disaster either through loss of life, illness, or simply aborted due to not ever having applied for a permit to hunt for treasure. One of the subsequent attempts of two Vigilant members ended immediately when the Costa Rican authorities sent a group of soldiers to arrest the members of the Worsley expedition (Finnis & Jolly in 1934 - see article below)
I'll post some stories which I have found particularly interesting further down this page. If you have any interesting stories too, I would be interested to hear about them!
The Foreign Office handbook for 1935, an official Government publication, stated on pages 141-2 :
"Cocos Island - Existence of treasure on the island is well established. It was a seventeenth century and later, resort of pirates and freebooters. In 1818 Bonito, alias Bennett Graham, secreted vast treasure, said to be 350 tons of bullion, while Davies cached 300,000lb, weight of silver, 733 bars of gold, and seven kegs of gold coin. A few years later Bonito deposited a fresh quantity of gold bars and specie to the value of eleven million dollars. In or about 1826 a man passing as William Thompson, who appears to have sailed under Bennett, but was then in command of the brig 'Mary Dier', concealed about twelve million dollars' worth of stolen gold coins, golden ornaments, jewels and silver ingots on Cocos Island"
There were hundreds of expeditions which were made to Cocos Island in the early 1900's.
Famous searchers included President Franklin Roosevelt, World Land Speed Record Holder Sir Malcolm Campbell, and the Hollywood Mobster Ben 'Bugs' Siegel.
1st November 1934
Stratford Jolly and Frederick Finnis from the 'Vigilant' expedition, took part in another Cocos Island venture in late 1934, but they were arrested and found guilty by the Costa Rican authorities for smuggling, illegal entry, and usurpation of sovereignty. They were subsequently released.
Henry leighton - The Veracity & Cocos Island 1935
This story appeared in our local paper I think in the late 1980's. My Father kept the cutting and showed it to me recently.
I was stunned to read that a fisherman Henry Leighton from my hometown of Lowestoft had sailed on the "Veracity" to Cocos in on a treasure hunt in 1935 a year after my Great Grandfather. However, Henry also had dinner with President Roosevelt which is quite amazing!....
I understand that President Roosevelt was very interested in the Cocos Treasure. He was mentioned in a programme I watched called 'The Curse of Oak Island', where he visited Oak Island of Nova Scotia. Similar to Cocos Island, Oak Island has also been searched for treasure many times over the last 200 years.
---------
Captain Arthur led an earlier expedition to Cocos in 1932 on the "Western Queen" yacht. In December of that same year, James Plumpton was in Puntarenas having the "Vigilant" repaired and met Captain Arthur on the Western Queen. He wrote in his book "Treasure Cruise";
"Two yachts, both British, were based in Puntarenas at the time. One was the 'Western Queen', owned by a Captain Arthur, and the other, a smaller craft, the 'Southern Pearl', belonged to a man named Palmer. Both Arthur and Palmer gave us every help in their power"
Captain Arthur loaned the use of the Western Queen to Commander Plumpton in order to take supplies back to Cocos Island while the Vigilant was being repaired in Balboa.
----------
I believe that one of the Vigilant crew Commander F.C. Finnis was a leader on the 1935 Veracity expedition 2 years after the Plumpton / Vigilant attempt.
Here is another report about Lowestoft Man Henry Leighton who was on the 1935 Veracity / Worsley expedition. The article was in the 1994 'The Suffolk Sage' magazine and remains in my Fathers Cocos Island collection. (I attempted to request permission to reproduce it on this website but can not trace the publisher or the author. )
February 1935 - This was the expedition which Henry Leighton from Lowestoft took part in when he had lunch with President Roosevelt per the next story ---------->
February 5th 1924
Devon & Somerset News
11th January 1940
COCOS ISLAND TREASURE
A message from Los Angeles on Friday told the world that the pirates treasure hoard, believed to be worth £20,000, on Cocos Island in the Pacific, has now been located by a Californian expedition that sailed last November.
Men of all nations have searched for the spot for nearly a hundred years and in recent years Commander James Plumpton of Cullompton was in charge of a ship called “Vigilant” which sailed from Dartmouth on the quest.
Cocos Island is a tiny, lovely and uninhabited spot, 450 miles off the coast of Costa Rica.
This article below mentions the Plumpton & Vancouver Treasure Hunt 'partnership' on the 4th page.
It also mentions several other expeditions including one setting off from the port of Lowestoft in Suffolk
(perhaps this was the 'Veracity' expedition whose skipper met with President Roosevelt - see story above).
It also refers to a Japanese ship surveying Cocos Island, possibly conducting surveying in preparation for WW2.
A news story appeared in ~2016 that a £200m hoard of treasure had been found by the Costa Rican authorities...but it is suspected to be a hoax.
This article dated 1987 is about a 1984 expedition. I think it is copied from a San Jose Newspaper (Capital of Costa Rica)
Local newspaper San Jose - Costa Rica ~1987
August 8th 1906
august 23rd 1952
The report above about Miss Jane Sand's expedition, was from May 14th 1922
Marie Briggs from California took part in a Cocos Island Treasure Hunting Expedition in the 1950's or 60's.
She wrote about her experiences in the book 'Cocos Island Venture' which I have read.
More information soon...
Rough and Tumble by Bob Roberts
Book Description: Bob Roberts and his friend Bully worked nights and saved every penny they could make to buy Thelma, a 27-foot Looe smack, and fit her out for her epic voyage. After testing her out in the North Sea, they headed for Panama, by way of Madeira and the Azores. Australia was in their minds, as times were hard in England. Their plans fell apart in the Cocos islands, where they were shipwrecked, and soon found themselves on a hair-raising voyage with treasure hunters aboard the bluenose schooner, "Franklin Barnet".
I believe this expedition was in, or close to 1935, as the book references the Avance and Franklin Barnet ships which were also at Cocos when the Bob Roberts and friend Bully landed there.
If you have any information to add or any comments, please drop me an email: jamesplumpton.history@gmail.com
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse