Couple stunned after finding bizarre tunnel under home before realising why it was dug
Hayley and Trevor Gilmartin were stunned to discover a secret chamber under their living room, which was connected to a tunnel going across the border.
An American couple was stunned to discover a historic Prohibition-era tunnel under their home that may have been used to smuggle alcohol in the early 20th century across the US-Canada border.
Hayley and Trevor Gilmartin, originally from Michigan, were removing an old Jacuzzi from their house in Lake Huron, the body of water separating Canada from the United States, when they discovered a water-filled chamber 20 feet below the surface.
The couple quickly discovered the room was connected to a six-foot pipe that tunnelled under the lake.
Haley said: "Our house has about three feet of concrete between each floor. I think anyone finding a manhole under their house in pitch darkness is going to find it spooky. But it's super clear water and nothing crazy has been found in the water.
"We scuba-dived in the river and found the other end of it, which is a huge tunnel."
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While the couple explained they had been planning on removing the jacuzzi in the living room of the "1970s-style" home, they didn’t expect a complication such as a "manhole-like thing".
Uploading their findings on TikTok, the video quickly garnered attention, amassing over one million likes.
Haley added they are currently unable to pump the water out of the discovered chamber, as it is "still getting water from Lake Huron and the rivers that it is connected to."
The discovery sparked wild rumours and theories as to what the secret room and tunnel may have been used for.
Hayley told Newsweek: "We were told by people in the area that our house used to load brine onto freighters during the Second World War, but not sure how accurate that is.
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"The wildest theory we've heard is that it was used in the prohibition days to smuggle alcohol over from Canada since it's so close. Although we do find many prohibition-era bottles in our area.”
According to historian Douglas Bancroft in the Times Herald, the area of Lake Huron was responsible for 75 percent of illegal exports during the Prohibition. Several of the Gilmartins’ neighbours have also discovered tunnels under their homes leading to seemingly secret rooms, adding fuel to the theory.
Currently, Hayley and Trevor are looking into giving the room a second purpose.
"We are going to keep exploring it and if possible we will drain it and maybe create a game room or bowling alley lane down there," Hayley said.