A Michigan couple made an astonishing discovery when they excavated their in-home jacuzzi, discovering a secret room 20 feet beneath the ground. Trevor and Hayley, as they identified themselves, spoke with Newsweek back in April. However, their peculiar story is continuing to gain traction thanks to a bevy of TikTok videos the couple produced chronicling their exploration of the mysterious den.
Trevor and Hayley knew when they bought the “fixer-upper,” decorated in “all 1970s style,” they were in for a bit of a DIY project. This included unearthing the derelict hot tub that occupied the center of the living room (it was the ‘70s after all); but when the couple cleared the space, they were astonished to find a “manhole-like thing” underneath.
As they dug further, Trevor and Hayley found that the opening funneled to a cavernous area filled with water, which in turn led to a separate underground room. Concerned it may be a septic tank, Trevor tested the water before donning his scuba gear to make an exploration, during which he came across “another passage with a bolted wooden wall in front of it.”
A follow-up video shows Trevor exploring the great expanse of water beneath their home, which looks as immense as any lake or ocean.
“This is not a septic and not a basement,” Hayley explained in the caption. “This room is still getting water from Lake Huron (thus why it’s impossible to pump the water out).”
She continued: “Nothing drains into this room from our house. We do know that our house was a pumping station back in the day. We haven’t tore [sic] down the wooden wall, but that is next! The last part of the video is of the pipe in the lake that is connecting to the room under our house which is supplying it fresh water…The room water temp is about 52 degrees, which is a couple degrees warmer than Lake Huron.”
Hayley told Newsweek that, while the discovery was unsettling, nothing has been found to suggest the room held a nefarious purpose. "I think anyone finding a manhole under their house in pitch darkness is going to find it spooky," she said. "But it's super clear water and nothing crazy has been found in the water."
However, speculation has swirled amongst the community regarding the secret room’s true purpose. One contingent believes the space was used as a freight passage during Prohibition.
"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," Hayley explained. "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."
Trevor and Hayley haven’t yet been able to explore the additional chamber behind the bolted wooden door, but they already have plans for the entire space once it’s properly drained and treated.
“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 promised.
