Mel Fisher lost his son and daughter-in-law hunting the Atocha, found its main treasure ten years to the day later, and beat Florida in the Supreme Court

The Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de Atocha sank in a hurricane in 1622 about 40 nautical miles west of Key West. Mel Fisher's company, Treasure Salvors, searched for her for years. Florida claimed the wreck and contracted for 25% of what was raised. A 1975 Supreme Court boundary ruling then placed the site outside Florida's waters. On 20 July 1975 Fisher's eldest son Dirk, Dirk's wife Angel and diver Rick Gage drowned when their salvage boat sank. On 20 July 1985, ten years to the day, Fisher and his son Kane found the main deposit, estimated at $450 million: about 40 tons of silver and gold coins, silver ingots and emeralds. Fisher fought Florida for eight years. On 1 July 1982 the Supreme Court held, without a majority opinion, that Florida officials had no colourable claim to keep the artifacts they held. Fisher died in Key West on 19 December 1998, aged 76. That year his company had pleaded no contest to selling counterfeit coins and paid a $67,000 fine. His family planned to scatter his ashes along Kane's Trail, the search route. As of 2017 the ship's stern castle, 300 silver bars and 8 bronze cannons had not been found. The family business continues as Mel Fisher's Treasures, and his nephew consigned Atocha coins and ingots to auction in 2016.