There’s hidden treasure out on Oak Island, at least according to the stars of The Curse of Oak Island, the long-running History Channel show about the adventures of treasure hunters, including Emma Culligan, and it’s time to share some facts about her. Emma joined the show in season 10 in 2022 and has remained on since. Season 12’s currently airing on The History Channel. Emma’s debut on the series was refreshing, since the show tended to be more male-dominated until she arrived. The show has followed brothers Rick and Marty Lagina since The Curse of Oak Island season 1.
- Emma has proven herself to be a valuable asset to the treasure-hunting team, with her background in engineering, archeology, and metallurgy.
Metallurgy is the study of metallic elements. There have been several instances when Emma’s background came in handy when deciphering the origin of objects found on the island. She’s become a valued member of the team, and has helped them uncover historical connections to ancient artifacts that help further uncover the mysteries of Oak Island.
Emma Culligan’s Life Before The Curse Of Oak Island
Emma Has An Impressive Educational Background
Upon joining the show, which had already been on the air for 10 seasons, Emma made an unassuming debut, and told the producers that she had a different type of educational background. According to a report by Sky History, she attended Memorial University in Newfoundland. Her combination of knowledge in both archeology and engineering, plus her skills and interest in metallurgy, made her the perfect candidate to assist the Lagina brothers and the rest of their crew.
“I studied engineering as well as archaeology, a niche I wanted to create for myself.”
Sky History also reported that Emma grew up in Japan and that Japanese is her first language. Emma didn’t learn English until she was 15 years old. Other details about her life before joining the reality show are scarce, since Emma keeps a rather low profile. MSN reported that Emma has two siblings and that her mom is named Shirley Hardin. Emma lives in Nova Scotia and gained her role on the popular reality show in an unusual way.
Emma Culligan’s Journey On The Curse Of Oak Island
Emma’s Role Was A Fluke
Emma has told the story of how she ended up on reality TV in a few interviews. Apparently, Emma had been working at Frontier Subsea Inc, an engineering firm in Canada, when someone from the show reached out to ask for her resumé. The show was searching for a personal assistant, and thought Emma might be a good fit. However, her resumé impressed cast member Laird Niven, and he decided to offer her a more substantial job of running the XRV system on the island.
- Emma said when she originally got the email offering her the job on the show, she thought it was spam.
According to the MSN story, she told The Curse of Oak Island & Beyond Podcast that, “It was kind of a fluke, to be honest. I thought it was a spam email.” Since then, Emma’s been a mainstay on the cast. Sky History reported that on Emma’s first episode, she made a discovery that could prove that pirates had been on Oak Island at some point.
Emma scanned a piece of metal using computed tomography and deduced that it was “probably a bunk hook.” Bunk hooks are traditionally associated with cargo ships, so Emma’s clue led them to believe that ships, which may have been carrying treasure, were near the island at some point. Emma also traced a coin fragment to the 1690s, which made investigators think that the treasure could have been buried by Sir William Phips in the 17th century.
What Is Emma Culligan Up To Today?
Emma Appears On Season 12
With The Curse Of Oak Island season 12 about to wrap up, Emma’s future on the show won’t be clear until another season is announced. Emma isn’t very active on social media, but she does have an Instagram page that hasn’t been updated since 2021. On that page, Emma shares photos of herself and her explorations. She’s documented travels to Japan and the U.S., and shared photos of herself and her friends.
Emma has made few media appearances, mostly related to the show, like The Curse of Oak Island & Beyond Podcast she appeared on in 2023. Emma seems to prefer keeping a low profile online, which matches her energy on the show. Emma is a hard worker, but she isn’t flashy and she isn’t attention-seeking. She puts her head down and gets the job done, and knowing that this is the product of her passions makes her appearance on the show all the more satisfying.
