NJ woman thinks message in bottle could be oldest ever found

Amy Smyth Murphy was walking on the beach at Corson's Inlet State Park in Ocean City when she saw something unusual.

"I noticed it because the bottle was like a really nice aqua," she recalled.

It was early in the morning on July 3, and she says the glass bottle - corked with something inside - was right there on the sand.

She couldn't wait to tell her 14-year-old nephew Jack Smyth and 16-year-old niece Avery Smyth.
#messageinabottle #newjersey #jerseyshore #fypage

[fifthrider]

So it's an ad for buying ships? This is the 1900's equivalent of "We'd like to talk to you about your car's extended warranty!"

[lumberpilot]

The message is to go back to using glass bottles and chuck the plastic forever.

[megsuhr]

I saw that post on Reddit in r/BottleDigging and helped with some of the research. In fact you featured one of my screenshots - the photo of a news article with the yellow highlighting was my contribution. The bottle and the note are an incredible find and helping with the research was so fun!

[texasstep]

So cool that her young niece and nephew are interested and helping her. They'll probably learn things from this that they won't pick up in school.

[KeithCooper-Albuquerque]

Great reporting, 6abc! The kids look a lot like their aunt! It's so nice to see a good story these days! The learning that happened because Amy was curious and had the forethought to record the opening is amazing! Great job!

[TheDeadbirdy]

This is so awesome I'm very happy for these people to make such a great find

[donh]

Very cool that she shared the experience with everyone.

[robertcaldwell]

Everything about the design of the card is super nice. The graphic designer was darn good.

[LygerTheCLaw]

sounds more like a sales ad than a note in a bottle.

[sumar]

What a fun activity that brought the past & present together!

[trueloveingod]

What an adorable family, the perfect people to have found that bottle.

[hood_TheJoker]

🎵 message in a bottle yeah.... sending out an SOS 🎵

[dianewilliams]

My Son who is an archeological historian, would have gone ape finding such a treasure! God bless her for finding and preserving that amazing relic!😊😊😊

[EstradaRamon]

So crazy how the bottles never broke after decades

[HailNjord]

Nice to see a story that's uplifting, not much of this nowadays.

[northerniltree]

Dude's business card is so lame. No website address, or even a cell phone number.

[lizgalindo]

Cool Bottle. Cool find and great family time. It's all that matters. Enjoy the treasures the sea gives. Smile.😃

[sherylcrowe]

Fantastic story. Keep us posted. Thanks

[sconartist]

“In this current market your used vessel is worth more than ever!”

[eucliduschaumeau]

This hand blown soda bottle has the note dated 1876, which would have made it an American centennial year. The bottle could be a little older. Dropping such messages may have been quite common for that full year to celebrate the centennial. My oldest bottle is from 1690, but the oldest with a message was in a well-worn pre-Prohibition bottle, circa 1918. I found that in a lake.