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    The Treasure Hunt Quest badge: a treasure map with a red X and a compass, reading Treasure Hunt Quest, Where’s the treasure?

    Door 1 of 6 Project Scroll Quest

    Treasure Hunt Quest. Every clue is true.

    Free, no sign-up. Every answer is in the record.

    A treasure hunt through the real history of the St. Joseph River valley. Real mysteries hide in county histories, survey maps, certificates, forgotten newspapers, lore and local legends. Every one of them can be solved by you, and nobody ever has to dig, trespass or knock on a door.

    Start with Case 1See the case boardYour hunter’s card

    Follow the trail — every clue is true
    Cases open now
    10
    Cases on the board
    10
    Halls of the hunt
    2
    Cost to play
    Free

    Ready?

    The path starts with one question.

    The first door is in the pinned post on Project Scroll’s Facebook page.

    Open the first door on Facebook

    How to play

    Four moves, no sign-up, and it costs nothing.

    1. Find a clue. Every mystery is posted on Project Scroll’s Facebook page, and each case has its own page with the first sources to open.
    2. Search the record. Old books, maps and certificates, many of them free online.
    3. Post your answer. In the comments, saying exactly where you found it: the book, the page, and a link.
    4. Get named. The first solver is named in the next post and on the case board, for good.

    Ready? The first door is in the pinned post on Project Scroll’s Facebook page.

    Open the first door on Facebook

    The levels

    The hunt is laid out as a trail of halls. Each hall is a level with its own cases. A hall lights up when it opens; the rest of the trail is still in fog.

    Level 1 · Hall I · Lit

    The Cassopolis Hall

    Where the hunt began: a joke secret society of 1846 and the hotel where it danced.

    1. Case 1Who told James M. Shepard the story of the 1846 lodge? He wasn’t there, and he put a question mark in it.Open
    2. Case 2In 1867 the old hotel where the lodge danced was hauled across the village and turned into a mill. Where did it end up?Open

    Level 2 · Hall II · Lit

    A lake with no stream in and no stream out

    A settler’s gift, a parchment deed, a mill with no stream, and a doctor who kept a bone.

    1. Case 3Who was the settler who gave away forty acres of lakefront?Open
    2. Case 4Where is the 1831 parchment deed today?Open
    3. Case 5Where does the lake’s water really come from?Open
    4. Case 6Where did the boulders on the shore go?Open
    5. Case 7What powered the flour mill on a lake with no stream, and where did it stand?Open
    6. Case 8Who was the doctor who took a bone home and kept it?Open
    7. Case 9What became of that bone, and of everything else taken from the grave?Open
    • Level 3 · Hall IIIIn the fogOpens when the hunt gets there
    • Level 4 · Hall IVIn the fogOpens when the hunt gets there
    • Level 5 · Hall VIn the fogOpens when the hunt gets there

    Training ground

    New to old records? Try the practice case first. It is a real puzzle from the research desk, with the full answer in the field notes once you have had a go.

    1. Case 10One letter, two certificates: which middle initial is right?Open

    Side quests

    Badges for exploring. Each one moves you up the ranks, from Candidate to Keeper of the Hall.

    All the badges, and the five ranks ›

    Tools for the quest

    Then and nowFour towns, 1860 and todayCassopolis, Niles, Dowagiac and Paw Paw: the 1860 town plans laid over today’s streets. The map roomWalk the 1860 wall mapZoom into every farm, town plan and engraved house on the great county map, straight from the Library of Congress. A guide from the deskHow to read a death certificateTap each box to see who filled it in, and how far to trust it. The hunter’s toolkitTools for reading the recordBring faded ink back to life, turn an age at death into a birth date, find Soundex codes, name any cousin, and turn a cipher wheel. A guide from the deskReading the old handThe long s, ye, inst. and ult., double dates and the other tricks of old handwriting. From the deskWhere the records areThe free archives, newspapers and maps we search first, from Michigan to Sweden. Plain EnglishThe glossaryRelict, probate, plat, ahnentafel: the words old records use, explained.

    The case board

    Every case on the quest, and who cracked it. No case has been cracked yet. The first name on the board could be yours.

    CaseThe questionOpenedStatus
    Case 1Who told James M. Shepard the story of the 1846 lodge? He wasn’t there, and he put a question mark in it.15 Oct 2026Open
    Case 2In 1867 the old hotel where the lodge danced was hauled across the village and turned into a mill. Where did it end up?15 Oct 2026Open
    Case 3Who was the settler who gave away forty acres of lakefront?17 Oct 2026Open
    Case 4Where is the 1831 parchment deed today?17 Oct 2026Open
    Case 5Where does the lake’s water really come from?17 Oct 2026Open
    Case 6Where did the boulders on the shore go?17 Oct 2026Open
    Case 7What powered the flour mill on a lake with no stream, and where did it stand?17 Oct 2026Open
    Case 8Who was the doctor who took a bone home and kept it?17 Oct 2026Open
    Case 9What became of that bone, and of everything else taken from the grave?17 Oct 2026Open
    Case 10One letter, two certificates: which middle initial is right?17 Oct 2026Practice

    The full case board, with every clue and source ›

    The rules

    Sealed, and kept by every hunter.

    • Read the record. Every answer is in a book, on a map, or on a page.
    • Show your work. A name without the page it came from is only a guess.
    • Stay on paper. Never dig, never go near a grave or a mound, and never set foot on anyone’s land.
    • Leave people in peace. Never go looking for anyone’s house, and never knock on a door for an answer.
    • Mind the hours. If you visit a museum or a library, go when it is open and follow the staff’s rules.
    • Be kind. These are real people, and their families are still here.

    Every clue is true. Every answer is in the record.

    Tools for the hunt: where the records are, the glossary, the toolkit and the hunter’s worksheet (PDF).

    Questions hunters ask

    Does it cost anything?

    No. The Project Scroll Treasure Hunt Quest is free to play. There is no sign-up, nothing to buy and nothing to download, and many of the records are free online.

    Do I have to go anywhere?

    No. Every answer is in the record: in a book, on a map or on a page. You can play the whole quest from home or from a library. Never dig, never visit a grave or a mound, and never go looking for anyone’s house.

    How do I send in an answer?

    Post it in the comments under the case on Project Scroll’s Facebook page, saying exactly where you found it: the book, the page, and a link.

    What happens if I crack a case?

    The first solver is named in the next post and on the case board, for good.

    Where is my progress kept?

    In this browser, on this device only. Your badges and the cases you have begun are saved here, and you do not need an account. Your badge book shows them all.

    Can children play?

    Yes. The junior hunt has seven questions for young hunters, and every case on this page is open to a family working together.

    I have never read an old record. Where do I start?

    Try the practice case in the training ground, and keep the toolkit and the glossary open beside you.