$7M in unclaimed property lies in State Treasury vault

PITTSBURGH — Buried beneath the State Treasury building, in a room without any windows, lies a treasure trove of unclaimed property.

“We have about $7 million worth of tangible items,” vault manager Lindsay Caldonetti told Channel 11’s Jennifer Abney.

She said a lot of what is inside the private vault comes from abandoned safety deposit boxes.

The most expensive item currently is a 12-carat diamond ring worth more than $60,000. It was part of a collection worth more than $1 million found inside a safety deposit box in Pittsburgh.

Local police departments turn over items. One collection from Pittsburgh police included jewelry.

There are also items from nursing homes and hospitals.

But there is also history, too. There is an autographed Honus Wagner baseball and a 1787 document signed by Benjamin Franklin.

“You might think of it as a glorified lost and found but they have a couple of billion dollars,” said Pennsylvania Treasurer Rob McCord of the unclaimed property program.

His department has returned more than $17 million in unclaimed property to people living in Southwest Pennsylvania, and there is still more than $160 million that has not been claimed.

As for the vault, if items are not claimed within three years, you could own it. The Treasury Department is now on eBay and lists new merchandise three times a week.

To find out if you have unclaimed property, click here or call 800-222-2046

To visit the treasury's eBay store, click here

WPXI