Lore - Legends 33: More Pirate Legends

Episode Date: August 5, 2024

Because the seas have been deep and dangerous for such a long time, it’s no surprise that they hold far more pirate legends than one episode can contain.  Narrated and produced by Aaron Mahnke, with writing by Harry Marks, editing by Alex Robinson, and research by Jamie Vargas. ————————— Lore Resources:  Episode Music: lorepodcast.com/music  Episode Sources: lorepodcast.com/sources  All the shows from Grim & Mild: www.grimandmild.com Sponsors: Mint Mobile: For a limited time, wireless plans from Mint Mobile are $15 a month when you purchase a 3-month plan with UNLIMITED talk, text and data at MintMobile.com/lore. SimpliSafe: Secure your home with 24/7 professional monitoring. Sign up today at SimpliSafe.com/Lore to get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring. Squarespace: Head to Squarespace.com/lore to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using the code LORE. To report a concern regarding a radio-style, non-Aaron ad in this episode, reach out to [e-mail] with the name of the company or organization so we can look into it. ————————— To advertise on our podcast, please reach out to [e-mail], or visit our listing here.  

Hey folks, Aaron here. Good news, Lore is going on tour. It's been way too long since Chad and I have hit the road and I can't tell you how eager we both are to step back on stage and give you a magical evening of storytelling. If you've never seen a live Lore show, you are in for a treat. With the lights down low and Chad playing at the grand piano, I have the perfect backdrop to share a bunch of creepy and amazing historical tales with you. We really do wish that we could go everywhere that you fine listeners live, but sadly our time is

limited. Chad just released a brand new album, one that you definitely need to check out by the way, and he needs to tour in support of that as well. But we've picked eight cities that we love, and hopefully one of them is within travel distance for you. There are two dates at the very end of October, four more throughout November and two final shows in January. They are in order, Boston, Newark, New Jersey, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, San Francisco, Seattle, Nashville, and Washington, DC. You can find the links for all eight of our stops on the Lore website

at lorepodcast.com slash live. But because I'm saving seats for you until Wednesday this week, August 7th, you'll need a password to access those tickets. That code is live 24. Starting Wednesday, though, the whole Internet can get in. No code required. So if you want a good seat, lock it in now. Oh, and one other cool thing.

I have a new book coming out on November 12th, a collection of stories from my other podcast, Cabinets of Curiosities. But I've managed to get my publisher to have tables at each and every live show where you can buy a copy and get it signed by me, even for the shows that happen before it's released. Nice, right? And that's it, folks. Lore is on tour this fall and you can find the dates and ticket links at lorepodcast.com slash live and the access code is live 24.

Chad and I cannot wait to see you in person and to spend a magical evening focused on storytelling and now on with the show. Villains always have more fun. That's what people say, at least. They don't care about the rules or the law. To them, if being bad means it can help them get rich or feel free, then that's the only thing that matters. And, of course, because of that, stories told throughout the ages have sometimes picked criminals as heroes.

Who was Robin Hood, if not a common thief, right? Or the vampire Lestat. And don't forget Walter White from Breaking Bad. These are all characters that will do anything to get ahead, even break the law. As Taylor would say, they'll stare directly at the sun, but never in the mirror. In the vast expanse of recorded history, though, very few criminals stand out like pirates. Over the years, they've become the symbols of rebellion and icons of adventure. Their

exploits have captured the imaginations of generations. And while so many normal folks like us have lived and died and slipped into obscurity, many of the pirate persuasion have defied the odds and stuck around. After all, they didn't adhere to the status quo while they were alive. Why should they? In death. But if there's one thing you can count on when it comes to anti-heroes, especially those who spent their careers on the high seas, It's constant danger, gruesome death,

and terrifying legends. So grab your shovels and get ready to dig, because we're about to unearth a treasure trove of stories that deliver all three of those delights. Get ready for another journey into the frightening world of pirates. I'm Aaron Manke, and this is Lore Legends. What's in a name? Well for Kill Devil Hills in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, there's quite a history behind its strange moniker. One legend claims that the name comes from the days when ships arrived with rum from the tropics.

One of those ships apparently crashed along the Outer Banks, and the cargo washed ashore in the hills. When the locals found and tasted what was inside, they said that it was strong enough to kill the devil, thus Kill Devil Hills. Another legend, though, claims that the town's name was coined during the 1700s, when William Byrd of Virginia wrote that the rum coming into the country there was, and I quote,

so bad and unwholesome that it is not improperly called Kill Devil. But Kill Devil Hills is known for a lot more than bad rum. It also boasts a well-known ghost, and his name is Blackbeard. Blackbeard, of course, was born Edward Teach. He had originally been an English aristocrat before becoming a pirate sometime during the early 18th century. Now stories of his violent and lucrative exploits were told for generations following his death

in 1718, to the point that few people today have not heard of him. A certain level of mythos has always been associated with his name. The man, after all, had quite the reputation. And eventually, tall tales get so intertwined with the truth that you really can't tell fact from fiction. But eventually, those stories got darker. Because according to some people, Blackbeard never

really left Kill Devil Hills at all. Just south of Bath, North Carolina is an area known as Plum Point. Well, that's one of its names. It's also called Teach's Point, named of course after Edward Teach. Blackbeard. Local lore says that this is where the legendary Blackbeard and his young bride lived together for a time. In fact, the old foundations of the house that they allegedly lived in is still standing

there to this day. But some say there's much more than just bricks of a long-forgotten home. There's also a treasure. For years, treasure hunters have been digging around Teach's Point in search of Blackbeard's rumored collection of stolen gold and jewels, but to no avail. Yet they did find something, but it's not what anyone expected. Strange lights have appeared on both land and sea there. They've been named Teach's Lights, and they often glow during strong storms that batter

the coast of North Carolina. They've been spotted over the very place where Blackbeard and his wife once lived in Bathtown. And there are some who say that these lights are actually Blackbeard's soul, unable to cross over due to unfinished business. Others believe that his ghost is there floating about on a specific mission to find his severed head. But these eerie lights aren't the only evidence that locals have of Blackbeard's ghostly presence. Some say that they can hear his voice on the wind, wailing and moaning, asking after his missing head. Whether it's truly a ghost or just local superstition, we will probably never know.

But between his life, his head, and his treasure, Blackbeard seems to have misplaced quite a bit while he was still living. Now all that's truly left of him in North Carolina is his memory. Blackbeard may be one of the most famous pirates in history, but if the next story is true, he's just one small piece of a much larger picture. A picture painted on the sails of a ghostly vessel, helmed by a phantom crew. Blackbeard of course isn't the only ghost from the high seas still wandering about, although he may be one of the few looking for his lost head. Tall tales about seafaring ghosts aren't all that unusual, actually.

Some echoes, though, are bigger than others. And I mean really big. As big as an entire ship. Now, you can't have a good pirate legend without a ghost ship, and I would bet that you've even heard of the vessel I have in mind. It was called the Flying Dutchman. The name of the captain of the Flying Dutchman varies depending on the story you hear. Some say that a Dutch East India Company employee named Hendrik van der Decken was the man in

charge while others claim that it was someone named Bernard Fokke. And yes, the Flying Dutchman was originally in the Dutch East India Company's fleet, not operating as a pirate vessel. One of the more popular versions of the ship's murky fate is that Captain Van der Decken purchased as much cargo as his ship could hold before setting sail for Amsterdam. It traveled as far as South Africa, where it ran into some terrible weather. A massive storm around the Cape of Good Hope sent the vessel tossing and turning. When it was nearly capsized, the crew urged Van Der Decken to turn them around. But he refused. He may have been drunk or he may have just been reckless.

The stories vary. But every telling ends the same way, with the captain forcing his men to keep moving through the storm despite the danger and losing everything in the process. Some say that van der Decken had taken a blasphemous oath that had upset the gods, causing them to trap the souls of everyone on board to the doomed ship forever. Others suggest the devil himself heard van der Decken's refusal to turn around and cruelly seal the fates of the captain and crew. The Flying Dutchman, they say, sank off the coast of the Cape of Good Hope in 1641, and it should never have been seen again. But just because a ship went beneath the waves doesn't mean that it's lost.

There is a reason, after all, that this vessel has become so famous. In 1790, 150 years after it had disappeared, the Flying Dutchman was first mentioned as a ghost ship. The author, John MacDonald, reported that sailors had started seeing visions of the ship during bad weather. According to MacDonald, it had tried to enter a harbor but was unable to navigate the storm and was lost forever, only reappearing when the skies are dark and the rain blows every which way.

He wrote, The sailors fancy that if you would hail her, she would answer like another vessel. Five years later, another sighting was reported in A Voyage to South Wales by George Barrington. He wrote that during the night watch, some of the sailors witnessed what they believed was the Flying Dutchman ready to, and I quote, run them down. Once they were back on dry land, they told anyone who would listen, and so the story spread. But one of the most famous sightings of the Phantom vessel occurred in 1881, when a British

Royal Navy ship named the HMS Baconte spotted it in Australian waters. According to the log for July 11th of that year, the Dutchman appeared early in the morning around 4 a.m. while the sky was still dark and full of stars. It floated about 200 yards away, glowing red against the night sky. The lookout for the Becante spotted it, and I quote, close on the port bow, as did about a dozen other crew members. And they weren't alone, either. Two other ships in the vicinity flashed signals at the Baconte, asking them if they were all

seeing the same strange vessel in the distance that they were. But sadly, the log ends with a tragic conclusion. At 1045 A.M., they wrote, the ordinary seaman who had this morning reported the flying Dutchman fell from the foretop-mast cross trees and was smashed to atoms. they wrote, the ordinary seaman who had this morning reported the Flying Dutchman fell from the fore-top-mast cross trees and was smashed to atoms. At 4.15 pm, he was buried at sea. Those who are familiar with the story of the Flying Dutchman wouldn't be surprised by such a devastating end to the Bacanti's tale.

The ship had been believed to be an omen of death and impending doom for any vessel that catches sight of it. Ever since the legend emerged, sailors had claimed that the Dutchman caused other ships to run aground on hidden rocks along the shore or on coral reefs obscured by the waves. And anyone who sees its captain and its skeletal crew of men will, and I quote, most certainly die a gruesome death. And how, you may ask, did this infamous merchant ship get lumped in with other pirate ships? Well, it seems to have been simply a victim of misinformation.

In 1812, Sir Walter Scott wrote that the Dutchman was, and I quote, originally a vessel loaded with great wealth, on board of which some horrid act of murder and piracy had been committed. And as time went on, people seemed to have misunderstood what he meant. Today, the Flying Dutchman has been cemented in our collective consciousness as a pirate ship. It's even made Hollywood appearances as one in franchises like Pirates of the Caribbean and, oddly enough, Spongebob. But that said, pop culture's decision to make this ghost ship into a pirating vessel

doesn't negate its real history or who its sailors were. Sadly, though, I think it's fair to say that it will never be remembered by most people as part of the East India Company. The Dutchman will always be a part of popular pirate legend. Folklore, as we all know, isn't static. It grows and breathes along with the people who tell it. It's a part of us. And yes, sometimes it gets history wrong.

But if the Flying Dutchman is truly an omen of death, then I would say that not many people who see it are too concerned about the facts. Not much is known about William Kidd's early life. He was born in Dundee, Scotland, sometime in the mid-1600s. His father was a sailor, and at some point, Kidd decided to follow in Dad's footsteps. In the 1680s, though, Kidd emigrated to New York and started a family with a wealthy widow named Sarah Bradley Cox Oort. They lived in Manhattan and raised a young daughter together. But Kidd never forgot about his first love, the sea. He took advantage of

the war that broke out between England and France in the 1690s, becoming a privateer in the navy and defending trade routes with the West Indies. He was finally back on the ocean and for a time he was thriving. But in 1698, his life took a drastic turn. You see, two years prior, he'd been commissioned by King William III to find and capture pirate ships off the coast of Africa. The goal had been to sell off their cargo and funnel the money back to England. Kidd had left with a crew of 150 people, and for two years, he was hunting pirates. Eventually though, those years at sea wore on his crew.

They got restless, eventually going so far as to plot a mutiny. But rather than take over the ship and kill their captain, the crew gave Kidd a choice. He could lose his life and his vessel, or he could lead them to fortune outside the law. And so, with that, William Kidd became a pirate. He and his crew had just captured a pirating vessel full of riches, and instead of turning the spoils into the crown, they just decided to keep it for themselves. Now, of course, governments don't typically take kindly to deserters, and England was

no exception. William Kidd and his crew were now criminals, although Kidd did not learn that he was a wanted man until he returned to shore in 1699. Once there, he worked out a deal with the royal governor of New York and Massachusetts for a pardon from the king. But he had to travel to Boston to finalize all the details. He was hopeful that this would be his salvation, but that didn't mean that he could let his guard down. He was a wanted pirate, after all, and this was a government official. Anything could go wrong. And it most definitely would go wrong if he just waltzed in with all that stolen treasure.

So just to be safe, he sailed off to Gardner's Island, near the eastern end of Long Island, and made arrangements with the island's owner, John Gardner, to hide some of his loot until he returned. And it turns out that Kidd was right to be wary. When he arrived in Boston, the governor had him arrested and then ordered Gardner to bring him all of those stolen goods. Both Kidd and his treasure were placed on a ship to London in early 1700. Once there, he was imprisoned for a year on charges of piracy and murder before finally being hanged on May 23rd of 1701. Um, twice, actually. The first rope broke,

and so a second one had to be strung up to finish the job. Surprisingly though, Captain William Kidd's death didn't mark the end of his story. Allegedly, he had buried as much as 40,000 pounds to hide it from the authorities, about $2 million by today's standards. But exactly where he stashed it has become a hot topic ever since. Boston Harbor's Conan's Island has been one rumored location. According to legend, in 1848, two teenage cousins

in Palmer, Massachusetts, found a sealed bottle with a letter, allegedly written by Captain Kidd, to a man named John Bailey back in New York. According to the story, it had been written while Kidd was still in a Boston prison. The letter instructed Bailey to go to the northwest corner of Conan's Island, and that's where two chests were buried with, and I quote, 15 to 20,000 pounds sterling in money, jewels, and diamonds.

Except the letter turned out to be fake. It was revealed during an 1849 court battle under oath that it had actually been fabricated. There was no treasure on Conan's Island. Another spot where Kidd's treasure is rumored to be buried is Jamestown, Rhode Island. In 1884, it was rumored that a landlady on Block Island went out one night with her uncle and several friends to a spot on the island called Sandy Point, where Kidd had supposedly buried his treasure.

This group dug up the ground with shovels and pickaxes until they unearthed a rusty iron kettle. The men then used their hands to clear away the remaining dirt from the pot and were about to lift it from the hole when they noticed a rowboat just offshore. It was manned by what they described as a spectral contingent of seamen in old-fashioned dress armed with flintlock. And at the bow, one man armed with the sword was leading them to land, none other than Captain Kidd himself.

They say the treasure hunters bolted from their dig sites, and when they turned back to look at the water, the ghostly apparition had vanished. But that's not the end of the legend of Captain Kidd or his lost treasure. In fact, it's just the beginning. Pirate legends are all about pushing the limits, running the ship up against the barriers to wealth and prosperity, hoping to break through.

It's the big draw and what makes these stories so attractive. That and the fact that many of the legends don't end when you would expect them to. Yes, piracy most often led to death, either in combat, through betrayal, or at the end of a government's noose. And yet sometimes, the story manages to keep sailing away. When Captain Kidd returned from the Indian Ocean, he was desperate to receive an official pardon for pirating from the royal governor in Boston. But as I mentioned before, he made a few stops in search of a place to stash his treasure

before turning himself in, and one of those locations happened to be along the New Jersey coastline. Kidd is said to have stopped at Raritan Bay and Sandy Hook, where, according to one story, he buried his treasure. It's said that one dark night he sailed into the harbor at Sandy Hook, where his crew disembarked with cutlasses and pistols in hand. Two witnesses claimed that they rode boatload after boatload of heavy chests to shore, with Captain Kidd watching on.

The men took these chests to a grove of pine trees, where they buried all their ill-gotten loot. And before dawn, the pirates emerged from the grove and rode back to the ship, sailing away into the night one last time. The local people who witnessed this didn't tell a soul about what they had seen. Instead, they ventured into the Grove themselves a few days later with some lanterns and shovels, hoping to strike it rich.

But there was no treasure to be found. They started telling a few trusted friends about the incident with Captain Kidd and his crew, enlisting them to help with the search. And that's when everything spiraled out of control. Almost overnight, the Grove was packed with treasure hunters from all around, all of them searching for Captain Kid's missing loot. The search continued for decades, too, leaving nothing but a few scant trees and some patches

of grass behind. Oh, and Dem Bones. Dem Bones happened to be the ghostly skeletal crew of Captain Kidd. Yes, you heard that right, his entire crew. And according to the legend, they sail up the coast of New Jersey in a ship made of shadows, which anchors near the Sandy Hook shore. And when they finally reach the coast, the Phantom Pirates make their way with heavy trunks of treasure down to the site of the former Pine Grove. Then the crew hauls out kegs of whiskey while one of the skeletons grabs a fiddle

and starts playing. Pretty soon a massive party breaks out until they all grow tired and start telling stories. Stories of the ships they've sailed, stories of the treasure they've won. And then, just before sunrise, Dembones pack everything up that they've won. And then, just before sun rises, Dem-Bones pack everything up that they brought with them and row back out to their ship of shadows, sailing away until the next night when their party will start all over again. Over 70% of the Earth's surface is covered by water, and humans have been climbing into boats and sailing to faraway places for thousands of years. Put those two ingredients together and you have all you need to make some wonderful stories

about pirates. And that means that no matter how many we've covered today, there will always be more. Which is why I've set aside one last favorite to share with you. Stick around through this brief sponsor break to hear all about it. This episode of Laura was made possible by Mint Mobile. You know when you discover a new binge-worthy show or a song that you bump on repeat and you have to share with your friends so they can experience just how awesome it is? That's kind of what it feels like when you discover that Mint Mobile offers premium wireless for $15 a month

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New customers on first three-month plan only, speeds lower above 40GB on unlimited plan, additional taxes, fees, and restrictions apply. See Mint Mobile for details. This episode was also made possible by Simply Safe. If you're like me, you're constantly thinking about the safety of the people and things you value most. After remodeling and outfitting the space to be an office for multiple audio professionals,

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I love finding that perfect tool that helps me do the task faster or better or both. And since I'm always busy working on podcast projects, that means that I don't have a lot of time for building websites. Thankfully though, Squarespace has been here to help. I have been using Squarespace, no kidding, for nearly a decade now from lore to Grim and Mild. And I've even switched my personal website, Aaron Manke dot com over. I'm not a web designer or a programmer, and yet I get to have these amazing professional websites for the things that I make, and I love that. And they just made it even easier with their new Blueprint AI tool, which lets you choose from professionally curated layout and styling options to build a unique site from the ground up, tailored to your brand or business,

and optimized for every device. For those who sell products on their Squarespace site, you can now offer flexible payments for your customers. Except credit cards, PayPal, and Apple Pay, and in eligible countries, also offer customers the option to buy now and pay later with Afterpay and Clearpay. And I still love their asset library feature that lets me save all the necessary images for my sites,

like the cover art for all my shows, and then have them available across the Squarespace platform. So what are you waiting for? Build your new website today. Just visit squarespace.com slash lore to start your free trial. And when you're ready to launch, use the offer code lore at checkout to save 10%. Squarespace, Build something beautiful. Sam was born in the west of England back in 1689. Not much is known about his early life, but his parents were most likely poor, starving tenant farmers. He left home when he was very young and was only 13 years old when the War of Succession broke out, which ended up with him working on a ship.

It was hard work, but Sam climbed his way up. By the war's end in 1712, he had become a skilled sailor. And then he left the Navy for greener pastures. Eventually, Sam made his way to Cape Cod in Massachusetts to set down roots. He arrived in East Ham, where it was believed that he already had family living in the area. And it was there that he met Mary. The two fell in love and began an affair until Mary's father found out. He put an end to their budding romance.

He felt that there was better men out there for his daughter. And so he told Sam to leave this place and never return. And Sam obeyed, departing Cape Cod for good. But before he did, he promised Mary that he would come back to her a wealthy man so that they could build a life together. Sam headed to Florida with his friend, Paul's Grave Williams. The pair hoped to make a fortune salvaging treasure from a Spanish shipwreck in the West Indies.

But upon arriving at their intended target, they discovered that it had already been looted. Sam, left with no other options, joined the crew of a famous privateer named Captain Benjamin Hornigold. Eventually, Hornigold decided that he wanted to stop capturing British ships, and his crew wouldn't have it. They mutinied and made Sam their captain, hoisting the black flag high. In other words, Sam Bellamy became a pirate. He became known as Black Sam, a name he received for refusing to

wear the traditional powdered wig. Instead, he wore his black hair long and tied with a satin bow. But even though he had become a pirate, he would never be as ruthless as some of the others in his field. In fact, he was considered the Robin Hood of the Seas, since he was often kind to his prisoners. He also had no problem giving back ships and cargo to those that he stole from if he had no further need of them. But that doesn't mean that the man never kept anything. During his two-year career as a pirate,

Bellamy captured 53 ships and amassed about $120 million in loot. And through it all, he never forgot about Mary. And after an exceptionally large score, he felt that he had enough to ask for Mary's hand in marriage. And so in April of that year, Sam Bellamy returned to Cape Cod. But as his ship entered the waters off the Cape, the weather turned suddenly violent. He and his crew found themselves being tossed around the deck only 500 feet from shore. And then, at midnight on April 26, a strong

gust of wind pushed the vessel into a sandbar in 16 feet of water. The masts snapped like twigs and the ship capsized, sending 143 pirates to a watery grave. Only two crewmen survived. As for Bellamy, his body was never found. Now things hadn't gone so well for Mary either. After Sam left, she found out she was pregnant with his child and gave birth in a barn, only to discover the baby was stillborn. The townsfolk found out and accused her of murdering her child. She was arrested and thrown into jail, but managed to escape several times. Finally, poor Mary was exileding her child. She was arrested and thrown into jail, but managed to escape several times. Finally, poor Mary was exiled from her community.

She moved to Wellfeets in Cape Cod, where she lived alone, locking herself away in a shack. When Mary Hallett died in the 1750s, she gave all her possessions away, including the very clothes on her back. She is said to have been buried in nothing but a simple burial shroud and a necklace with small gold beads, a necklace which many believe came from her only true love, Black

Sam Bellamy. This episode of Lore Legends was produced by me, Aaron Manke, with writing by Harry Marks, editing by Alex Robinson, and research by Jamie Vargas. Don't like hearing the ads? I've got a solution for you. There is a paid version of Lore on Apple Podcast podcasts and Patreon that is 100% ad free. Subscribers also get weekly mini episodes called Lore Bites. It's a bargain for all of that ad free storytelling and a great way to support this show and the team behind it.

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