Most pirates started out as privateermen, hired by local merchants and
commissioned by one of the colonies to destroy enemy shipping and
confiscate any cargoes destined to enemy ports. During the 1600's and
1700's England and the Colonies were at war with various Continental
Nations. During that period privateers would leave port while England
was at war only to return months or even years later, to find out the
war was over long ago, and any acts of aggression committed after
truces were signed would make them pirates. some privateermen however
were intent on attacking any vessel from the time they first set sail.
A Dutch privateer FLYING HORSE, commanded by Jurrian Aernous attacked
several merchantmen and fishing sloops off the coast of Block Island in
1674 . One prisoner finally informed Aernous the war between the
British and Dutch was over, so he sailed on to Boston and he was
welcomed there. He hired a local named John Rhoade to assist him in
raiding French vessels off the coast of Maine. Rhoade soon found out
Aernouts continued to attack English and American vessels. The pirate
also attacked and defeated a french garrison at Castine, Maine, and
built himself a fort at Machias, claiming the surrounding islands for
Holland. In 1675 Captain Sam Mosley was hired by the General Court of
Massachusetts to hunt down Aernouts and Rhoade. With the help of a
French privateer, Mosley attacked the FLYING HORSE and the Dutch fort
at Machias, capturing the pirates. Back in Boston, Rhoade and the Dutch
pirates were condemned to death, but the war with the local Indians
called "King Philips War" erupted and the pirates were spared for
joining the colonists in the fight.
Another pirate ship docked in Boston twelve years later, was the
ketch SPARROW from Barbados, Richard Narramore, a Bostonian was the
master according to his testimony, he had been hired by 18 pirates "at
a cost of 40 pieces of eight each, to deliver them at different places
along the east coast, from New York to New Foundland. These passengers
were former pirates, returning home with their chests full of treasure.
The first pirate to be dropped off landed at Gardner Island (NY)
with 2 chests; a second went to Newport (RI); and two with small chests
went to Damaras Cove. Pirate John Danson and his treasure was brought
to Boston, and Thomas Scudder to Salem. Danson, Scudder, Christopher
Goff of Rhode Island, Edward Calley and Thomas Dunston were
arrested and brought before the magistrates in Boston. In Danson's
confiscated treasure chest there were 900 pieces of eight. they
confessed to being pirates, but the court had no witnesses and the
pirates were released with their treasures. Christopher Goff was hired
by the Massachussets General Court to patrol the coast.
Newport Rhode Island was a haven for pirates, such notables as Kidd,
Blackbeard, Tew, and Avery made it their port of call. In 1588 a pirate
named Peterson and his crew were brought before a court, but the jury
found them not guilty, it was hard for their neighbors to send them to
the gallows. The following year war broke out between England and
France privateers threatened Block Island, a pirate named Paine(later
became an associate of Kidd) sailed from Newport and drove them off.
Rhode Island's illustrious pirate Thomas Tew, sailed out of Newport to
Bermuda in 1691. Unable to get a privateering commission from the
Governor of Rhode Island, who knew he was a pirate, Tew acquired one
from the Governor of Bermuda. "to attack French vessels," which he
never did. With his license to steal in the safety of his 70 ton sloop
AMITY, he headed to the Red Sea and Indian Ocean plundering local
shipping. In the spring 0f 1694, he was back in Newport with "100,000
pounds sterling worth of ivory, gold, silver, and jewels," and each of
his sixty crewmembers "with 1,200 pounds apiece," enough to retire on
comfortably. Tew deposited his treasure in and around Newport, some
believe at Sakonnet Point or Patience Island, he recruited a new crew
to return to Madagascar Island, known in those days as "Pirates
Kingdom." Tew stopped over in New York for his privateering commission,
and to give Governor Fletcher some gifts. for being too friendly to
buccaneers Governor Fletcher lost his job in 1698.
Thomas Tew lost his life boarding a prize ship of the Great Mogul of
India, which was stuffed with gold, silver, and jewels. HE was shot in
the belly by an Indian soldier. Tew's crew did manage to take the ship,
even though they were outnumbered 3 to 1.
Daniel Defoe called Henry Avery (also spelled Every) the "King of the
Pirates." If acquired wealth through plundering was the criteria to
determine who was the king of pirates, then Avery beats out Kidd,
Blackbeard and all others. After robbing many Portuguese and Spanish
vessels in Peru and in the West Indies, he retired to Madagascar,
eventually he got bored, he got word there were two ships belonging to
the Great Mogul crossing the bay from Hoogly, carrying his
grand-daughter and a dowry. She was to be married to the King of Pegu.
Avery assembled a task force and met them on the Bay of Bengal. There
were Three ships against Avery's two sloops, the pirate had no trouble
destroying the gunship guarding the two Royal ships filled mostly with
women and treasure, were taken with no resistance.
Avery let the Queen all the women and the Indian soldiers go, but took
one of their ships loaded with the largest treasure ever pirated back
to Madagascar. he later said "we never knew how rich we were."
Officially Avery was never seen or heard of again. His Journal titled
"A long Tale of Piracy," was published in 1710, in it he admitted to
have buried much of his treasure, for he couldn't take it all back to
England. He also lamented not having a little box of jewels the Queen
had given him, since they were worthy of being placed in the King's
crown.
On September 6,1698 one of Avery's men, John Devin was apprehended in
Providence. appearing before the magistrates on the 20th, he shocked
many in government. According to his testimony Avery came to Rhode
island after leaving Madagascar, "in April of 1696" said Devin, "Capt.
Every, alias bridgemen, came to the harbor of Providence with the ship
CHARLES, alias FANCY, where the captain and his ships crew, i being one
of them, left the CHARLES behind and purchased other vessels to make
their way to Ireland. "He languished in jail for two months, but was
set for he was no longer involved in piracy, and he was now a wealthy
citizen. He did however infer the Governor of Rhode Island assisted
Avery in purchasing the vessels and supplies to escape. Some historians
believe that Avery alias Tom Bridgeman, lived out a long and
comfortable life near Broadhaven on the west coast of Ireland.
One pirate ship that deposited pirates and treasure ashore in the dead
of night at New York and Newport, Rhode Island, was the NASSAU from
Madagascar. Captain Edward Coats was commander, who had previously paid
Governor Fletcher 700 pounds in silver as protection money, but now,
with Fletcher recalled to England in disgrace, he had to sneak into
American ports to unload his cargo. Colonel Baynard of New York
appeared before the London Board of Trade in December of 1698, and
said, "pieces of Arabian gold, are common in New York and Rhode Island,
after the arrival there of pirate Captain Coats from the Red Sea."
In 1699 the Governor Bellmont was able to capture James Gillam, the
commander of the pirate ship MOCHA. In his report to the Board of Trade
on November 29,1699 "reports of men lately of Madagascar, say the MOCHA
has taken above two million pounds sterling." He further stated "I am
told that as Vice Admiral of these Provinces, I am Entitled to
one-third of Gillam's gold and jewels."
Another frequenter of Block Island and Gardner Island off Rhode Island,
was Captain Joe Brodish, who started his career while serving as
boatswain aboard the ADVENTURE. this 350 ton, 22 gun merchant ship
arrived off the coast of Connecticut on March 18,1699.by this time he
had assumed command of the vessel, having killed the original captain,
Thomas Gulleck. He them sailed to the Caribbean, in search of treasure
galleons. He returned to deposit his treasure at John Gardner's "Pirate
Bank" but a storm prevented the ADVENTURE crew from landing. Brodish
sailed on to Newport and sent two of his men ashore to purchase a
sloop, so some of the crew might sail to Maine and bury the treasure
there. Unfortunately the two men were arrested. Undaunted Brodish
purchased a sloop from a passing fisherman While he lay at anchor. Some
treasure was transferred from the ADVENTURE to the sloop, and them both
vessels sailed on to Montauk Point and the ADVENTURE and sank in a
raging sea, with over two million dollars in treasure the crew manage
to swim ashore, the sloop did manage to sail onto Maine. Brodish and
his one-eyed sidekick, Tee wetherly, got arrested in Boston, and nine
other members also were detained in various parts of Rhode Island and
Massachussets, during the month of April, in their possession was about
"300 pounds sterling." Every crew member aboard the ADVENTURE, it was
reported to have" received 1500 pieces of eight before he left the
ship. Some 3000 pounds with jewels belonging to Brodish were seized by
authorities at the home of Henry Pierson , Nassau Island New York."
Brodish and Wetherly endured two months in jail, on June 25th the jail
keeper reported the two had escaped. The governor bellomont was
furious, he suspected the jail keeper Caleb Ray a cousin of Joe brodish
had assisted the pirate in his escape.
Bellomont offered a reward of 200 pieces of eight for the capture of
Brodish, and 100 for Thee Wetherly. A bounty hunter named Essacambuit
caught up with the pair in Saco, Maine, which makes it obvious some of
the treasure was hidden near the town of Saco. They tried to escape
from the bounty hunter twice, but they were caught both times, upon
their arrival in Boston the Governor had them incarcerated with an
honest jailer. Still uneasy with the slippery duo, bellomont had them
shipped to England were they were hung.
The death of Brodish didn't end the era of piracy in Rhode Island. The
eighteenth century started out with a bumper crop of Rhode Island
pirates, in 1702, William Clark the maritime historian reveals, "every
man in Newport is either a pirate or privateerman." In 1716 Edward
Teach better known as Blackbeard paid a long visit to Providence. Three
years later, Captain Ben Norton sailed from Providence to the West
Indies John Menzies then New England's Royal Secretary of the Admiralty
writes "Norton's vessel by observation is more suited for piracy than
trade." Norton joined notorious pirate chief Thomas "Black Bart"
Roberts in the west Indies, and together they raided shipping. The
owner of Norton's ship later became Deputy Governor of Rhode Island,
his name was Joseph Whipple, both Whipple and Norton writes Admiral
Mennzies, "carried off rich cargo, with other traders of Newport, in
sloops to Providence...yet when I went to the Governor of Rhode Island,
he would not give up the goods. "the passage of time did not change the
way business was done in Rhode Island. Rhode Island remained a freeport
for freebooters until 1723, when at Gravelly Point near Newport 26 men
were hanged for piracy. This ended the days of piracy in Rhode Island.
