Samuel Bellamy (abt. 1689 - 1717)

Born about 23 Feb 1689 in Hittisleigh, Devon, England

Died 26 Apr 1717 at about age 28 in at sea, off Cape Cod, Massachusetts

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Biography

Samuel Bellamy is Notable.

Samuel Bellamy (c. February 23, 1689–April 27, 1717), aka "Black Sam" Bellamy, was an English pirate who operated in the early eighteenth century.

Though his known career as a pirate captain lasted little more than a year, Bellamy and his crew captured more than 50 ships before his death at age 28. Called "Black Sam" in Cape Cod folklore because he eschewed the fashionable powdered wig in favor of tying back his long black hair with a simple band, Bellamy became known for his mercy and generosity toward those he captured on his raids. This reputation gained him the second nickname of the "Prince of Pirates," and his crew called themselves "Robin Hood's Men."

Bellamy was probably the youngest of six known children born to Stephen and Elizabeth Bellamy in the parish of Hittisleigh in Devonshire in 1689. Elizabeth died in childbirth and was buried on February 23, 1689, three weeks before her infant son Samuel's baptism on March 18. The future pirate became a sailor at a young age and traveled to Cape Cod, where, according to local lore, he took up an affair with a local girl named Maria Hallett. He soon left Cape Cod—allegedly to support Hallett—by salvaging treasure from the Spanish Plate Fleet sunk off the coast of Florida, accompanied by his friend and financier Paul (or Palgrave, Paulgrave, Paulsgrave) Williams. The treasure hunters apparently met with little success, as they soon turned to piracy in the crew of pirate captain Benjamin Hornigold, who commanded the Mary Anne (or Marianne) with his first mate Edward "Blackbeard" Teach.

In the summer of 1716, Bellamy challenged Hornigold for the position of captain. Bellamy was irritated by Hornigold's unwillingness to attack ships of England, his home country. Hornigold was deposed as captain of the Mary Anne and Bellamy was elected by the crew in his place. Upon capturing a second ship, the Sultana, Bellamy assigned his friend Paul Williams as captain of the Mary Anne and made the Sultana his flagship. However, Bellamy's greatest capture was to come in the spring of 1717, when he and his crew chased down and boarded the Whydah Gally (pronounced "wih-duh"). The Whydah, a 300-ton English slave ship, had just finished the second leg of the Atlantic slave trade on its maiden voyage and was loaded with a fortune in gold and precious trade goods.[2] True to his reputation for generosity, Bellamy gave the Sultana to Captain Lawrence Prince of the captured Whydah, and, outfitting his new flagship as a 28-gun raiding vessel (upgraded from its original 18 guns), set sail northwards along the eastern coast of New England.

As the Whydah and the Mary Anne approached Cape Cod, Williams told Bellamy that he wished to visit his family in Rhode Island, and the two agreed to meet again near Maine. If Bellamy intended to revisit his lover Maria Hallett, he failed. The Whydah was swept up in a violent Nor'easter storm off Cape Cod at midnight, and was driven onto the sand bar shoals in 16 feet of water some 500 feet from the coast of what is now Wellfleet, Massachusetts. At 15 minutes past midnight, the masts snapped and drew the heavily-loaded ship into 30 feet of water where she capsized and quickly sank, taking Bellamy and all but two of his 146-man crew with her. One hundred two bodies were known to have washed ashore and were buried by the town coroner, leaving 42 bodies unaccounted for. The Mary Anne was also wrecked that night several miles south of the Whydah, leaving seven more survivors. All nine castaways from the two ships were captured and prosecuted for piracy in Boston, and six were hanged in October 1717 (King George's pardon of all pirates, issued the previous month in September, having arrived in Boston three weeks too late). Two were set free, the court believing their testimony that they had been forced into piracy. The last, Native American from Mosquito tribe in Central America John Jullian, is believed to have been sold into slavery to the father of U.S. President John Adams and grandfather of U.S. President John Quincy Adams (though both presidents were themselves extremely hostile toward slavery, with John Adams almost preventing American Independence when his refusal to agree to the demand of the Southern Colonies - that Thomas Jefferson should strike his anti-slavery comments in the Declaration of Independence - caused all of the Southern representatives to storm out of Independence Hall).

Some legends do not blame Maria, but claim that alcohol wrecked the Whydah: "One night, when the pirates were drunk, he [Bellamy] ran his vessel ashore, near Eastham, and the Whydah was wrecked." This may very well have been true, for a few days before the disaster, Bellamy captured the Agnes off the coast of Virginia. Bellamy and his men took Madeira wine and rum from this vessel. Between the storm, the alcohol, and perhaps Maria, there was very little chance for the pirates to save the Whydah.

Posthumous Reputation

Because of all of these variations, the fate of the Whydah has raised many questions and has become a story that might involve more fiction than fact. Yet Bellamy remains a real historical figure. Accurate sources describe him as "Black Sam" Bellamy, a raven-haired former English sailor, thought to be in his late twenties who lead the pirates of the Whydah:

He made a dashing figure in his long deep-cuffed velvet coat, knee breeches, silk stockings, and silver-buckled shoes; with a sword slung on his left hip and four pistols on his sash. Unlike some of his fellows, Bellamy never wore the fashionable powdered wig, but grew his dark hair long and tied it back with a satin bow.

Wreckage of the Whydah

In 1984, Bellamy became famous again when the wreckage of his flagship Whydah was finally discovered, the first confirmed pirate ship recovered in modern times. At the time of its sinking, the Whydah was the largest pirate prize ever captured, and the treasure in its hold included huge quantities of indigo, ivory, gold, and over 30,000 pounds sterling (approximately 4 and a half to 5 tons). The discovery of the wreck was made in July 1984 by a diving crew led and funded by underwater explorer Barry Clifford. In 1985, Clifford recovered the ship's bell upon which were the words "THE WHYDAH GALLY 1716", and subsequently founded The Whydah Pirate Museum on MacMillan Wharf in Provincetown, Massachusetts dedicated to Samuel Bellamy and the Whydah. It houses many artifacts which were brought from the actual wreck, including a cannon found to be stuffed with precious stones, gold and artifacts. A portion of the some 200,000 artifacts so far recovered are currently on a six-year tour around the United States under the sponsorship of The National Geographic Society.

Sources

• Connor, Isabella, "How a Pirate Shipwreck Near Cape Cod Became a Local Legend," Vita Brevis (blog), July 18, 2023.
• Jameson, John Franklin. Privateering and Piracy in the Colonial Period, Illustrative Documents (MacMillan Co., New York, 1923) Page 290-310
• Whydah Pirate Museum, West Yarmouth, Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
• Geni.com profile (Several articles cited, cut & pasted)
• Cowie, Ashley, "Pirate’s Crossed Bones Rise from Ghost Ship – Are They the Remains of Notorious Pirate Samuel Bellamy?," Ancient Origins Reconstructing the story of humanity’s past (Ancient Origins, February 12, 2018).
• Booth, Richard. American scientists travel to UK to test DNA of ancestors of Devon pirate after bones found, DevonLive.com, 8 April 2018.