The Plank
Day 1: Caribbean
Day 2: Charleston
Day 3: Carolina Coast
Day 4: Beaufort
Day 5: Bath
Day 6: Ocracoke

Help
Feedback

The buccaneer makes his home on land

By KELLY SIMMONS, Staff Writer

AUGUST 1718, BATH, N.C.
For much of the summer, the locals in Bath had reveled in the adventurous tales told by Blackbeard and the 20 pirates who had settled in this thriving coastal town. The pirates freely shared their stories -- and their rum, tobacco, sugar, and cocoa. Surely this is a life that suits my style, Blackbeard told himself, surveying his home overlooking the Pamlico Sound. That summer, Blackbeard had taken a wife -- a bride of 16. There was gossip in town -- as there is gossip in most towns -- about Blackbeard's 13 previous wives. Here, Blackbeard thought, I might live out my life as plantation gentleman -- if only I had a plantation. Many nights found him socializing with the most prominent, most influential landowners and state leaders who visited or settled in the port town. Among many powerful men in Bath, Blackbeard's presence was not only tolerated, but welcomed. For it was his presence that discouraged piracy in nearby waters. And the cargo he had brought to Bath -- and his free-spending crew -- were an economic boon to the area. Blackbeard had a fine home, a finer wife, influential friends, a carefree lifestyle. But that which he needed most -- excitement, adventure, a place to carouse with kindred spirts -- he did not have in Bath.

. . .

JULY 1997, BATH
Plum Point lies about a mile south of Bath, across Bath Creek, from Bonner Point. A dilapidated pier stands in the water just off its bank. Legend has it that this is the site where Blackbeard and his young bride lived, with his house sitting atop a knoll. Remnants of foundation and brick litter the property, indicating that a house once stood there. To the west, across the mouth of the creek is property that once belonged to Gov. Charles Eden and state secretary Tobias Knight. "It was a strategic point for Blackbeard," says Gerald Butler, site manager for Historic Bath. "He could see what was going on in town and what was going on in the river." It's been almost 30 years since state archaeologists combed Plum Point hoping to find something that would link the site to the notorious pirate. They found remnants from a former household -- broken bits of pottery and English-made china, but "you could find things like that in any backyard in Bath," says Steve Claggett, state archaeologist with the North Carolina Division of Archives and History. To date, no one has been able to verify that the site is indeed Blackbeard's homeplace. That, however, has not discouraged treasure hunters from braving a snake- and mosquito-infested marshland surrounding the remains. The lure of gold -- some believe it buried close by -- is evidenced by a site pitted and pocked by treasure hunters armed with metal detectors and shovels. "It's incredible what people will do for that kind of thing." says Phil Masters, who researched Blackbeard and discovered what is believed to be his flagship off Beaufort. Much of the land lining Bath Creek has been developed into residential communities, one of them named Blackbeard's View. Plum Point is now part of a large tract of undeveloped waterfront property owned by Weyerhauser, a North Carolina based paper manufacturer. One day, locals say, that site will be developed. Perhaps then, when the bulldozers and large shovels come, will Blackbeard's treasure appear.

. . .

The summer had nearly passed but Blackbeard's yearning for the sea would not pass. Fellow seaman would visit and regale him with tales of triumph -- real or concocted. From his home, he could watch ships sail the Pamlico. There's a fat one, he would tell himself, locking his eyes on a small ship riding low in the water, heavy with cargo. It was not long before Blackbeard began venturing out, first into the narrow inlets where his sloop would surprise small craft. But it did not satisfy his hunger. Soon, he began traveling into nearby open waters, stopping larger ships and hauling their supplies aboard his own sloop. These supplies Blackbeard would bring back to Bath, trading and selling them to local merchants. In August -- missing the thrill of the hunt -- Blackbeard again took to sea. Telling Gov. Charles Eden he was headed to Jamaica, Blackbeard pocketed a written copy of the governor's pardon -- a document he knew would return him safely home if ever captured at sea.

. . .

The town of Bath was formed in 1705 on the mainland shore of the Pamlico Sound. It was the first town in North Carolina and the first semblance of a state capital, even though it was never identified as such. In 1716 it was designated as North Carolina's official seaport, where customs were collected and ships cleared for passage. At the time Blackbeard settled here, the town boasted a population of about 8,000 people. Bath's heyday was short-lived. Much of its population was passing through, en route someplace else. In 1785, the county government moved to Washington -- and with it, the town's status and trade. Today, some 200 people live in Bath. It is a town without inn or restaurant. At its center is a single flashing light that slows whatever tourist traffic comes to see the local crafts and gift shops and the charm of colonial America. Guides in period costumes usher visitors through several restored 18th and 19th century homes. Blackbeard's presence endures here; the locals still claim him as their own. Three historic markers mention the pirate's connections to Bath. In a room in the Van Der Veer House hangs his portrait. There too, on display, is a graphite vase -- rumored to be Blackbeard's money pot. It gives no hint of Blackbeard's treasure.

. . .

While near Bermuda, Blackbeard surprised two French merchant ships laden with sugar and cocoa. He forced all French crewmen aboard one vessel and allowed it to sail on. Then Blackbeard returned to North Carolina with one of the French ships -- and the cargo from both. When Blackbeard sailed the French vessel into Bath, he offered authorities this story: It was most peculiar. There she was, adrift, nary a crewman aboard. She'd been abandoned! Bath leaders quickly convened a court of inquiry. They ruled that Blackbeard could keep the cargo of sugar and cocoa. Acting upon Blackbeard's suggestion, they ruled too that the ship was leaking dangerously and should be scuttled. Blackbeard obliged. He burned and sank the French vessel -- forever hiding the evidence of his piracy. To repay such favor, Blackbeard shared with authorities his windfall. Sixty hogshead of sugar went to Gov. Eden; 20 went to the secretary of the colony Tobias Knight.

. . .

"Everybody had an agenda," says David Moore, a marine archaeologist who has spent years researching Blackbeard's history. "Particularly the council members and governors." And that was understandable given the times and circumstances. North Carolina didn't have the commerce that South Carolina and Virginia was generating through their harbors. The state was thinly populated and settlers freely traded with pirates who offered cheaper prices, Moore said. Many historians believe that Gov. Eden benefited handsomely from his laissez-faire approach to piracy. Some believe he forged a business relationship with Blackbeard. That was certainly the view of royal governors Robert Johnson in South Carolina and Alexander Spottswood in Virginia. "What was Eden up to? And Tobias Knight?" Moore asks. "What was in their minds, cohabitating with pirates? Hell, they were all pirates in their own way." Historians have direct evidence that Tobias Knight -- one of Gov. Eden's trusted lieutenants -- actively conspired with Blackbeard and once warned him that authorities in other states were closing in on him.

. . .

Even as Blackbeard was preparing to set sail from Bath, some townsfolk were beginning to grumble. Honest merchants were being harassed in nearby inlets and rivers. Women were being harassed in the streets of Bath. Pirate antics had begun to reach the ears of Gov. Eden. It began like this in New Providence, Blackbeard told himself. It's time to move on. I know an island not far from here where I can anchor my brethren. She commands a fine view of the sea -- and passing ships. She possesses sandbars I can press to good advantage. With proper lookout, she can be quite the fortress. There we shall rule these waters. Before summer turned to fall, Blackbeard left Bath, turned north and sailed to his new island home where the waters of the sound meet the crashing waves of the Atlantic -- the island of Ocracoke.