Treasure Wreck: The Fortunes & Fate of the Pirate Ship Whydah

by Arthur T. Vanderbilt II

When the pirate ship Whydah went down in a violent storm just off the coast of Massachusetts in 1717, she took a huge treasury of stolen gold and jewels with her. Pieces of eight have continued to wash ashore since that ill-fated voyage, luring treasure seekers and undersea salvage experts. Here is the story of this plunder, of the pirates who amassed this horde during one legendary year upon the Spanish Main, and the tragedy of their loss upon the shoals of Cape Cod. It is updated to cover salvage efforts still underway in the Whydah's deep-sea grave.Had it not been for the love of Maria Hallett, whose spirit is still said to stalk the coast, Captain Samuel "Black" Bellamy might not have risked the Whydah's return through those threatening shoals, so close to the "hanging port" of Boston. This book traces the story of those who survived the wreck only to be imprisoned and then assailed by the soul-saving Reverend Cotton Mather.This is a true adventure of the high seas; a story inextricably melded with legend of the Cape Cod coast.

Genres: History

188 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1986

About the author

Attorney, author, avid gardener, Arthur T. Vanderbilt II served as deputy attorney general of New Jersey and is now a partner in a New Jersey law firm.

Reviews

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this to get background on a script I was rewriting. It's well-told, and seems well-researched.

[Steve Lane · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice quick read that tells the history of the pirates and their adventures aboard the ship Whydah, it's sinking and ultimate discovery two and a half centuries later.