The year is 1715 and Sam Bellamy has landed in Cape Cod. Young Sam has no idea he is to become the wealthiest pirate during the golden age of piracy. Sam hails from Great Britain and as a former Royal Navy sailor he is no stranger to the rigors of life at sea. Sam’s road to piracy began soon after his arrival in Cape Cod when he meets a young lady named Goody Hallett. Although she will go down in history as Mariah, there is little to no evidence that was ever her name. It is love at first sight; however, Goody is from a wealthy family and her parents disapprove of the relationship, sighting an impoverished sailor could not provide the lifestyle their daughter deserves. As fate would have it, young Goody became pregnant with the couple’s child. An unwed mother was frowned upon in the early 16th century but not unheard of, as one in four pregnancies were from women who were unwed. In early 1716, Sam leaves Cape Cod with a group to seek out the vast treasure of the Spanish fleet who wrecked the previous summer in a hurricane off the coast of Florida. It is not clear if Sam Bellamy knew of the pregnancy at this time, but it is clear he wants to make a name for himself and give Goody the life she deserves.
By the time Bellamy had reached the Spanish wreck, he had been beaten to the punch by Benjamin Hornigold and other pirates. Soon after, Bellamy takes up with Hornigold and eventually becomes his right-hand man until the crew mutinies on Hornigold in favor of Bellamy. It is around this time that Bellamy becomes known to history as Black Sam Bellamy because he liked to tie his black hair back with a ribbon as opposed to a powdered wig which was fashionable at the time. During his short career, Bellamy captured 53 ships and earned nearly $120 million in plunder in the process earning the nickname “Robinhood of the Sea” because of his compassionate and merciful nature. In 1717, Bellamy captures a slave ship called the Whydah Galley on its Triangular trade route between Europe, Africa, and the Americas. Bellamy liked the Whydah Galley much better than his lead ship the Sultana and replaced it. It was at this time; Bellamy decides to sail back to Cape Cod retire and live out his days with Goody.
It wasn’t long after Bellamy had hit the high seas that Goody had given birth to a child. Local legend indicates she was responsible for the child’s death soon after birth and was thrown in jail. After her release, she was later exiled from the town of Wellfleet Massachusetts. Being imprisoned and exiled cannot be easy on the psyche of a person as Goody became mad and consumed by rage. Goody had soon become an outcast, this difficult time had turned a beautiful young woman into what legend now calls the “Witch of Wellfleet”.
It has been two long years since Bellamy has seen his beloved Goody, and with his new ship at the head of his fleet he was sailing at breakneck speed. For most of the journey, the weather was beautiful as it was smooth sailing. However, on the night of 26 April 1717, strong winds thrust the ship onto a sandbar in only 16 feet of water. The Whydah’s masts snapped in half and caused the heavily loaded ship to capsize. 143 pirates drowned in the wreck, only two crewmen survived. The body of Black Sam Bellamy was never found. Legend says that on the night of the crash, Goody was seen on a cliff top looking down on Bellamy’s ship. Some say she was cursing the storm for taking her love, others say she had caused the storm herself to get revenge on Bellamy for leaving. Thus ends a tragic tale based in fact but sprinkled in with lore and local legend. It isn’t until 1984 when the Whydah Galley is found off Wellfleet. As a result of the discovery, much of the story of the infamous Black Sam Bellamy and his pirate life can be corroborated.
Happy Halloween! A spirited story from the shores of Cape Cod. Kinlin Grover Compass. (n.d.). https://www.kinlingrover.com/blog/happy-halloween-a-spirited-story-from-the-shores-of-cape-cod/
Sippell, M. (2023, January 31). The legendary love story of black sam bellamy and “goody” Hallett. MovieMaker. https://www.moviemaker.com/black-sam-bellamy-goody-hallett-witch-of-wellfleet-lost-pirate-kingdom/
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