The Mystery of a Boy Pirate
by C. L. Vaughn

Researchers know his name was John King, and he’s the youngest known pirate. It’s believed he was between the ages of 8 and 11 when he joined a crew of pirates and sailed the Caribbean!

The Take Over

According to researchers, John’s adventure started sometime in 1716.  He and his mother were sailing from the island of Antigua on the passenger ship Bonetta. While traveling, the ship was attacked by a pirate named Captain Samuel Bellamy, also known as Black Sam - nicknamed because of his long, black hair tied with a black ribbon.

The captured ship was held for fifteen days while they stole every valuable item they could. During this time many of the Bonetta crew members saw the life of a pirate was much better than the ones they were living. 

It’s a Pirate's Life for Me

Life as a crew member aboard a ship was tough. The work was extremely hard and the pay was poor. The living conditions were also unpleasant with bad food and harsh punishments if a sailor made a mistake.

However, as a pirate, the crew would share the “booty,” - stolen items like jewels and gold coins. Also, on a pirate ship the crew could vote on decisions rather than only taking orders.  Plus, the food and living conditions were often better. With this in mind many of the Bonetta’s crew members joined the pirate crew of Captain Bellamy, including the young John King.

Pirate John

John’s mother argued with him, but in the end he left with the Marianne as a pirate. During this time he was a part of several attacks on merchant and passenger ships sailing in the Caribbean. The most famous of which was the attack and capturing of a 300-ton galley ship named the Whydah. This ship was being used as a slave ship and was full of ivory, gold coins and bars, weapons, and sugar - a huge catch for the pirate crew!

The Whydah soon became their new ship and was outfitted with 28 cannons.  Unfortunately for John King, his time as a pirate didn’t last very long. Roughly four months after he joined the crew, the Whydah ran aground near Cape Cod. When the ship sank, it took over 140 pirates with it, including the boy pirate.

Go See for Yourself

 The story of John King was confirmed in 1984 when a modern-day treasure hunter named Barry Clifford found the sunken wreck. In 1989 a small leg bone and shoe were recovered. At first the researchers believed that the bone and shoe belonged to a short adult man. But in 2006 the bone was tested and was found to belong to a boy, roughly 8 to 11 years old. 

Currently, the remains of John King along with other artifacts from the Whydah can be seen at the Whydah Center in Provincetown, Massachusetts.