Blackbeard's Ghost

   Although much is not known about the infamous pirate, Blackbeard, it is believed that he was christened Edward Drummond and that when he sailed from his home port of Bristol, England, he was an honest, hardworking seaman. There are many stories surrounding his transition into one of the most notorious pirates in history, but there are only a few things we know for sure... as his pirating adventures began to gain notice, he changed his name to Edward Teach ... a few years later, the nickname, Blackbeard, took permanent hold.

The people of his generation referred to him as 'a swaggering, merciless brute,' and he terrorized the east coast of America. Although he was not a native of the colony, he was known as North Carolina's most infamous pirate citizen.

Many people still believe that Blackbeard's treasure will one day be found somewhere between Smith and Tangier Islands in the middle of Chesapeake Bay... and this is where stories of Blackbeard's ghost are most prevalent... According to a story still told on Tangier Island, a very poor man was on his way home one night when he passed by a deserted house.  The trees whistled with a whining and a moaning and soon after a whisper could be heard. The whispering became clear as it asked the man, "Can I speak to you?"

  Shaking in his drawers, the man asked wearily, "What do you want with me?"

  The voice explained to the pauper that he had to unveil the location of his treasure to someone before he could have eternal rest!

  Naturally, the pauper was scared to death and could not bring himself to stay and hear the voice out; instead, he ran home in total panic.

  Later that week, he thought about his experience and decided it would be in his best interest to hear what the voice had to say; he returned again but, again, was so terrified upon hearing the voice that he fled before he could learn the location of the treasure.

  The pauper's son was a simple-minded boy who constantly wandered the woods near the spot where the voice had revealed itself. One evening, the boy returned home with two gold coins. When the pauper asked the boy where he got the coins, the boy explained that a dark man with a blue beard gave him the coin, and the man realized that his mentally disabled son had also been contacted by the ghost of Blackbeard. Unfortunately, the boy was not able to retrace his steps or remember the ghost's directions to the lost treasure.