Born in Devonshire, England, Samuel Bellamy (February 23, 1689–April 27, 1717), aka "Black Sam" Bellamy, was an English pirate who operated in the early eighteenth century. Though his known career as a pirate captain lasted little more than a year, Bellamy and his crew captured more than 50 ships before his death at age 28. Called "Black Sam" in Cape Cod folklore because he eschewed the fashionable powdered wig in favor of tying back his long black hair with a simple band, Bellamy became known for his mercy and generosity toward those he captured on his raids. This reputation gained him the second nickname of the "Prince of Pirates," and his crew called themselves "Robin Hood's Men."
The future pirate became a sailor at a young age and traveled to Cape Cod. He soon left Cape Cod to salvage treasure from the Spanish Plate Fleet sunk off the coast of Florida, accompanied by his friend and financier Paul Williams. The treasure hunters apparently met with little success, as they soon turned to piracy in the crew of pirate captain Benjamin Hornigold, who commanded the Mary Anne with his first mate Edward "Blackbeard" Teach.
In the summer of 1716, Bellamy challenged Hornigold for the position of captain. Bellamy was irritated by Hornigold's unwillingness to attack ships of England, his home country. Hornigold was deposed as captain of the Mary Anne and Bellamy was elected by the crew in his place. Upon capturing a second ship, the Sultana, Bellamy assigned his friend Paul Williams as captain of the Mary Anne and made the Sultana his flagship. However, Bellamy's greatest capture was to come in the spring of 1717, when he and his crew chased down and boarded the Whydah Gally (pronounced "wih-duh"). The Whydah, a 300-ton English slave ship, had just finished the second leg of the Atlantic slave trade on its maiden voyage and was loaded with a fortune in gold and precious trade goods.[2] True to his reputation for generosity, Bellamy gave the Sultana to Captain Lawrence Prince of the captured Whydah, and, outfitting his new flagship as a 28-gun raiding vessel (upgraded from its original 18 guns), set sail northwards along the eastern coast of New England.
In April 1717, a decision was made to sail northward along the Atlantic coast, whether it was to avoid capture or to visit friends and family, no one knows for certain. After being blown north toward New England by a sudden storm, Rhode Island was chosen as a destination; their governor tolerated any piracy that he could benefit from. At midnight on May 17, the Whydah struck a sandbar in heavy fog and capsized off Cape Cod. Samuel Bellamy drowned along with most of his crew, though two men on his ship and another seven on an accompanying ship survived. However, all nine castaways from the two ships were captured and prosecuted for piracy in Boston - six were hanged in October 1717.
Whydah Museum is dedicated to Black Sam Bellamy and his shipwreck, which was the first pirate ship to be salvaged from the sea.