Doing Pirate research, who can help?

[AliasGraceO'Malley]

Greetings, new member here. In my real life I am a part-time writer trying to be full time. I'm currently working on a book where pirates focus heavily. Particularly Port Royal, towards the end of it's time afloat. What I'm especially looking for is the flavor of a pirate town. What people ate, what merchants were there, what homes were like, ya know daily things. Cause the book will include time at sea as well as a prominent character who lives on Port Royal, owning a pub.

I have a couple books, like Pirates own Book and Under the Black Flag. so if anybody has any good books to recommend, or films this would be great.

What about the festivals. Might any of these be of help. Thinking of heading down to the one in the keys. Research, you know. Haha.

By the way, great site, great boards.

[AliasGraceO'Malley]

Oh, I'm from the Jersey Shore. Any crews in this area? I'd be interested in finding some fellow pirates to meet.

[TalesOfTheSevenSeas]

Ahoy Grace,

I would recommend contacting Cindy Vallar. She is an author/researcher/librarian who has done extensive research into piracy. She teaches on-line seminars for writers that are very good and produces a piracy newsletter that is always full of facinating research. You can access a great many of her on-line articles here:

Cindy Vallar's Pirates & Privateers

There are specific sections on Port Royal

also on

food and life aboard ship

Cindy is a terrific gal, very patient and helpful. I took her on-line piracy writer's seminar and gained a great deal from it. I believe my cost was about $15.

[AliasGraceO'Malley]

Thanks alot. This will be a big help. I was particularly looking for Port Royal info. This seems to be limited, other then the archeology site. Am I speaking to a fellow writer, also with a heavy interest in pirates? If so hello.

What do you think about any of the festivals as a way of absorbing color to put into a book. I could see that if it suited my book, a large renaissance faire would be helpful.

Oh, by the way, of course it should read doing pirate research. Anyway to get rid of the Dong, LOL?

[TalesOfTheSevenSeas]

Grace,

I've had several magazine and newspaper articles published, and I also did one radio address. I do have a piracy research project in the works, but it is just something that I do for the love of it. The published writing is just something I do to make a little extra $$ on the side now and then. But in my work as a drafter and as an instructor/manager, technical writing and curriculum design/writing is part of my job description. I also do some just-for-fun piracy writing in a cyber novel, just because I can never get enough of piracy!

I would suggest the Ojai Pirate Faire or any other pirate-theme faire as one good place to get a feel for the talk and the clothing. Much more so than a renaissance faire. You'll get an authentic feel for history when you untie your bodice at the end of the day, lemme tell ye!! :) But if you really want to get as close as you can to what it felt like- I have to say, there's nothing like being out on the water on a historic tall ship in full pirate costume. Nothing like it in the world.

When feel the deck rolling under your black boots... When you're hanging on for dear life in rough water and there's nothing between you and Davey Jone's Locker but a slippery deck... When you're sneaking up on another ship with your guns loaded... When the waves are coming up over the rails and into your face.... ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!! now That's when you start to feel like a pirate!!!!!!!!

[Mad Maudlin McCrumb]

That was so inspiring... sigh! It really IS as wonderful as I think? Pardon me while I stomp around the deck in my boots and swear that I am too far from the coast!!! Thank you for that description, I will sleep well tonight!

[AliasGraceO'Malley]

When feel the deck rolling under your black boots... When you're hanging on for dear life in rough water and there's nothing between you and Davey Jone's Locker but a slippery deck... When you're sneaking up on another ship with your guns loaded... When the waves are coming up over the rails and into your face.... ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!! now That's when you start to feel like a pirate!!!!!!!!

I believe I would give my left eye tooth for a chance to do this. I don't think there are any crewed boats around here. About a year ago I did a search for them and had no luck at all. Perhaps somebody will offer me some info.

[the Royaliste]

Where ye be Grace??? I'll offer ye up the same rolling deck and thundering cannon as me mate Claire! the Royaliste

[Pirate Lass Suliel]

Blimey, I'm looking for a ship too! Right now I just get small boats on the Lake. 'Course, I'm in Seattle here...but anyway, I was here to talk about writing.

I also do a lot of writing...nothing I'm planning on publishing for a long time yet, but there's definitely pirates in there! Though my focus is more around...Scotland...though I need to do some research on not just pirates but general nautical stuff 'round the Caribbean, and English colonies and the like, for one of me stories. Nothing to do with the new movie--I wanted to get one of my characters on a boat and out to the Caribbean from England because that's where she's from and I can do way too much fun stuff with her in the colonies.

[Mad Maudlin McCrumb]

Scotland, eh? heeheehee.. we be Scots, over here! We have a huge joke running that the Scots didn't have a Navy, but Reggie did't care... am I wrong in this? Or did my crazy husband actually DO his research??

[Rumba Rue]

Get yourself a copy of : Port Royal, Jamaica, by Michael Pawson and David Buisseret. You can probably get it from Amazon. com, where I got mine. Tells you everything you wanted to know and then some.

Great reading about the insights of everyday life, I highly recommend it for everyone!

RumbaRue

**Life is what you make it, I'll make mine happy**

[Red Maria]

Greetings, new member here. In my real life I am a part-time writer trying to be full time. I'm currently working on a book where pirates focus heavily. Particularly Port Royal, towards the end of it's time afloat. What I'm especially looking for is the flavor of a pirate town. What people ate, what merchants were there, what homes were like, ya know daily things. Cause the book will include time at sea as well as a prominent character who lives on Port Royal, owning a pub.

First Try "Pirate Port the Story of the Sunken City of Port Royal " by Robert Marx. It's about the first excavation of Port Royal and gives info on the city and inhabitants. Also there is The Port Royal Project which is the website for the ongoing excavations there.

http://nautarch.tamu.edu/portroyal/index.htm

You'll even find the names & adresses of some of the inhabitants. As a Port Royal Privateer I have a special interest in the place. :-)

Here's also a list I compiled for a friend

READING LIST ON PIRATES & PIRACY

Cordingly, David. Under the Black Flag: The Romance & Reality of Life Among the Pirates. (NYC: Random House: 1995)

Iron Men, Wooden Women: Gender and Seafaring in the Atlantic World, 1700-1920

edited by Margaret S. Creighton and Lisa Norling (John Hopkins University Press,)

Johnson, Charles, Capt. (attributed to Daniel Defoe) A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the Most Notorious Pirates edited by Maunel Schonhorn (Dover, 1999)

Konstam, Angus The History of Pirates (Lyons Press)

Bandits at Sea: A Pirate Reader. C.R. Pennell editor (New York University Press, 2001)

Rediker, Marcus Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea Merchant Seamen, Pirates and the Anglo-American Maritime World, 1700-1750 (Cambridge University Press)

Ritchie, Robert C. Captain Kidd and the War Against the Pirates .(Harvard University Press)

______________ Pirates: Myths & Realities. (James Ford Bell Lecture no. 23)

(University of Minnesota, 1986)

Rogozinski, Jan. Honor Among Thieves Captain Kidd, Henry Every, and the Pirate Democracy in the Indian Ocean (Stackpole Books)

Bold in Her Breeches: Women Pirates Across the Ages. Jo Stanley editor (Harper Collins)

One more thing your character would not own a tavern not a pub. ;-) If I am not mistaken the term pub was not used til the 19th century. As far as taverns are concerned ... there were a lot of them in Port Royal!

Good luck!

[AliasGraceO'Malley]

Thank you much. I've been to Port Royal's excavation web site. Found lots of great stuff, including the names of some tradesmen and inventories of their businesses. I have some of the books, but alot of them I don't have and sound great. Off I go to e-bay and amazon to try to track them down. See, the reference to a pub not a tavern is the sort of period innacuracy I'm trying to avoid. When I'm finished I do have some friends who I can have read thru to pick up errors. Time to stop research and spend more time writing. I can research myself to death on a project I like and use it as a great procrastination tool.

Royaliste, I'm about as far south in New Jersey as you can get.

[Pirate Lass Suliel]

Scotland, eh? heeheehee.. we be Scots, over here! We have a huge joke running that the Scots didn't have a Navy, but Reggie did't care... am I wrong in this? Or did my crazy husband actually DO his research??

Well, I can't say I've even done enough of my research! But, my pirates are mainly out only to "bugger the English" as we like to say. Is later 16th, early 17th century I'm working with.

[Angus Lasseter]

Bugger th' English?

Bugger th' English?!?!

Why does ye want ta bugger th' english?

On occasion I'd like ta send 'em ta see ol' Scratch, but never ta bugger 'em...

A'course They doesn't hafta be on'y English, they can be French, Spanish, Dutch... th' list goes on...

Unless they be in th' sweet trade, on Me ship, or one o' me compatriots vessel's.... Then, they be part o' the Brethern...

[Deacon Frye]

Blimey, I'm looking for a ship too!  Right now I just get small boats on the Lake.  'Course, I'm in Seattle here...but anyway, I was here to talk about writing. ...

Suliel, you are within cannon shot of the lovely brig Lady Washington, alias HMS Interceptor of POTC fame.

[Deacon Frye]

...I believe I would give my left eye tooth for a chance to do this. I don't think there are any crewed boats around here. About a year ago I did a search for them and had no luck at all. Perhaps somebody will offer me some info. ...

I'm not entirely sure what you mean by a crewed boat, but if you are on the Jersey coast, you should be within striking distance of the Kalmar Nyckel:

What more could a pirate ask for?

Speaking of the coast and pirates, I have a question for you. Lewes, Deleware, right across from Cape May, is rumored to have been the stomping ground for Blueskin, aka Levi West. Have you come across any mention of him in your research?

[the Royaliste]

Alla the newbies on this forum looking for ships oughtta look at the tall ship links on the NQG links! There's a commercial ship in your neighborhood ready to dip into yer wallet for a ride, unless you are totally landlocked. If that's the case, then the list'l still send ya the right direction? I think!