5 Stories of Buried Pirate Loot

I’m not sure why pirates are celebrated so much in modern times. After all they murdered and stole for living. We don’t idolize those turkeys off the coast of Somalia do we? No. For whatever reason the idea of pirates sailing the seas has been romanticized. Maybe it’s the the freedom. Maybe it’s the adventure. Maybe it’s the quest for treasure. My vote is for all three.

Here are 5 pirate treasures that have yet to be found on the Florida coast line. Aaarrrr. (Stores came from Treasurelore.com)

• The pirate Louis Aury is said to have buried several chests near a freshwater spring located on a small bluff in Clearwater Bay. While operating out of the northern end of Anclote Key, Aury was alleged to have buried loot on the Anclote River as well as on Honeymoon Island and Seahorse Key. In 1817, after taking over Amelia Island, he was known to have secreted a chest containing an estimated $60,000 in treasure. After surrendering to U.S. forces, he was given only 24 hours to leave the island, and was unable to retrieve this hoard.

• Amelia Island lies on the northeastern coast of Florida and pirate treasure almost grows on trees there. Blackbeard, Kidd, Lafitte and Aury have at one time or another used this island as their center of operations. Approximately $170,000 in treasures has already been found, but this is only a small portion compared to what is still buried. This is a very attractive island for the treasure hunter.

• Ex-pirate Juan Gomez lived on Panther Key, until the ripe old age of 120. On numerous occasions he claimed that lumps of melted gold were hidden under the roots of a tree on the island. (This island is also in the Everglades National Park.)

• Another of Gasparilla’s undiscovered treasures, amounting to several thousand dollars, was buried on Anastasia Island, south of Matanzas Inlet. The site was recorded as being a three-hour walk south of St. Augustine. It has been stated that he never returned for the chest.

• A map in the Spanish Archives shows a large chest from a wrecked ship was buried in the mid-1600’s somewhere in the Murdock Point area on Cayo Costa Island. Located some 100′ from the Gulf of Mexico, the Spanish were unable to locate the chest. Also, in Boca Grande Pass on the north end of Cayo Costa an American frigate with $3,000,000 in minted U.S. gold coins sank in 1823.

I wish I had a map with a big X on it right about now.  How about you?

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