Whydah Gally

The Whydah Gally (commonly known simply as the Whydah or Whidah, and rarely, written as Whidaw, or Whido) was a fully rigged galley ship that was originally built as a slave ship for the Atlantic slave trade. On the return leg of its second voyage of the triangle trade, it began a new role in the Golden Age of Piracy, when it was captured by the pirate Captain "Black Sam" Bellamy, and was refitted as his flagship. Two months later, on April 26, 1717, the ship ran aground and capsized during a strong gale force storm off of Cape Cod, taking Bellamy, 143 of his crew, and over 4.5 short tons (4.1 tonnes) of gold and silver with it, leaving only two survivors to tell its tale. Whydah and her treasure eluded discovery for over 260 years until 1984, when the wreck was found – under just 14 feet (4.3 m) of water and 5 feet (1.5 m) of sand – becoming the first authenticated pirate shipwreck ever to be discovered.

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