Real Pirates Museum

Real Pirates Salem features real artifacts and treasure from the shipwrecked Whydah Gally. Come see real silver pieces of eight discovered at the Whydah wreck site. Explore the Discovery Lab to learn about the archaeological preservation process of centuries-old artifacts pulled from the depths. Capt. Sam (Black Sam) Bellamy sailed Whydah Gally up the coast of colonial America, capturing other ships as he went along. On 26 April 1717, Whydah Gally was caught in a violent storm and wrecked off the coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Only two of Whydah Gally's crew survived, along with seven others who were on a sloop captured by Bellamy earlier that day. Six of the nine survivors were hanged, two who had been forced into piracy were freed, and one Indian crewman was sold into slavery.