Elliot Key, Black Caesar Pirate Silver

[Cap'n]

I've heard stories of the pirate Black Caesar burying treasure around Elliot Key, Florida. Anyone know anything more on the subject?

 

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[syderial]

There's a TV show on Hulu that just covered this, totally forgot the name but it was in the trending list

 

[Cap'n]

Was it a documentary or a fictional type show like Blacksails?

 

[Red-Coat]

The legend is well established but there is doubt that ‘Black Caesar’ as described therein ever actually existed. Wiki does as good a job as any in detailing the legend, together with the story that he buried a large amount of treasure on Elliott Key:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Caesar_(pirate)

Regarding whether or not the legend is true, Devin Leigh provides an excellent summary in “Ghost of the Gallows: The Historical Record of Black Caesar” at the link below:

https://depaul.digication.com/Devinleigh/Primary_source_analysis_of_a_historical_figure_nam

His conclusion is that “Historical analysis of the available primary-source documentation from the lifetime of “Caesars” has revealed extreme incongruity between the historical record and the modern-day legend, suggesting that once people believed that “Caesar” was the “[redacted term] whom Blackbeard had brought up,” it became necessary to account for that upbringing with an origin story that entirely ignored the limits of primary-source documentation…”

 

[Salvor6]

Elliot Key is a national park. There is a ranger station and campground in the middle of the island. If you are caught with a metal detector you will never see the light of day for the rest of your life.

 

[crashbandicoot]

Elliot Key is a national park. There is a ranger station and campground in the middle of the island. If you are caught with a metal detector you will never see the light of day for the rest of your life.

And I guess that kills that.I kind of like the light of day!

 

[airborne1092]

federal holidays ensures no one is at work...

 

[heartslayer2001]

it seems alot of treasure stories and legends come from areas that were and are federal national parks. Seems like this was a thing from the Roosevelt era when national parks were created so people couldn't take minerals out or treasure found. our treasure laws need to be changed. or hey move to Scotland lol

 

[Blak bart]

I can tell you for sure.....there is evidence of occupation at Elliott key at a certain location. Many many artifacts from the 1700s still lay in and out of the water at a certain area on the key..... in the 80s my grandfather recovered the ring in the rock.....it was actually embedded in a black mangrove tree along with another that is still in situ. There have been several iron rings found in the area. Buttons, lead bottle seals, bottles, and yes even 450 pieces of eight have also been recovered !! No one knows if this was black ceaser or not.....whatever the case and name of the people here does not matter...... there was definitely a maritime presence on the island in the late 1600s-early 1700s. The presence of the iron rings on shorelines with deep water right to the bank is indicative of a careening operation, and explains the presence of these rings......they would have been used to haul down the mast head and expose the bottom of the boat for cleaning....a critical operation in the age of sail. I actually passed by the spot yesterday twice. I havnt been in the water here since just after hurricane irma, but the last time I was there many artifacts could be seen on the shallow bottom here. My grandfather and other treasure hunters were successful at finding cobb coins from the 1680s on the island in the 60s-early 80s......after that it became a national park and all treasure hunting stopped. I still go and beachcomb the spots from time to time. There is a small description of the location and a map that shows this spot in the very famous book "diving to a flash of gold" . This book was written by my mentor and good friend Marty meylach.....I have not herd from my friend in a few years and he would be close to 100 if he is still among the living. He mentions in the book the pieces of eight that my grandfather and a handful of others recovered !! Elliott key certainly hides many secrets and of coarse has other treasure hidden in its dense jungle....it truly is treasure island. I will find the "ring in the rock" and post a picture of it....it is the most precious iron artifact I own !! And for the record....ceasers rock ( a small island) was not the actual location of the ring, and that story that is popular in legend about the ring being located on ceasrs rock is false. It is not the actual site of occupation. I have been blessed by being able to explore this island since child hood and was taken at an early age to treasure hunt the black ceaser locations on the island.....for the record there are more than 3 spots that point to people being on the island in the early 1700s. I highly doubt that more than a handful of people have ever seen what im referring too.....this is not easy to access, and logistics of exploring the spots are difficult. There is no civilization for many miles !! There have been at least 3 major finds of treasure that are absolutely 💯 percent confirmed by myself and a few others who have tracked down the people or there children and confirmed there finds !! Made plans with my partner to return and explore some this summer......im starting to realize that I may be the only person alive that knows these exact locations. I will answer as many questions as possible, and I have someone interested in doing a discovery show about this story !!

 

[Blak bart]

The ring in the rock....others are still in situ around the island.....there locations are dictated by depth of water in relation to the shoreline !! Deep water that butts up against land are the typical locations that these rings are situated, and are almost always associated with careening operations. Remember..... when the boat was on careen, all movable objects were removed to lighten the boat. Cannons, heavy tackle, provisions, and yes cargo and treasure were all brought ashore for the task of careening.....any number of situations would account for leaving/loosing the treasure.....these would include.....hurricanes, surprise by Indians, rival pirates and privateers, starvation and lack of water, and even mutiny amongst the crew.....all these circumstances would cause the crew to quickly leave or abandon the careen operation immediately !! Whatever the circumstance, large fortunes have been abandoned on Elliott key.....one must also take into account the large number of shipwrecks in the surrounding waters and the inevitable event of survivors making landfall after abandoning ship. The surrounding waters are some of the mostly densely packed with shipwrecks in the world !!