Summary
Summary of The Pirates of the New England Coast (1630–1730)
The Pirates of the New England Coast (1630–1730) at a glance
Summary: 7 min to read
- Reading time
- About 8 h 55 min7 h 5 min fast, 10 h 40 min slow
- Length
- 127,500 words
- Library level
- Challenging long sentences, a rich vocabulary
- First published
- 1923by George Francis Dow; John Henry Edmonds
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
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Key ideas
Key idea 1
Poor pay pushes sailors toward piracy
For a sailor facing bad food, low wages and a cruel commander, piracy could look like a way out. Life before the mast left ordinary seamen with little freedom, and peace could leave them without honest work at all. Captain John Smith saw a connection between busy seas and the pirates who gathered there.
His proposed remedy was practical: merchants should pay fair wages on time. The book begins by placing piracy within the working lives of sailors, where need could push men toward theft.
Key idea 2
War teaches habits that outlast peace
Privateering gave sailors permission to attack an enemy’s ships and live on the proceeds.
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Key idea 3
Restricted trade gives pirates willing customers
The English Navigation Acts raised prices for colonists and narrowed their markets.
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Key idea 4
Connections can shape a pirate charge
John Rhoade guided a Dutch privateer toward French forts after peace barred attacks on English ships.
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Key idea 5
Kidd and Tew expose unequal treatment
William Kidd sailed with a royal commission to hunt pirates, backed by the Earl of Bellomont, who expected a share.
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Key idea 6
Quelch brings disputed gold into port
The Charles left Marblehead with permission to attack French and Spanish ships.
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Key idea 7
Bellamy’s freedom has limits for captives
Samuel Bellamy turned to piracy after failing to salvage a Spanish wreck, and his men elected him captain.
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Key idea 8
Ashton refuses the role Low demands
Ned Low’s raids brought violence to fishing crews as well as captured ships.
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Key idea 9
Piracy grows from the surrounding world
The pirates in these cases did not stand apart from the society around them.
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Go deeper: the whole of The Pirates of the New England Coast (1630–1730)
About 9 h 10 min to read.Start freeWho it’s for
Readers who like true sea stories, colonial New England, court records and trial scenes, or the real people behind the pirate legend.
What this book is
Why would a sailor choose a life that ends on a gallows? The sayings of the sea answer it. Hard ships make hard men, and there is no law off soundings. For a seaman with poor food, low pay and a harsh captain, a black flag could look like a way out.
The Pirates of the New England Coast covers the years 1630 to 1730. George Francis Dow and John Henry Edmonds built it from court records, trial pamphlets, sermons and old newspapers. You meet Dixey Bull, William Kidd, John Quelch, Ned Low and Philip Ashton, a young fisherman who survives alone on an island.
In this summary
- 1Poor pay pushes sailors toward piracyFree
- 2War teaches habits that outlast peace
- 3Restricted trade gives pirates willing customers
- 4Connections can shape a pirate charge
- 5Kidd and Tew expose unequal treatment
- 6Quelch brings disputed gold into port
- 7Bellamy’s freedom has limits for captives
- 8Ashton refuses the role Low demands
- 9Piracy grows from the surrounding world
Hard seas and poor pay breed pirates
Why did men go on the account, as pirates called it? Sailors gave plain answers in old sea sayings. They spoke of hard work, low pay, bad food and cruel commanders. A seaman before the mast was little better than a slave.
Captain John Smith saw the pattern in 1630. Wherever seas are busy, he wrote, pirates will gather. Peace left the navy with little work, and by 1618 there were ten times as many pirates as in the whole reign of Queen Elizabeth. Ordinary seamen earned ten shillings a month.
Smith urged merchants to pay fair wages on time, because need drives men to steal. Piracy grew wherever honest work for sailors ran short.
That’s 1 of 9 key points.
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Check yourself
Why did the authors see privateering as a school for piracy?
Right. “When peace came, the commission ended but the habit did not.”Not quite. “When peace came, the commission ended but the habit did not.”
Why did pirates find support in New England ports?
Right. “Pirates sold captured goods in small New England ports below market price.”Not quite. “Pirates sold captured goods in small New England ports below market price.”
What distinguishes Philip Ashton from sailors who willingly joined Low?
Right. “Low demanded he sign the articles and held a pistol to his head, yet he refused.”Not quite. “Low demanded he sign the articles and held a pistol to his head, yet he refused.”
Go deeper: the whole of The Pirates of the New England Coast (1630–1730)
About 9 h 10 min to read.Start freePaperback, hardcover and large print, printed for you at cost, are on their way.Email me when it is printed
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 127,500 words
- Reading timeAbout 8 h 55 min
Questions about The Pirates of the New England Coast (1630–1730)
What is The Pirates of the New England Coast about?
It tells the story of piracy off New England from 1630 to 1730. It follows named pirates such as Dixey Bull, William Kidd, John Quelch, Samuel Bellamy and Ned Low, and shows how colonial courts and merchants dealt with them.
Is The Pirates of the New England Coast a true story?
Yes, it is history, not fiction. The authors drew on state archives, Admiralty court records, trial pamphlets, sermons and newspapers, and checked Captain Charles Johnson's account of pirates against the original documents.
Who was Ned Low?
Ned Low was an English-born ship rigger who lived in Boston before becoming a pirate captain in 1722. He raided fishing fleets and ships from Newfoundland to the Caribbean, and he is remembered for his cruelty to New Englanders.
Who was Philip Ashton?
Philip Ashton was a young fisherman from Marblehead taken by Low in 1722. He escaped on the island of Roatan and lived alone for months before being rescued. His own narrative is reprinted in the book.
What is the main message of the book?
Piracy grew out of hard sea life, wartime privateering, trade laws and colonial profit. The book shows that pirates, merchants and officials were often closely connected, and that the courts hanged many men while others were pardoned.
Cite this edition
Dow, George Francis, and John Henry Edmonds. The Pirates of the New England Coast (1630–1730). Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-pirates-of-the-new-england-coast-1630-1730.
Dow, G. F., & Edmonds, J. H. (2026). The pirates of the New England coast (1630–1730). Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-pirates-of-the-new-england-coast-1630-1730 (Original work published 1923)
Dow, George Francis, and John Henry Edmonds. The Pirates of the New England Coast (1630–1730). Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-pirates-of-the-new-england-coast-1630-1730.
@book{dow2026pirates,
author = {Dow, George Francis and Edmonds, John Henry},
title = {The Pirates of the New England Coast (1630–1730)},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-pirates-of-the-new-england-coast-1630-1730},
note = {First published 1923}
}
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