Irish-American
Irish Americans () are Irish ethnics who live within in the United States, whether immigrants from Ireland or Americans with full or partial Irish ancestry.
Irish immigration to the United States
From the 17th century to the mid-19th c ...
pirate briefly active near
Ocracoke Inlet
Ocracoke Inlet () , from the North Carolina Collection's website at the
off
North Carolina
North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
. He is best known for bringing the Farley family with him, causing wife Martha Farley to be one of the few women tried for piracy.
Biography
In May 1727 John Vidal raided a wreck and a few small ships, including the
schooner
A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...
''Anne and Francis'', near Ocracoke Inlet in a small piragua. With him were Thomas Farley, his wife Martha Farley, their two children, and two other pirates, Edward Coleman and Thomas Allen. The Farleys had been convicts, transported separately to the
Province of North Carolina
The Province of North Carolina, originally known as the Albemarle Settlements, was a proprietary colony and later royal colony of Great Britain that existed in North America from 1712 to 1776.(p. 80) It was one of the five Southern col ...
in 1725.
Vidal was in a rowboat with three prisoners he had taken when they overpowered him and delivered him to local authorities. Thomas Farley escaped and his ultimate fate is unknown. Coleman and Allen were captured while ashore after local residents informed on them.
North Carolina had no
Admiralty Court
Admiralty courts, also known as maritime courts, are courts exercising jurisdiction over all admiralty law, maritime contracts, torts, injuries, and offenses.
United Kingdom England and Wales
Scotland
The Scottish court's earliest records, ...
to try pirates, but Governor Richard Everard agreed to transfer Vidal to
Williamsburg, Virginia
Williamsburg is an Independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia, United States. It had a population of 15,425 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on the Virginia Peninsula, Williamsburg is in the northern par ...
to try him before a Vice-Admiralty Court. A trial commenced on August 15, 1727. Vidal's other two accomplices were found guilty and hanged, and Vidal was scheduled for execution.
Virginia Governor Robert Carter granted Vidal a temporary reprieve. He wrote of Vidal to Everard, "I must own to you I have very little Compassion for persons Convicted of his Crime … It appeard very plainly to me from the Testimony against him as well as the rest that his heart was fully prepared for perpetrating the blackest of Vilianys, Altho the designe was laid with the greatest Improbability of Success."
Martha Farley (sometimes referred to as Mary Farlee or Mary Harvey) pleaded that she had no idea her husband Thomas meant to engage in piracy and thought he was returning them to friends they had left behind in the
Province of South Carolina
The Province of South Carolina, originally known as Clarendon Province, was a province of the Kingdom of Great Britain that existed in North America from 1712 to 1776. It was one of the five Southern colonies and one of the Thirteen Colonies i ...
. The Court believed her, and not wanting to orphan her children, acquitted her.
Newly arrived North Carolina Lieutenant Governor William Gooch wrote to England on Vidal's behalf after his advisors suggested a grant of clemency would be a good way to begin his tenure. The stay of execution was granted and in September 1727 Vidal was pardoned.
See also
*
Anne Bonny
Anne Bonny (disappeared after 28 November 1720) was a pirate who served under John Rackham. Amongst the few recorded female pirates in the Golden Age of Piracy, she has become one of the most recognized pirates of the era, as well as in the ...
,
Mary Read
Mary Read (died April 1721), was a pirate who served under John Rackham. She and Anne Bonny were among the few female pirates during the "Golden Age of Piracy".
Much of Read's background is unknown. The first biography of Read comes from C ...
, and
Mary Critchett
Mary Critchett (died 1729, first name also Maria, last name also Crichett or Crickett) was an English pirate and convict. She is best known for being one of only four confirmed female pirates from the Golden Age of Piracy, and the only one executed ...
, the other confirmed women active in the Golden Age of Piracy.