When you hear the names Black Sam Bellamy, Stede Bonnet, Henry Every, William Kidd, Mary Reade, Henry Morgan, Calico Jack Rackham, Ching Shih, Edward Thatch (Blackbeard), Charles Vane, Benjamin Hornigold, or Anne Bonny, you think of the Golden Age of Piracy. The Golden Age of Piracy is a common designation for the period between the 1650s and the 1730s, when maritime piracy was a significant factor in the histories of the Caribbean, the United Kingdom, the Indian Ocean, North America, and West Africa. Piracy was clearly on a strong decline by 1720. The Golden Age of Piracy did not last the decade. But what about today?

The 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, once said, “A nation with no regard for its past will have little future worth remembering.” Today, the history of Pirates and Piracy is kept alive through the many authors, re-enactors, musicians, performers, artists, and others.

The International Pirate Hall of Fame chooses to recognize those, past and present, who are responsible for one of the most storied and historical eras in our lives.