BATH — North Carolina’s first town and first port released a limited-edition cookbook this week in anticipation of the town’s 300^th “First Port” celebration.

This year marks the 300^th anniversary of Bath’s designation as North Carolina’s first seaport. In response, Historic Bath Commission Chair Peggy Daw spearheaded an effort to commemorate the occasion with “Of Pirates and People, Recipes & Recollections of Bath, North Carolina.”

Part history book, part picture book and part cook book, only 300 copies were printed for this HBC fundraiser. The book is for sale at the Historic Bath State Historic Site visitors center and will also be sold during the “First Port” celebration on May 28, a daylong event that has merged this year with Bath’s annual Bath Fest.

Daw said the idea had been in the making for a very long time — 25 years ago, a friend gave her “Island Born and Bred,” a Harkers Island cookbook first printed in 1897 and reprinted on nine other occasions since.

“What I loved about this book was it had interesting facts and stories,” Daw said. “That was in the back of my mind, that one day somebody should do this for Bath.”

Daw became that “somebody,” consolidating many pieces of Bath history, legend, recipes and stories into a single book.

“I collected bits and pieces for six months,” Daw said. “We call it recollections, because, you know, it’s what people have put together as our history.”

The spiral-bound book features photographs from Historic Site manager Leigh Swain, artwork by artist and former Bath High School English teacher Dolores Morgan and photos and stories from Bath native Jimmy Taylor.

“Jimmy’s a treasure trove of information. It’s a special interest of his. … He welcomed me in his home and sat me down me down at his computer,” Daw said. “Hopefully, it will have something everybody can enjoy or at least identify with.”

“Of Pirates and People” also has some very approachable recipes, such as a cucumber and tomato “Summer Salad” and “Southern Fried Shrimp.”

“They’re simple recipes. It’s not for professional cooks,” Daw laughed.

The name of the cookbook dates back to history — that of Bath High School, Morgan’s English class and the Washington Daily News. In the early 1970s, Daw and classmate Kathy Waters Godley wrote a short column for the newspaper called “Pirates and People” as part of a weekly assignment for Morgan’s class.

While proceeds from the sale of the book will be used to help fulfill the HBC mission to identify, recommend and seek resources to support historic preservation projects in the state’s first town, fundraising is not the primary purpose of “Of Pirates and People.”

“It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to enjoy our history and our heritage, so when visitors come to Bath, we’d like them to have something as a reminder of an enjoyable visit,” Daw said.