Annual ‘Pirates in the Port’ returns to Bath

Published 6:09 pm Thursday, July 13, 2017

BATH — “Pirates in the Port” and other buccaneer-related events are on the schedule this weekend in Bath.

Activities include a re-enactment of the British announcing Blackbeard’s death, a pirate clothing workshop and an exhibit on the Bath outdoor drama, “Blackbeard: Knight of the Black Flag.”

As part of the celebration, the public will also be able to interact with a living history group through craft activities and hands-on demonstrations, according to a press release.

First up is Friday’s “Golden Age of Piracy” clothing workshop, focusing on how men dressed in colonial times. Jeff Bockert, east region supervisor of N.C. Historic Sites, will lead the workshop and show off traditional pirate garb.

“Pirates in the Port” officially kicks off Saturday at 10 a.m., when the Devilmen of Cape Feare sail to Harding’s Landing State Dock to re-enact when the British announced the death of Blackbeard.

“They will have Blackbeard’s severed head to show the townspeople,” said Erica Smith, assistant manager of the Historic Bath State Historic Site.

Following the re-enactment, the Devilmen will perform demonstrations and hands-on activities behind the historic Palmer-Marsh House. They will have colonial toys and games, a station to make pirate hats and ink quills for kids to sign the pirate code of ethics and join Blackbeard’s crew, Smith said.

Tours of the Palmer-Marsh House and the Bonner House, which provide insight into life in the 18th and 19th centuries, respectively, will be available upon request.

Also on Saturday, Bath High School Preservation is sponsoring a retrospective exhibit on Bath’s outdoor drama, “Blackbeard: Knight of the Black Flag.” The play ran in Bath from 1977-1986, and 2005-2006, and this weekend’s exhibit in Pirate Hall features costumes and memorabilia from the play.

“This project is really special to me because I spent 12 years here and got my formative education here,” said Marti Buchanan, a volunteer with BHSP and a Bath High School graduate.

The exhibit will also screen the second act of the 2005 showing, with volunteers donning traditional colonial dress, and fiddler Simon Spalding is set to perform at 3 p.m.

“We agreed to allow them to use the space because we thought it would be a wonderful addition to what is going on this weekend and give the community a chance to reminisce on the outdoor drama,” BHSP President Ruth Dorkin said.

Volunteer Gillian Jones said the exhibit is exciting because it allows visitors to get up close and personal with history.

Jones described the upcoming weekend as “just a love affair, I think, with pirates and Blackbeard.”

 

FRIDAY

1 p.m.

“Golden Age of Piracy” clothing workshop, Historic Site

 

SATURDAY

“Pirates in the Port”                    

10 a.m.

Re-enactment of the announcement of Blackbeard’s death at Harding’s Landing State Dock

“Blackbeard: Knight of the Black Flag” exhibit opens at Pirate Hall

10:30 a.m.-4 p.m.

Hands-on demonstrations and craft activities led by Devilmen of Cape Feare outside Palmer-Marsh House

3 p.m.

Simon Spalding leads fiddle demonstration at Pirate Hall