8/8/26 Report - Jensen and Sewall's Point Areas: Treasure Spots and Finds. Pirate Don Pedro Gilbert. Probing.

 

Written by the TreasureGuide for the exclusive use of the Treasure Beaches Report.

You've undoubtedly heard of Gilbert's Bar, but did you know it was named for Don Pedro Gilbert, a pirate, sometimes referred to as the last pirate of the Atlantic.   His ship, the Panda, was capable of sailing deep water but also managing shallow waters, which would make it perfect for pulling into shallow inlets and hiding in shallow waterways.  There is a picture of the ship below.

On the Treasure Coast we focus a lot on the 1715 Fleet, but there are a lot of other shipwrecks and treasures besides that.  The Jensen and Sewall's Point area, for example, has a lot of history but has been very much neglected in the treasure lore.  I'm amazed that one of Frank Hudson's books lists 133 Florida treasure shipwrecks but completely skips the area between Jupiter and Fort Pierce.  Bit another of his books (Buried Treasures of Florida's East Coast) does list a number of treasure treasure spots in the same area though. 

Don Pedro Gilbert, born Pedro Gilbert, was born around the year 1800 in Catalonia, Spain. He first worked as a privateer for the government of Colombia. A privateer was a “pirate with papers,” for governments authorized privateers to rob the merchant ships of rival nations. Privateering was already a lucrative job, yet privateers often made extra money robbing vessels they were not authorized to target, which moved them into piracy. Gilbert became a pirate once he started raiding American merchant ships off the coast of Florida...  His ship, the Panda, was painted black with a white streak down the middle, and Gilbert would regularly wait with his crew in coves for the chance to lure a merchant ship with a fabricated distress call. The Panda could sail in shallow waters as well as the deep, but the merchant ships responding to Gilbert’s signal for help would often crash in the shallow water.  (Source: Don Pedro Gilbert – The West End Museum)

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Gilbert and his crew robbed an American ship, the Mexican, in the Bahama Straits while she was headed from Salem to South America with 10 boxes, each holding $2000 in silver along with other goods.  The crew of the Mexican was locked below deck and expected to go down with the ship, which was to be set fire and blown up, however haste caused by sight of another ship resulted in a botched job that allowed the crew of the Mexican to escape and prevent the destruction of their ship.  The Panda sailed to Africa and sought refuge with a black slaver before being caught by the British and extradited to Boston for trial.  Gilbert and many of his crew were executed in 1835.  The trial proceedings are documented.  Here is an excerpt.

While at Prince’s Island, Capt.  Gilbert bought a magnificent dressing case worth nearly a thousand dollars and a patent lever watch, and a quantity of tobacco, and provisions, and two valuable cloth coats, some Guinea cloth and black and green paint.  The paint, cloth and coats were intended as presents for the African king at Cape Lopez.  These articles were all bought with the money taken from the Mexican.  After arriving at the Nazareth, $4000 were taken from the trunk, and buried in the yard of a negro prince.  Four of the pirates then went to Cape Lopez for $11,000, which had been buried there.  Boyga, Castillo, Guzman, and the “State’s Evidence,” Ferez, were the ones who went.  Ferez took the bags out, and the others counted the money; great haste was made as the mosquitoes were biting intolerably. $5000 were buried for the captain in canvas bags about two feet deep, part of the money was carried to Nazareth, and from there carried into the mountains and there buried.  A consultation was held by Capt.  Gilbert, De Soto, and Ruiz, and the latter said, if the money was not divided, “there would be the devil to pay.”  The money was now divided in a dark room and a lantern used; Capt.  Gilbert sat on the floor with the money at his side.  He gave the mate about $3000, and the other officers $1000, each; and the crew from $300 to $500, each.  The third mate having fled, the captain sent him $1000, and Ruiz carried it to him.  When the money was first taken from the Mexican, it was spread out on the companion way and examined to see if there was any gold amongst it; and then put into bags made of dark coarse linen; the boxes were then thrown overboard.  After the division of the money the pirates secreted themselves in the woods behind Cape Lopez.  Perez and four others procured a boat and started for Fernando Po; they put their money in the bottom of the boat for ballast, but was thrown overboard, near a rock and afterwards recovered by divers; this was done to prevent detection.  The captain, mate, and carpenter had a conversation respecting the attempt of the latter, to blow her up, who could not account for the circumstance, that an explosion had not taken place; they told him he ought to have burst a barrel of powder over the deck and down the stairs to the magazine, loaded a gun, tied a fish line to the lock and pulled it when he came off in the canoe.  (Source: The Pirates Own Book eBook)

Here is another link for the court proceedings.

Trial of the Twelve Spanish Pirates of the Schooner Panda, a Guinea Slaver - Google Books

I've read several times about it largely being a myth that pirates buried their treasures, but the above is evidence that it did happen.

But back to the Treasure Coast and the treasures of the Jensen and Sewells Point areas.  Here are some of the signs of treasure and finds made in the area that I know of besides those you'll find listed in Frank Hudson's book on Florida's buried treasures.

A cannon ball was found by a lady in her garden in the Jensen area.

A small hand cannon was found in a yard on Sailfish Point.

Ruins in the Jensen area found by a 19th century survey team believed to be a pirate's hangout.

The "bleach yard" mentioned on old maps.

A musket barrel at Indian Riverside Park.

There was once a TV show that I've seen a few times that shows Brent and Jonah and another fellow or two magging for a wreck off Jensen Beach. At the end there was a find. If I remember that one correctly, it was a sword hilt.

Then there are the middens at Mount Elizabeth and Mount Pisgah, and the remnants of a coquina building thought to be a pirate hangout (probably the same as the above).

There was a novel written by a local author who conducted a lot of research and had maps and documentation of tunnels and gold at Sewall's Point.

There is also the story about a motel worker and maintenance man at an old motel that no longer exists that was located just north of the current Jensen Beach park who found a box or barrel of gold after a storm.

All that said, it is a very historic area with a lot of treasure lore.

Here is a little additional history of Sewell's Point.

http://sewallspoint.org/community/history/

In summary, the area has a long and interesting treasure history, and the Treasure Coast has much to offer in addition to the 1715 Fleet shipwrecks and beaches.

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One more thing today.  I wanted to remind you of probing.  

Many people use probes for finding bottles and other things.  They are actually used for things like locating septic tanks or taking soil samples.

Here is an example of one you can buy online.

I've seen people use them for bottle hunting around the Treasure Coast, but they can be used for a variety of purposes.

For bottle hunting in shallow water, I prefer something that covers a wider area even if it doesn't go as deep.  I use a rake or something like that, which can be dragged along.  You'll hear the screech of glass when it passes over a bottle or piece of glass.

One of the disadvantages of using a probe is occasionally breaking the bottle.

In any case, give some thought to how you might use a probe in addition to metal detecting and assist in your treasure hunting.

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Still no hint of developing storms in the Atlantic and not much in the way of bigger surf on the Treasure Coast.

Good hunting,

TreasureGuide@comcast.net