Black Sam’s pirate island in Panhandle hits the market for $50M

A pirate’s private island hit the market this week. Buyers be warned; you will have to hand over a bounty of loot to own it.

Black Sam Bellamy met his fate in Davy Jones’ locker more than three centuries ago, but his namesake hideaway, Black’s Island, is now asking $50 million, according to a press release. Jon Kohler of Jon Kohler & Associates has the listing. 

The 7-acre private island in St. Joseph’s Bay is just off the coast of the Panhandle city Port St. Joe, and only accessible by boat, seaplane or helicopter. It has 26 waterfront bungalows and a four-story clubhouse all connected by a 1,200-foot long elevated boardwalk, the listing shows. The island has more than 3,700 feet of waterfront and a dock with capacity for a 40-foot boat. 

Known as the “Prince of Pirates,” Bellamy was the wealthiest pirate of his time, and an icon of the Golden Age of Piracy, which lasted from the 1650s to the 1730s. He plundered an estimated $120 million fortune during his short career, according to Forbes. He captured the English slave ship the Whydah Gally, and sank with it, his loot and his crew in 1717. 

Underwater explorer Barry Clifford found the wreck near Cape Cod in 1984, and further excavation of the site uncovered more than 200,000 artifacts from the site, including silver, gold and precious gemstones.

The island’s seller is Atlanta developer Scott Seymour, Mansion Global reported. He bought the island in 2018, renovated the bungalows and started renting them out. Stays on the island start at $850 per night, its website shows.  

Seymour is looking to either sell the entire island or sell the bungalows individually starting at $1.5 million each, the outlet reported.

Buyers in the private island market have options, though. In February, the 26-acre private island Pumpkin Key hit the market for $75 million.