John West (active 1713-1714) was a minor pirate in the Caribbean, best known for his association with Benjamin Hornigold.

History

Little is known of John West's life. In 1713 he led one of several small pirate bands attacking the Spanish from their bases in the

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the ar ...

. Hornigold, West, Daniel Stillwell, and

John Cockram John Cockram ( fl. 1689–1719) was a pirate, trader, and pirate hunter in the Caribbean, best known for his association with Admiral Benjamin Hornigold. History Cockram was among a group of pirates active in the Bahamas, including Benjamin Ho ...

used canoes and open

periauger A periauger or perogue (/pɪˈroʊg, ˈpiroʊg/) is a shallow draft, often flat-bottomed two- masted sailing vessel, often without a bowsprit, which also carried oars for rowing. Periaugers of varying sizes and designs were used extensively in th ...

boats and crews of two dozen men to raid off

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

and

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. After several months of raiding they sailed back to

Nassau Nassau may refer to: Places Bahamas *Nassau, Bahamas, capital city of the Bahamas, on the island of New Providence Canada *Nassau District, renamed Home District, regional division in Upper Canada from 1788 to 1792 *Nassau Street (Winnipeg), ...

with over £13,000 in loot; West's included slaves from a Cuban plantation. Stilwell was imprisoned but freed by Hornigold while Cockram married and became a trader and supplier to the pirates. West's fate is not known; amid late 1714 rumors of Spanish retaliation, he may have fled to

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

after sharing out the group's collected plunder.

References

Year of birth missing Year of death missing 18th-century pirates British pirates Caribbean pirates {{Pirate-stub

History

See also

References