Rising from an 85-foot cliff at the eastern end of Long Island, the 110-foot Montauk Point Lighthouse tower is an awesome sight as you head into Gardner’s Bay. After dark, its flashing light can be seen from a distance of 19 nautical miles. Although protected by two peninsulas along its north and south boundaries, the bay’s three-mile-wide inlet allows the entrance of some ocean storm waves.
During the winter months, harbor seals often congregate along the shores of Orient Point, located at the tip of bay’s northern peninsula. The bay’s waters are habitat to large numbers of striped bass, bluefish, fluke, flounder, blackfish, weakfish, sea skates and porgies. Oysters, hardshell clams and scallops line the bottom in some areas along with blue crabs and lobsters.
As you enter Gardner’s Bay, a 5.19 square mile island comes into view. It was the private residence of Gardner family and its descendants for nearly 400 years. Originally called the Isle of Wight, after an island off the south coast of England, it was later renamed Gardner’s Island for the property’s colonial owner.
At the western end of the bay, Shelter Island divides the area waters between Gardner’s Bay and Little Peconic Bay. Long inhabited by the Manhasset tribe, their numbers declined rapidly following the island’s colonization by the British. Some of them were said to have resettled in Connecticut. In 1673, Nathaniel Sylvester became the 8,000-acre island’s sole owner. It was then held by the family for 363 years. The NOAA chart also shows three other islands within and bordering Gardner’s Bay: Plum Island, the 2.2-acre Ram Island and the very small Cartwright Island.
In 1635, Lion Gardner moved to Saybrook Colony (Connecticut), where, as a military engineer, he was commissioned to build a fort at the entrance of the Connecticut River. He was also directed by the colony’s Governor to design a layout for the town itself. Four years later, he and his family resettled to the 5.19 square mile island in what would become Gardner’s Island. He was able to purchase the island from the Montauket tribe for merely “a large black dog, some powder and shot, and a few Dutch blankets. It was the first settlement within the boundaries of New York state”. The family then developed a plantation where they raised corn, wheat, various fruits, tobacco and livestock. Lion Gardner died in 1663, at the age of 64.
Born in Scotland in 1655, William Kidd took to the sea at a very young age. For many years, he operated as a legal privateer, commissioned by the English. As a privateer, he was directed to capture French vessels during the Anglo-French War that he encountered in the West Indies and the coastal North America. Sometime during the 1680s, Kidd moved to New York, which at the time, was said to be a “pirate port of choice in the English colonies.” In 1691, he married Sarah Oort, a wealthy widow. They owned several properties along with their residence at New York’s199 Pearl Street, near the present the FDR (Franklin D. Roosevelt East River Drive).
In 1695, Kidd decided to return to the sea. He obtained a new privateer license and then set out from England in command of the Adventure Galley. Armed with 32 cannons, the 284-ton ship was equipped with three rigged masts and two banks of oars. The oars gave them a distinct advantage in taking a ship when the winds were calm. After spending some time in the West Indies, Kidd headed to coastal India via Cape of Good Hope, at the tip of South Africa. With little spoils to show for months at sea, his crew mutinied. But during the skirmish, Kidd brought it to an end when he beat its leader, William Moore, to death with a bucket. They later had small successes with the capture of small Indian vessels. But finally in January 1698, the buccaneers captured a treasure ship, Quedagh Merchant. The Armenian ship was loaded with gold, silver, precious stones, silk, sugar and other rich commodities. Kidd took possession of the ship, renaming it Adventure Prize and burned his Adventure Galley which, by then, was unfit for the voyage back to New York. However, there was a problem. The captured ship’s captain was English. In addition, the ship was partially owned by an Indian Grand Mogul who had connections with the East India Company, a British trading firm.
Anchored at the British colony of Anguilla while he made his way back to New York, Kidd apparently learned that he was wanted for piracy and murder. Some believe that he may have buried part of his treasure at one of the nearby Caribbean islands and scuttled the Adventure Galley (Quedagh Merchant) just offshore of the Dominican Republic. In 2007, local archeologists concluded that the ship found in shallow water, barely 85 feet from shore, was the Quedagh Merchant. Lying in an area often subjected to heavy waves, little of the ship’s wooden structure remained. However, 26 cannons and three large anchors were recovered along with other artifacts and portions of wooden hull buried in the sand.
Leaving the Caribbean, Kidd sailed a sloop to Gardner’s Bay where he buried his remaining treasure on one of the bay’s islands. At some point, Kidd had encountered Lion Gardner’s grandson Jonathan who gave him permission to bury his remaining booty on their island. The chest containing two gold and silver bars, two bags of gold dust, diamonds, rubies, pieces of eight, porringers and candlesticks was buried in a ravine between Bostwick’s Point and the original Manor House. The pirate gave Mrs. Gardiner a sack of sugar and a length of gold cloth which had been captured from a Moorish ship off the coast of Africa. The 4 3/8 X 2.5 inch cloth is now on permanent display at the East Hampton Library, 159 Main St., East Hampton, NY.
Leaving Gardner’s Island, Kidd sailed to Boston to challenge British authorities concerning his charges of piracy and murder. Up to that time, piracy was not considered a crime in the colony, unless it had been committed against a British associated ship. Once there, he sought the support of Lord Richard Bellomont , Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay. The Governor had been Kidd’s backer and friend during his early privateering activities for the British. However, concerned that the King might also initiate his own arrest due to his relationship with the pirate, the Lord took custody of Kidd on July 6, 1699. He was kept in solitary confinement for a time at Boston’s Stone Prison before being transported to Britain. On arrival, Kidd was held at London’s Newgate Gaol until his trial before the High Court of Admiralty. Found guilty of piracy and murder of crewman Moore, the notorious pirate was executed by public hanging on May 23, 1701.
What happened to the Gardener’s Island treasure? Some have said that the Gardner family turned it over to the colony of Massachusetts while others have stated that soldiers from Boston dug it up and delivered it to London to become property of the Crown. However, despite the differences, Gardner’s Island was for a time, a “treasure island.”