An amateur historian says colonial documents point to a possible role for Thomas Jones, the namesake of New York's Jones Beach, in helping pirates escape after a notorious 1695 robbery. James Bailey argues that Jones assisted Capt. Henry Every and his crew after their raid on the Ganj-i-Sawai, a royal Indian treasure ship, on the Red Sea.
The attack yielded gold and silver worth tens of millions of dollars, according to Bailey's account of the records. The pirates reportedly tortured, killed and raped people aboard the ship, provoking international outrage and what is considered the first worldwide manhunt. Some crew members were captured and executed. Every and many others disappeared, with survivors believed to have dispersed to Europe and the American colonies.
Bailey says depositions from Every's associates and other documents suggest Jones was enlisted to help the pirates evade authorities. His research, which he hopes to publish, also traces a later investigation into Jones by New York's colonial governor. By then, Jones had established himself as a wealthy whaling operator on the Long Island barrier beach that now carries his name.
John Hanc, author of "Jones Beach: An Illustrated History," says the research adds detail to a troubled past that local histories have long mentioned without fully explaining. Jones served as a major in the English military before settling in Rhode Island and later becoming a substantial New York landowner. After his death in 1713, stories about his fortune persisted. His deteriorating mansion acquired a reputation for hauntings, and treasure seekers repeatedly disturbed his grave before it was moved to a family plot behind a nearby church. A descendant's 1906 family history rejected the piracy stories.
Meagan Schulman, a Fordham University doctoral candidate studying 17th century piracy, says Jones worked as a privateer after his military service. Privateers had permission from the English crown to attack rivals' merchant vessels during wartime. Once a conflict ended, continuing those raids could make them pirates. Schulman, who was not involved in Bailey's research, says Jones may not have regarded himself that way.
According to Bailey's reading of the documents, Jones briefly returned to Rhode Island after assisting Every's crew. Property records show that in 1696, his wealthy father-in-law, Thomas Townsend, gave Jones and his wife a sizable tract on Long Island's south shore. Bailey suggests the move offered a new beginning while authorities searched New England for the fugitives.
In 1698, colonial governor Richard Coote cited witness accounts describing a barrel of money transported from New York City to Jones' Long Island home. Coote called Jones "formerly a pirate," but Jones testified that he had no knowledge of the barrel.
University of Reading maritime historian Richard Blakemore, who was not involved in the research, calls the findings compelling but cautions against treating them as conclusive, noting how common the name Thomas Jones is. Kevin McDonald, a Loyola Marymount University historian also uninvolved in the work, says the possible connection illustrates how piracy helped generate lasting wealth for prominent Northeastern families.
