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Off the Plank: The Pirate and the Preacher

Pirate William Fly (left) and pastor Cotton Mather (right) met at least twice, according to records.
Pirate William Fly (left) and pastor Cotton Mather (right) met at least twice, according to records.

William Fly’s pirate career was short and brutal — and his death in 1726 is sometimes considered to mark the end of the days when pirates ruled the Atlantic. It began with a mutiny — led to a last-ditch conversion attempt — and ended with a gruesome display on an island in Boston Harbor.

Davis Dunavin loves telling stories, whether on the radio or around the campfire. He started in Missouri and ended up in Connecticut, which, he'd like to point out, is the same geographic trajectory taken by Mark Twain.