Of Treasure Island and Norman Island

Of Treasure Island and Norman Island

Over the last several years, I have played “Treasure Hunt” with my grandchildren out in New Mexico.  I write a poem that has clues to find a treasure.  The grandchildren and I love this game.  It involves the whole family usually, although the adults weary of hiking up the hillside several times as the “pirates” search for the next clue.  Last year, I even made a wooden jigsaw puzzle with a map on it. 

The treasures found are candy and trinkets and most seem to love this 30 minute diversion to one vacation day that has taken me several hours to prepare.

Now all of this is born out of my own childhood and one of the first novels I ever read:  Treasure Island.   I suspect most of us have read this wonderful story written by Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894).  As Wikipedia summarizes:  “The book is an adventure novel by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson, narrating a tale of “buccaneers and buried gold". It was originally serialized in the children's magazine “Young Folks” between 1881 through 1882 under the title Treasure Island, or the mutiny of the Hispaniola, credited to the pseudonym "Captain George North".  Treasure Island is traditionally considered a coming-of-age story, and is noted for its atmosphere, characters, and action. It is also noted as a wry commentary on the ambiguity of morality—as seen in Long John Silver —unusual for children’s literature. It is one of the most frequently dramatized of all novels. Its influence is enormous on popular perception of pirates, including such elements as treasure maps marked with an "X", schooners, the Black Spot, tropical islands, and one-legged seamen bearing parrots on their shoulders.”   Just remembering the names of the main characters can be enough to bring back fond memories of our own childhoods:  Jim Hawkins, Dr. Livesey, Long John Silver, Captain Smollett, Billy Bones.

Lore has it that Stevenson had a particular island in mind when he wrote his novel.  Several islands have been suggested.  Stevenson never said.  But one of them, Norman Island in the BVI, is at the top of the list.  For good reason.  Again from Wikipedia:  “Norman Island has a documented history of pirate booty being stowed upon the island. In August 1750, a Spanish treasure galleon named Nuestra de Senora Guadalupe sought shelter from a storm on the North Carolina coast. The crew mutinied and the treasure, said to consist of (amongst other things) 55 chests of silver coins, was loaded into two bilanders (a small two-masted ship often used by privateers and pirates), one of which was manned by Owen Lloyd. The first vessel perished, but Lloyd escaped to St. Croix. After disposing of some of the money, he proceeded to Norman Island where the treasure was buried. Lloyd and his crew were later arrested in St. Eustatius, but word of the treasure spread, and residents of Tortola went to Norman Island and dug it up for themselves. Part of the booty was later recovered by Gilbert Fleming, Lieutenant-General of the Leeward Islands at the time, who travelled to Tortola with two companies of soldiers. Fleming persuaded Abraham Chalwill, the acting Lieutenant Governor of the British Virgin Islands (who had coincidentally lead the search for the treasure on Norman Island) to issue a proclamation whereby the treasure would be returned and the people who had dug it up would receive a one-third share as a reward.”

So…Norman Island sits on the southern group of islands in the BVI.  Tortola frames the northern side of the Sir Francis Drake Channel and then (from east to west) Ginger, Cooper, Salt, Peter and Norman Islands line the southern side of the channel.  It has a great harbor called the Bight, lots of hills and steep edges (not much in the way of sandy beaches)….

….but….

It has caves...where buried treasure might be!

Yesterday, we swam Treasure Point and its caves.  We took a swim in God’s aquarium and found treasure, but no doubloons.

I love the gift of imagination.  I love great stories that the human mind and heart tell.  And I love God’s imagination.  See for yourself:

I hope your day today is as wonderful as my yesterday!

Fair winds,

Calm seas

Dave