Part one of a two-part series on the myths, legends and truths of a Gulf Coast icon: Jean Lafitte.

A myth can be described as a traditional tale that paints a picture of a people’s pasts — their origin. A myth is also often the attempt by people to explain events or cultural traditions within their lives or their past.

A legend is a story that claims to be historical in nature and may very well owe its origin to fact, yet in the end cannot be substantiated by documentation.

Every region of our country has its own myths and legends, which have been embraced for their colorful glimpse at that area's past. Often times the stories of legend intermix with the historical evidence, producing a hybrid that is at once fantastic, yet still possesses an aura of truth. 

Baldwin County and the Gulf Coast region are no different. Myths and legends exist here, often alongside historical fact, and in the end, each can be enjoyed in their own right, as long as we recognize them for what they are.

One of the most colorful figures of Gulf Coast lore is the celebrated pirate Jean Lafitte. While Lafitte is indeed a historical character, many of his perceived exploits can only be the stuff of legend — they cannot be corroborated by documented evidence. 

Many believe that he and his followers stashed hidden treasures in and around Baldwin County. He may have visited here on occasion, and he certainly plied the waters of the Gulf Coast near Baldwin County. Nevertheless, no documentation has surfaced which places him on Baldwin County soil at specific times. Of course, that doesn’t prove he was never here, either.

As a historian, I have found that more often than not the facts surrounding our heritage are more fascinating and more fantastic than the legend we assign to our past.

Additionally, we most likely fall into a pattern of myth building when the facts simply are not there to uncover. Jean Lafitte fits this pattern perfectly. As a pirate, he led as secretive a life as possible. Couple that with a lack of historical knowledge of his origins, and you have the perfect foundation for a local legend. 

Much of Lafitte’s life remains an enigma today, with historians often disagreeing on his place of birth, where he spent crucial moments in his life and even how and where he died. 

Lafitte is believed to have been born around 1776, but his place of birth has been disputed often. It has been stated by different Lafitte biographers that he was born either in France or in the French colony of Saint-Domingue. Even the location in France has been disputed. As shadowy as the birth of Lafitte has proven to be, his life from then until adulthood has proven to be even more so. 

At least one historian believes Lafitte spent much of his childhood and young adult life at sea learning the seaman’s trade. His name began to show up more frequently linked to New Orleans in the early years of the 19^th century prior to the War of 1812.

Around the time that the United States began to enforce the Embargo Act of 1807 against Great Britain and France, smugglers began to seek out means by which they could escort trade goods past U.S. customs agents. Lafitte arranged for himself and his band of privateers to set up a smuggling operation on the island of Barataria, which is located in a convenient setting southwest of New Orleans, adjacent to a myriad of bayous and waterways that could be used to sneak goods into New Orleans without attracting attention.

Throughout much of his life, Lafitte plied his trade with the assistance of his brother Pierre. Born of their father, also named Pierre, and a mother who died in childbirth, Pierre was older than Jean, based on the conclusions of some historians that favor the idea that the brothers came to the region from France together. The brothers worked well as a team, with Pierre managing the business in New Orleans while Jean oversaw the privateering operation that brought in the stolen merchandise.