The Sands of Time | Part 2

When our summer mornings are placed on pause because of booming thunderstorms, and Mother Nature’s assault on our islands is offering the very best of lighting shows, gusting wind, and tropical deluge, there can be no better time to visit the past and drift back in time.

One of the best Marco Beach Boy stories ever has to be tale of Calico Jack, his passionate pirates that were Anne Bonny and Mary Read, and the shipwrecked Spanish treasure ship that is believed to be buried under the sand at the original Marco Beach Hotel. 

When the Mackle brothers and the Deltona Corporation decided to develop Marco Island and create an island paradise on a remote region of the Southwest Florida coast, they knew an outstanding beachside resort was necessary to highlight and showcase the largest and most spectacular of the Ten Thousand Islands.

The Mackles also decided, after beginning to develop the 24 square miles of island that was to contain over 90 miles of canal waterways, that the best location to build the new Polynesian-style resort was in the center of Marco Island’s unforgettable and very large crescent beach.

Construction on the massive property that was to be the Marco Beach Hotel and Villas—now the JW Marriott—began in 1969. The plans called for a ten-story beachside tower with oversized hotel rooms, an elegant lobby and reception area to be the envy of anything in Hawaii, and a beachside bar and restaurant named after the most notorious beachside bar in all the South Seas. There was also to be the largest swimming pool in the state and one of the most elegant sundecks on the Gulf coast. The complete endeavor was to eclipse any other resort in Florida, and with a supporting airline, a championship golf course, and every watersport imaginable, this was to be a resort destination beyond comparison.

During the Deltona building process, when the climbing tower of hotel rooms was a concrete frame and multiple supporting structures rising out of the sand, two historians that had turned into treasure hunters visited the bustling and sprawling construction site.

After visiting the job site superintendent, the treasure hunters announced that they had a strong reason to believe that a lost treasure ship lay just beneath the white sandy beach directly in front of the waterside resort that was currently under construction. The men produced a photocopy of an antiquated mariner’s chart showing a crescent beach and an island background that did resemble the curve of the beach in front of the newly rising Marco Beach Hotel.

With a little coaxing, and a promise to share anything that was found, the superintendent was convinced and ordered several large pieces of heavy equipment to begin digging on the beach. The site the treasure hunters chose was approximately 60 feet from the entrance to what is now Quinn’s on the beach at the JW Marriott.

After several hours of digging, a large crater appeared with the machines working fast to overcome rising water. Well points were placed around the excavation site and pump engines were engaged to stem the flood of an incoming tide. During the excavation, many of the construction crew crowded around the massive crater as the word had spread that “The Boss” was looking for a buried treasure ship originally discovered by the pirate Calico Jack and his lovely female crew.

Even with the pumps working at full capacity, it was soon apparent that the rising water was going to win the day. As a last-ditch effort, and to achieve what was unattainable by the conventional excavators, another plan was launched to seek the sunken ship, and a large high-pressure drill was positioned over the excavation site to probe even deeper into the sand.

With every supervisor, carpenter, and laborer watching, the high-pressure drill began pulling up dark sulfurous water and pieces of blackened wood. As the drill continued against the rising tide, and as the hopes and expectations of all ages began to feel the excitement of discovery, one of Deltona’s senior executives arrived and walked up to the crowded excavation.

After a quick evaluation, it was obvious that all work on the new resort was placed on the wayside and the construction crew was anxiously watching the activity in the center of a large and deep crater on the beach. With the relentless drill probing even deeper into the sand, and the diesel pumps running at full capacity, the newly arrived executive from Deltona approached the chief engineer.

“What are you guys doing?” the executive demanded over the engine noise. “What’s going on?”

“We are looking for a buried treasure ship. And we found it!” The chief engineer replied. “There’s wood coming out. Wood from a Spanish ship! It’s right here under the sand!”

The executive shook his head. “Well, if it’s here, it’s sure not going anywhere, but right now, it looks like the tide is coming in, and we need to get back to work.”

According to witnesses’ and island lore and legend, there were sawmilled pieces of wood coming out of that drill site that could have been from a wooden sailing ship made in the 1700’s.

As the rising tide covered the clues, and the men went back to work, a spark of excitement remains to this day as everyone that has heard the story considers the Deltona engineers just might have found the location and wreck site of every adventurer’s dream come true.

The story of the lost and sunken shipwreck beneath Marco Beach cannot be authenticated, but when comparing the legend and lore of Captain Calico Jack Rackham’s lost treasure of San Marco and Caxambas, many believe the large white crescent beach described in the pirate legends can only be the beach on Marco Island.

When the first Beach Boys began working at the Marco Beach Hotel in 1971, the beach in front of the island resort was less than half as wide as it is today. If that growing trend is truly following the progression of time, Calico Jack’s lost Spanish treasure ship containing 300,000 silver Mexican pesos might very well be under the sands of time next to Quinn’s restaurant on modern-day Marco Beach.

The tale of Calico Jack’s lost treasure is one of the most intriguing legends to haunt Marco Beach. Captivated by the pirate story, one of the most famous families of oceanography arrived on Marco in 2018. Philippe and Ashlan Cousteau and veteran producer and director Bob Asher filmed the pilot for Caribbean Pirate Treasure with a Hollywood film crew. Season One, Episode One on the Travel Channel features Marco Island and Calico Jack’s shipwrecked silver and is available for viewing on YouTube.