The mayor has launched an initiative aiming to return Peg Leg Pete to his former sword-wielding, adventurous self.
FERNANDINA BEACH, Fla. — Currently, Peg Leg Pete finds himself detained at the old Nassau County jail, pending a $23,000 bond.
The mayor is optimistic that if they can gather the necessary funds, they will rescue this rugged seafarer from the clutches of Davy Jones’ locker.
Pete’s story has quickly become the latest chapter in the pirate lore of a town renowned for its rich history of pirate visits.
“His treasure is still hidden somewhere around here,” remarked Tour Guide Beth Williams while narrating a pirate story during a tour of downtown Fernandina Beach.
Williams is never short of pirate anecdotes as she guides visitors on Jeffers’ Carriages history tours across Amelia Island.
But those tales form a treasure map to a particularly scurvy swashbuckler.
“Look at the guard hanging out here,” Williams said during a stop at the Amelia Island Museum of History. “He’s kind of famous here in our town. His name is Peg Leg Pete.”
Williams says Peg Leg would make an appearance in her tours from time to time when he was still at Front and Center Street, but since his move across town to the Amelia Island Museum due to safety concerns with his decay, she has plenty more to talk about.
“One of the members of the pirate club, when he passed away, his ashes were placed inside Peg Leg Pete,” Williams said.
Williams may one day be able to tell Peg Leg’s story with him back at his old pirates cove, but Antun will have to collect the bounty to make it happen first.
“Ultimately, one of the more attractive bidders that checked all the boxes as far as the appropriate restoration, appropriate storage and some level of warranty on their work,” Antun said while describing what it will take to repair Pete.
Antun set the fundraising goal at $23,000 to check all those boxes.
As for whether or not the ashes of Pirate Club Member Paulie Maxwell Matthew Jr. will stay inside:
“I think that would hinge on whether or not the restoration team we choose would commit to that,” Antun said. “There’s quite a few residents who understand that historical value better than me who would like to see them remain together, if possible.”
Some community members have shared concerns the city has turned a blind eye to peg leg’s maintenance through the years, but Antun believes the community fundraiser is the best path forward.
“That’s a question that probably should be answered by those that were in these shoes before me,” Antun said. “I inherited this challenge, I didn’t create this challenge. It’s always nice to see, if there’s a way, when things aren’t budgeted for, the city is able to find community partnerships.”
While he’s a feature on her tour, Peg Leg has even more sentimental value for Williams.
“With my children, every year, we’d take a picture with Peg Leg Pete,” Williams said. “It’s like a growth chart. If he gets fixed up, I think for sure the town will see to it that he goes back home.”
Antun said it would be “an ideal end game” for Pete to wind up back at his old location, but it’s premature to commit to that. He said the city commission will have to consider the best location.
Regardless of how the effort goes, he’s hoping Pete’s story will lead the city to working on a maintenance plan for public art to keep it from ever getting to this shape.
As of right now, the fundraiser doesn’t have a peg to stand on yet — it had raised a little under $1500 as of Friday, but the mayor said he doesn’t have any hard deadline, so Pete will stay by the museum for the time being.
