Episode #50: Don Pedro Gilbert & the Last Atlantic Pirate Attack & the 1832 Zodiac Back

youaintawoofin
Dec 11, 2024
2 min read

12/11/2024: Don Pedro Gilbert & the Last Atlantic Pirate Attack

On today’s episode, Valerie tells the wild story of the Pirate Don Pedro Gilbert and his Baltimore Clipper, the Panda, who terrorized the Southern Florida coast in the early 1800s. In 1832, when he and his crew diverted from their standard piratical M.O., it would be a move that cost them their lives - well, most of them anyway. Next, Amy Jo’s Zodiac back presents an overview of the Planetary Bodies, recent Astrology headlines and the upcoming Mars Retrograde. We continue our exploration of the zodiac signs with Leo, we talk Herschel Happenings (Yes! The Herschels are back!), and the fascinating fate of Biela’s Comet, that’s no longer a comet, but still very, very cool.

Cover Photo: -The official U.S. Citcuit Court portrait of Pedro Gilbert at the time of his trail (A Report of the Trial of Spanish Pirates, Library of Congress)

Example of a Baltimore schooner
Example of a Brig
Antonio Ferrer, Cook (A Report of the Trial of Spanish Pirates, Library of Congress)
Francisco Ruiz, Carpenter (A Report of the Trial of Spanish Pirates, Library of Congress)
Bernardo de Soto, First Mate (A Report of the Trial of Spanish Pirates, Library of Congress)
The Panda sitting at anchor by a village on the Nazareth (The Pirate's Own Book, Library of Congress)
The Explosion of Gilbert's Panda (The Pirate's Own Book, Library of Congress)
Thomas Fuller, crew member of the Mexican, striking at Francisco Ruiz during the trial
Gilbert's Bar House of Refuge was one of 10 houses commissioned by the U.S. government after the Civil War to be shelters for shipwrecked sailors
December 11, 2024 Chart
January 1, 1832 Chart
December 31, 1832 Chart
1832 Retrogrades Chart
Mars Retrograde headlines
Leo art from https://chaninicholas.com/
Ebenezer Sibly is celebrated for the natal horoscope he cast of the United States of America, published in 1787 and is still cited
Ebenezer Sibly Illustration, 1806
The two components of Biela in 1852, as drawn by Secchi
Biela's Comet was the subject of several panics over close approaches to Earth. An 1877 newspaper illustration from Chile, captioned "inevitable impact of the Earth with Comet Biela"
The Andromedid or Bielid meteors as seen on the night of November 27, 1872