"Pirates of the Caribbean," a highly anticipated, record-breaking new film about treasure-seeking pirates who plunder ships in the Caribbean Sea, opened on July 7.  This website, http://www.awesomestories.com/movies/pirates_caribbean/pirates_caribbean_ch1.htm  which links to primary sources, will help students and interested adults learn the real story about pirates who lived and worked in the Caribbean during the "golden age of piracy."  At the time, many pirates used Port Royal, Jamaica, as their base of operations.  All that changed, dramatically, when an earthquake shook the island on June 7, 1692.  A surviving letter, from an eyewitness, explains what happened when at least two-thirds of Port Royal, the pirate haven, instantly ceased to exist.

The website http://www.awesomestories.com/ is free for all educators, schools and libraries.  Simply request an academic membership with this sign-up form.  http://www.awesomestories.com/group_signup.php  

Carole Bos
Dean's Advisory Board
Grand Valley State University
Grand Rapids, Michigan