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St. Paul Boy Stars In 'Real Pirates' At Science Museum

ST. PAUL (WCCO) -- History comes alive at the Science Museum of Minnesota's new exhibit, Real Pirates, and some local actors are a big reason why.

St. Paul preteen Archer Gallivan is playing the role of John King, the youngest member of the crew of the Whydah, North America's only authenticated pirate shipwreck and the focus of the exhibit.

To become John King, the 12-year-old had to do extensive research to get the character down.

"The actors had to learn everything, from who those pirates are, to how they might have dressed, to what the dialect might have been," said Mike Day, the Science Museum's Senior Vice President. "It's as close as you're going to come to actually encountering what those real pirates were like."

King's story is definitely one worth telling.

"The youngest pirate known is here in Minnesota." said Barry Clifford, the explorer that discovered the Whydah. "His ship was captured by the Whydah pirates and according to the Captain of the ship, who wrote a letter to the Governor of Jamaica, this young rebellious boy named John King threatened his mother and joined the pirate crew."

You can learn more about King, and other the pirates of the Whydah when the museum's Real Pirates exhibit, opening this Saturday at the Science Museum of Minnesota.

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