Most of the romantic history of Long Beach Island can be traced back to George B. Somerville’s 1914 book, Lure of Long Beach. Some of the most often repeated tales dealt with pirates and lost treasure.

In an effort to separate fact from fiction, last week’s column traced the story of finding on the beach hundreds of coins dating from the late 1600s to the early 1700s. It proved correct. The source, it turned out, was a well-known Beach Haven resident Charles Beck, who had the collection.

But all good pirate stories need a buried treasure, not coins washed up on a beach after a storm.