Seafair Pirates

The Seattle, Washington Seafair Pirates are a voluntary group of people started in 1949 by the members of the Washington State Press Club. They joined together with other community leaders to create Seattle's first Seafair Festival in 1950.

The Seafair Pirates was founded in 1949 by some of the younger members of the Ale & Quail Society. The group was created to help provide some entertainment and to promote the Seafair festival in Seattle, Washington. The Seafair Pirates are a dedicated group who take their roles as pirates seriously. There is a rigorous process to even being considered when joining the group, as they only want individuals who will dedicate themselves. They are present at the Seafair parades during the summer months, and the boom of their cannons warn the crowd that they are coming.

The group entertains and raise funds for different charities all year.

The Seafair festival is a monthlong festival that starts with the Seafair Pirates Landing at Alki Beach in Seattle, usually during the first Saturday of July. Throughout the summer the Seafair Pirates participate in approximately 40 local festivals as well as several hundred private appearances. The grand finale is the Seattle Seafair Torchlight Parade that occurs in August. "Seafair has become a home town jewel that reaches nearly 2 million Puget Sound residents each summer."

The Seafair Torchlight Parade is a regular highlight of the Seafair summer festival. In 1999, the parade featured 4,000 participants on more than 100 floats and in bands and dance and entertainment acts. This parade is ranked the largest nighttime parade in the Northwest, with drill teams, community floats, regional and international bands, equestrian units, giant helium balloons, clowns and pirates.

The Seafair Pirates are goodwill ambassadors for the city of Seattle, and have traveled across the United States and Canada, as well as to Grand Cayman, Mazatlán, Kobe, and Taiwan. Each year they also travel to the Cayman Islands for Pirate Week. In 2007, Sports Illustrated was shooting its Swimsuit Issue for 2008 and the pirates appeared in full uniform with model Melissa Haro.

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