Smuttynose

"Summer Afternoon, Isles of Shoals" by Childe Hassam. 1901.

Ever since I was a little girl, I have had a gripping fascination with the Isles of Shoals. Of all my childhood memories, the most memorable are the summer outings with my grandparents to the Shoals, which are located some 10 miles off the coast of New Hampshire and Maine. We typically visited Appledore and Star Island, although my attention was always captivated by the mysterious Smuttynose Island. I had often heard the tale of "The Smuttynose Murders;" by the time I was twelve I had fully engrossed myself in Celia Thaxter's A Memorable Murder (which I still read today, although less frequently). I have always been relentless in my interest for Smuttynose - the name itself practically begs Steven King to scribe out a novel based upon it's bizarre history.
Smuttynose is a 25-acre chunk of rocky soil, known to locals and visitors alike as the most abstruse of the collective Isles of Shoals. Today the island remains uninhabited, although in the 18th and 19th centuries it was an important facet of the seacoasts' bustling fishing industry. It was named by passing fishermen, who thought the seaweed around its edges looked something like the "smutty nose" of a mythical sea creature. Perhaps Smuttynose is best known for the three perplexing incidents that have happened upon its shores:
The first is its reputation as the site of Blackbeard's honeymoon. Legend has it that around 1720, Blackbeard and his bride landed at Smuttynose for some matrimonial bliss. This, however, was interrupted when British ships were spotted and the pirate left his new bride and treasure behind. Blackbeard's bride passed away fifteen years later, and island lore maintains that her ghost can be seen lurking around Smuttynose, waiting for her husband to return. 
As for the treasure, Captain Samuel Hayley is supposed to have found four silver bars under a rock some one hundred years later. The finding of this small fortune allowed the Captain to build the breakwater that connects Smuttnose to nearby Malaga Island.
The second tale is of the Sagunto, a Spanish ship that wrecked off of Smuttynose sometime in early 1813. Tradition states that fourteen of the ship's crew are buried somewhere on the island, and that their treasure, (because there has to be treasure), is resting somewhere among the rocky shoals.
The last, and most famous tale, is of the Smuttynose murders. In 1873, two Norwegian women were murdered with a hatchet during the night - a third woman, the only survivor, hid by "Maren's Rock," so named for her, until help arrived. She was able to identify the killer, Louis Wagner, who was later publicly hanged. For those who are interested in the detailed version of this story, I highly recommend reading Celia Thaxter's A Memorable Murder.
Today, Smuttynose Island remains uninhabited. Recent archaeological digs have uncovered evidence of Native American life on the island, dating over 6,000 years. The legends associated with the island continue to be a source of fun and fascination for locals and tourists alike. If the reader is so inclined, the Isles of Shoals Steamship Company offers tours of the Isles of Shoals; one may get a glance of the infamous islet. Information on tours can be found at http://www.islesofshoals.com/

Sources:

Celia Thaxter, Among the Isles of Shoals (Boston: J.R. Osgood and Company, 1873), p. 170-173
"Isles of Shoals: A Capsule History." http://www.seacoastnh.com/shoals/history.html. Accessed electronically. 2/11/13.
Hampton, NH Public Library
"Smuttynose Island Exhibit Reveals Hidden History." http://www.portsmouthhistory.org/news/index.php?q=94. Accessed electronically, 2/11/13.
"Shipwreck on the Shoals." http://www.seacoastnh.com/Arts/Poetry/Shipwreck_on_the_Shoals/. Accessed electronically, 2/11/13.