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ARTS & CULTURE
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Inside the life of Nathan Vickers, the Mass. Street pirate
RYAN WRIGHT
@ryanwaynewright
one day in 2012 while wandering through Massachusetts Street, a purple pirate hat inside of Treasure Chest caught the eye of Nathan Vickers. The hat was priced at $30 and Vickers couldn't afford it.
However, several other homeless people knew Vickers wanted the hat and promised they'd buy him it. Shortly after, they all pitched in and purchased it for Vickers.
Over the past several years Vickers has become commonly known as "the pirate." You can usually see him somewhere on Massachusetts Street, typically around BurgerFi.
"I've had this thing for four years and it's kind
of been my kind of legacy around here. You know, everybody knows the pirate," Vickers said.
Since acquiring the hat, Vickers has developed a strong relationship with it. People have offered to buy it off of him, but he said he wouldn't give it away for the world.
"Ive had people offer me a hundred bucks for it," Vickers said. "Nah, man this thing has been through hell and back."
Vickers' interest in pirates doesn't end with his hat, he said since he was a child he has been fascinated by them and if he ever gets rich he will purchase a ship and live in it.
He's also a member of "The Church of Malt Liquor," a local pirate coven. The group hasn't met in over a year and a half, but in its
prime consisted of a group of self-proclaimed pirates who met up in the woods regularly to hang out. According to Vickers, a typical meeting consisted we-shiping Norse gods, drinking and partying.
"We have a little spot out in the woods somewhere that we go to and we have our little meetings. We drink to the Norse gods and whatever gods or goddesses we worship," Vickers said. "We're just a bunch of pirates, we like to drink, we like to have a good time."
According to Colin Ledbetter, a 2014 University alumnus, the Church of Malt Liquor was a place where the wanderers of Lawrence went to hang out. He also said it's commonly patrolled by Lawrence police.
"It's city property that kids trespass on along the
river, and commonly get into trouble," Ledbetter said. "It's very locals only."
The Church of Malt Liquor hasn't met in a while because many of its members have gone on separate paths.
Back in his hometown of Osawatomie, Vickers said he had a tough childhood. When his grandmother passed away when he was 15, Vickers said he decided to leave home and has been on the road ever since.
"I just never felt a connection with my family, except for my grandmother. After my Grandma died, my Mom wasn't the same," Vickers said.
Vickers has traveled across the country to places like Minnesota, Colorado and Utah but settled in Lawrence after arriving four years ago. He initially came
to Lawrence for his stepfather's funeral and decided to stick around.
Right now, Vickers is trying to change his lifestyle and get a job, with the eventual goal of opening up a hat store. He enjoyed customizing his purple pirate hat and wants to customize other hats and sell them.
"I want to get on my feet, because I've never been on my feet. I've never owned a car, I've never had a place of my own," Vickers said. "I'm tired of living life on the dirt road, man, it's about time to start changing some things."
After everything he's gone through and the crazy twists and turns in his life, if he had a choice, Vickers would do it all again.
"It's been a pretty crazy life, I wouldn't change it for the world," Vickers said.
Contributed Photo