Head to St George’s next month for a re-enactment of the daring 1775 heist that tied Bermuda to the American fight for independence.

The Bermuda Pilot Gig Club will stage a retelling of the historic Gunpowder Plot at Tobacco Bay on August 16.

The late Maurice Johnson came up with the idea. A coxswain, boatswain, and “unbelievable” storyteller with a remarkable knowledge of Bermuda’s history, he saw the re-enactment as a meaningful way to mark the 250th anniversary of the event.

He joined the Bermuda Pilot Gig Club when it was launched a decade ago. He initially took on the responsibility of maintaining the gigs, but shoulder problems landed him in the cox’s seat where his stories took on a life of their own.

“Maurice was a wealth of information about what was going on in Bermuda: the history of Bermuda, the history of the islands that we would go around in St George's — who was who, what was what, who did what, when they did it — and he was fascinating,” said Debbie Jones, a founding member of the Gig Club.

“But on top of that, he was just so positive — and immersed in looking after these boats as if they were his. It was truly unbelievable to watch him in action.”

Mr Johnson impressed them all when he recreated a gig from 100 years ago — a version that was made with a sail.

“You still have to have rowers because the sail takes the wind, but it’s not as easy to tack as it is with a regular sailboat,” Ms Jones said. “You can imagine that 100 years ago, 200 years ago, when they had these gigs and they went out for miles and miles and miles, they would use the sail to get them back, especially if the wind was behind them.”

Mr Johnson’s “big passion” however, was re-enactments.

In August 1775, Bermudian sympathisers to the American cause stole more than 100 barrels of gunpowder from a British magazine in St George’s.

The barrels were rowed to Tobacco Bay and loaded on to rebel ships at sea, providing the desperately needed munitions that helped sustain the rebel Continental Army in the early days of the 13 colonies’ war.

“Basically, as part of the War of Independence, Britain imposed an embargo on goods being sent to the American colonies. What they were aiming to do was to starve the people living on the East Coast of the United States, the 13 colonies,” Ms Jones said.

“Bermuda was concerned because some of our goods — flour and sugar and dry goods and things — were coming via America and so if the embargo hit America, then it was going to impact Bermuda.”

Even though they were British, the sympathisers decided to support the side that was in their best interest and supplied the Americans with the stolen gunpowder.

“Some people say they didn't give it to them, they traded it. But other people say no, they stole it and gave it to them. Who knows really what happened, other than the fact that they were successful in stealing the gunpowder,” Ms Jones said. “There was one casualty. There was a soldier who was guarding the gunpowder barrels.

“They actually shot him and then they took the barrels down and put them on the gigs and put them on the sloop. So whether Bermuda played a true, integral role in the War of Independence, who knows, but it's a story that seems to keep going.”

The re-enactment next month should be “fun” to watch, she said. Just as significant, it will show how central gigs once were to life in Bermuda.

“He talked about nothing else for a long time,” said Ms Jones of Mr Johnson, who died suddenly in March at the age of 79.

“And so we decided that it would be wonderful to be able to do this re-enactment as a tribute to him.”

Although his family held a memorial service for Mr Johnson last month, members of the Gig Club wanted to do something from their perspective – something they felt “would be truly meaningful for him”.

There will be a minute of silence in his honour, and a wreath will be placed in the ocean as a tribute.

The free event is open to everyone, even people who know nothing about pilot gigs and their place in Bermuda history.

“Hopefully it'll be a beautiful night, and it'll be a wonderful event. I think it’s everything that Maurice would want, and it's certainly our way of saying to Maurice thank you so much for everything you did to make the club what it is today,” Ms Jones said.

“Maurice was a truly amazing person. He touched so many people from all over Bermuda. He just was one of those unsung heroes. He never ever blew his own trumpet and so this re-enactment is a chance for us to blow a trumpet for him.”

• The Bermuda Pilot Gig Club’s re-enactment of the Gunpowder Plot will take place at 6pm on August 16 at Tobacco Bay