elanya

“First: charter colonies and dissenters. By 1700, the only charter colonies in N. Am. that weren't formed/run by religious dissenters were the Carolinas. they *seem* to have more problems with piracy. Is this true, and is religion related?”

Other reasons that come to mind:

Trade

Was there more trade going on around the Carolinas, attracting more pirates? Were the Carolinas simply wealthier pickings? Stereotyping would suggest that the religious colonies, being largely Puritan, weren't throwing their wealth around with merry abandon.

Geography

Does the coastline of the Carolinas offer better havens for pirates?

Record-keeping

What if there was a fairly even distribution of piracy, but the Carolinas kept better records of it?

Corruption & Fraud

Were traders and merchants in the Carolinas more likely to lie about piracy to cover up their own fudged accounts?

Recruitment

Was it easier to recruit prospective pirates in the area? (But then, I don't know if pirates moved around too much for that to be an issue)