Sailing Ships

Captain John Whidden was an American merchant sailor who sailed all over the world. He wrote this work in 1908, partly as a memoir, but also to offer a snippet of the “old sailing ship days” before major changes occurred. It is a story of a boy from New England and his various roles on ships from the age of 12 to 37. He documents the changes in the shipping industry over the 19th and into the 20th century.

Orphaned at five, nothing held Whidden back from embarking on sea life seven years later. Serving as an apprentice, he quickly proved his worth and earned himself a mate's position by his early 20s. Graduating to third, second, and first office, he ended his career in command of, and having part-ownership of, his own vessel. Ocean Life in the Old Sailing Ship Days records a series of real events from his childhood impressions of rough and ready seamen to his thrilling and brutal experiences of war. 

Dive into an immersive maritime history exploring how humble wooden fleets conquered the oceans and forged global trade. Perfect for your daily commute or armchair traveling, this epic journey reveals how simple timber watercraft transformed from basic survival tools into sprawling modern...

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Fourteen-year-old Frank Brown has a respectable home, a secure future waiting in his father's long-established firm, and a family who expect him to take the safe road. But Frank's heart is elsewhere. A restless longing for ships, salt wind and far horizons has taken hold of him, and no argument...

Tales of adventures on the high seas captivate both sailors and those who stand on the shore and gaze out across the oceans. In this original collection of sea stories, edited by veteran writer Dick Durham, the gamut of human experience is mirrored in a world of tragic shipwrecks and sea monsters, epic races and brave rescues, tall ships and tiny dinghies.

Challenged by an expert who said it couldn’t be done, Joshua Slocum, a fearless New England sea captain, set out in April 1895 to prove that a man could sail alone around the world. A little over three years and forty-six thousand miles later, the proof was complete. This is Slocum’s own...

At eighteen, Frank Bullen signs aboard the ramshackle whaler Cachalot, more out of desperation than choice, and finds himself thrown into one of the harshest trades on the high seas. What follows is a three-year voyage from New Bedford, Massachusetts, round the Cape of Good Hope, and on through...

A captivating read spanning 5,000 years of the ocean's history Conquest of the Ocean tells the 5,000 year history of the remarkable individuals who sailed seas, for trade, to conquer new lands, to explore the unknown. From the early Polynesians to the first circumnavigations by the Portuguese...

Step aboard history’s most infamous ghost ship and unravel a chilling true maritime mystery that defies explanation. Perfect for a gripping commute or a late-night true-crime deep dive, this atmospheric investigation reconstructs a fateful 1872 transatlantic voyage. Experience the harrowing...

When a young boy named Jim Hawkins finds a treasure map and narrowly escapes pirates searching for it, he brings it to Dr. Livesey and Squire Trelawney, who immediately outfit a schooner named The Hispaniola and bring Jim along as cabin boy to retrieve the buried treasure. However, as they near...

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Spark your child's curiosity with this STEM educational adventure that turns bathtub play into deep-sea exploration. Perfect for entertaining young minds during family road trips or quiet playtime, this friendly journey explains exactly how heavy metal giants balance and glide. Little listeners...

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In the tradition of Sebastian Junger and Linda Greenlaw comes Captain Sig Hansen's rags-to-riches epic of his immigrant family's struggle against deadly Alaskan seas, freezing shipwrecks, and dangerously brutal conditions to achieve the American Dream Sig Hansen has been a star of the Discovery...

A fascinating journey through more than 5,000 years of seafaring history in this essential guide to the most impressive seafaring tales, explorers, and maritime environments. For more than 5,000 years, the seas have challenged, rewarded, and punished the brave sailors who set forth to explore it...

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Plunge into the harrowing medical history of maritime survival, where human frailty battles the unforgiving open ocean. Perfect for an absorbing daily commute, this immersive narrative exposes the terrifying reality of falling ill thousands of miles from the nearest port. Discover a brutal era...

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