I can’t think of many more terrifying things than being marooned at night in a lighthouse during a raging hurricane-force storm, the structure shaking violently until it falls into the sea. That is what happened to two keepers in 1851. Many people believe their spirits…
Posts tagged as “Gregory Pettys”
In 1873, Captain Sidney Buddington of Groton, Connecticut, took part in America’s first attempt to reach the North Pole. The expedition was led by the explorer Charles Francis Hall. Captain Budington came highly recommended as he was the nephew of Captain James Monroe, who, years…
The Ward Line’s 480-foot-long luxury cruise ship, SS Morro Castle, made regular runs between New York City and Havana, Cuba, in the 1930s. On her maiden voyage in 1930, she made the 1,100-mile run in 59 hours. Even though the trips were during the Great…
The Ojibwe Tribe that once lived by the northern Great Lakes named Lake Superior, Gichi-Gami, which means great sea. Lake Superior is not an ocean, but it can be just as treacherous as one.People familiar with Lake Superior say it almost has a pulse and…
This is the famous photograph of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the world-renowned British engineer who revolutionized both the railroad and shipping industries. He achieved many firsts in engineering including the design of the SS Great Eastern, by far the largest steamship ever built at the time…
The California gold rush began in 1848 and people from all over the United States rushed to California in search of gold. Some traveled the difficult overland route, but many made the voyage on ships around Cape Horn to the West Coast. After dropping off…
The wreck of the S.S. Valencia off the west coast of Vancouver Island in 1906 is one of the worst maritime disasters along this dangerous stretch of coast, known as the Graveyard of the Pacific. The sinking resulted in the deaths of approximately 136 passengers…
There are a few places along the New England shore in winter where the only sounds you’ll hear are the cry of gulls and the only footprints you’ll see are your own. One of these places is Watch Hill, Rhode Island in the off-season, the…
During the age of steam, the steamboats of Long Island Sound, transporting people to and from New York and the cities in New England, had developed into large, elegant vessels. These large and beautiful floating palaces, flags flying, boasted the latest in service and luxury…
The first I read about Sir Ernest Shackleton’s daring exploits was in the 1959 book Endurance, a New York Times best-seller, by Alfred Lansing. My mother, an avid reader said, “Greg, you must read this book. It’s a fantastic story,” and she was right.The book…