Making the most of ships’ passenger lists

One of the most romantic names from the Age of Sail is the Cutty Sark, the 19th-century British tea clipper that sailed across the world. The ship is now a museum in Greenwich, South-East London, but

This year sees the celebrations marking the 200th anniversary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway, the world’s first steam-worked passenger line. It is an occasion to reflect on the

Today we might minimise or even overlook the railway’s significance, because it is such an established part of our lives. Yet at its height the industry employed more than half a million people across

The seasoned polar explorer Franklin lost two vessels and 129 men, himself included, in the late 1840s, searching for the route that would take 3,000nm off the sea route to the Orient. Even though glo

Dear Simon, My daughter, Wendy, and I have enjoyed so many visits to Singapore, and this year we felt it was about time we put our thoughts and experiences down on paper. Sir Stamford Raffles was knig

Recently, at the Western Cape Archives in Cape Town, South Africa, I had to suppress my tears as I finally read the horrifying details about my late mother’s tragically cruel early childhood. Iris Ale