Oliver Family Photograph Collections

Lots of mines and ships from the late 1800s to the early 1900s. Link…

Steamboat shipwrecks

Affecting images from the University of Wisconsin, Historic Steamboat collection. Link…

Wreck Mail Collection

Carnatic – 1869
Description
The P&O steamer Carnatic, 1700 tons, was wrecked on 13th September 1869 of Shawan Island in the Gulf of Suez, while outward bound for India. The ship struck at 1am on Monday 13th September, in calm water.
Although close to land the ship's company remained on board all the following day, until about 1am on Tuesday 14th the Carnatic sank suddenly with considerable loss of life, 15 Europeans and 15 Natives. Some of the mail bags were recovered by divers on the 24th October.

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Salvaged mail from shipwrecks makes for an interesting collection. Link…

The Depths of the Sea

Dredging cruises of H.M.SS. 'Porcupine' and 'Lightning' during the Summers of 1868, 1869, and 1870. Link…

Unlawfully Shut Down

Dear customers and friends.

Sorry for the inconvenience

Due to a dispute over the copyright to the company's web address our webshop has been unlawfully shut down by one of our former employees. Link…
[Photo credit]

CyberHeritage

Steve Johnson has an interest in, amongst other things - fireworks, armaments, advertising, submarines and greeting cards. [Quite a few broken links I'm afraid]. Link…

Piscatorial images

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has an online library featuring some interesting historic images and photographs. Link…

Joe Kunkel

Some of his haul from the Fall 2007 Groundfish Survey. Link…

Captain Smales and Paddle Steamers

"Thursday, 26th January, began with a heavy N.W. and Westerly gale with a very high sea running. The 'Magdala' was behaving splendidly. About 11 a.m. I remarked to the Mate who was on watch at the time "Isn't she a fine sea boat?" It was his first voyage in her as he had only joined in Glasgow. A little while after, I was standing on the lee side of the bridge watching the heavy rollers as they rolled away to leeward in the hurricane squalls that came along at short intervals and as I stood there the words of the hymn came to my mind "He plants his footsteps in the sea and rides upon the storm". There was something awe-inspiring in the long heavy billows as they rolled away to leeward, clear of the ship. We had had no observation of the sun since we left Glasgow and I made the dead reckoning at noon to be Lat. 53 - 11 N. Long 15 -57 West. Somewhere about 260 miles West of Ireland. At 10 minutes past noon, during a hurricane squall, ship not steering at the time, a huge mountain of a sea - tidal wave in fact - came rolling and towering above us on the starboard beam. Just a black mountain of water with a white crest on the point of breaking. The ship had not the ghost of a chance, she simply could not rise to it but just gave a sickening roll to wind-ward and the mountain fell on her and rolled right over her from the fore rigging to the main. Over she went and buried her port rail, listing to 46 degrees measured later. What happened was, 600 tons of coal in the bridge space and No.2 tween deck was thrown bodily to Port. The front of the funnel was stove in and the whistle lanyards tightened with the whistle having been knocked inside the funnel. It was howling away full blast inside!"
Find out what happens next here.
I came across this story while browsing the fascinating Paddle Steamer Picture Gallery (yes, that is Acker Bilk on Margate Pier). Link…