Ship History Radio

Join Education Director Aimee Bachari for a chat with Curator Jordan Berson about the fascinating Elmo N. Pickerill Collection at the Steamship Historical Society of America. Elmo Neale Pickerill served as Chief Radio Operator aboard the world’s biggest ocean liner SS LEVIATHAN for most of the ship’s career. Pickerill had already made a name for himself in the fields of aviation and wireless radiotelegraphy, and he had been to sea. He was known to be an accomplished and daring innovator with nearly 20 years of experience under his belt. The Wright brothers taught Elmo Pickerill to fly and he had also studied radio with Guglielmo Marconi.

Among his accomplishments, Elmo Pickerill was credited with making the first ever airplane-to-ground radio communication, while solo-piloting a biplane in August 1910. During the flight Pickerill was said to have tapped out Morse code that was received by two stations on the beach, three different steamships, and a radio station on a New York City rooftop. This type of historic feat should have made front page headlines worldwide. But the event didn’t get any such publicity, and today due to this absence of period news reports, some historians have suggested that Pickerill fabricated the story for the purpose of self-promotion.

A large volume of the papers and mementos he saved from this time period were donated to Steamship Historical Society in 1968 when he passed away. These include but are not limited to: signage from LEVIATHAN’s radio room, Pickerill’s badge, epaulettes, certification cards, 137 crew passes, 168 log abstract cards, photographs, souvenir-type objects, silver, correspondence, clippings, memoranda, books, and a very large 48-star American flag that purportedly was flown aboard LEVIATHAN.

Two groupings of materials within that donation stand out as exceptional records of what it was like to work in the radio department of an early 20th century ocean liner. The first grouping is Pickerill’s photographs, that he kept in a large bound album. The second grouping are documents stored inside of two file-boxes stamped “SS LEVIATHAN” on their spines. These boxes were apparently saved from the radio room by Pickerill when the ship went out of service for the last time in 1934. Work has been going on at SSHSA to more thoroughly document and understand the contents of these boxes.

We’re collaborating with History Daily from award winning podcasters Airship and Noiser. In this episode, you’ll hear from Host Lindsay Graham about the Laconia Incident. On September 12, 1942, U-156 commander Werner Hartenstein torpedoed the RMS Laconia, a former Cunard White Star liner that was converted into a troopship during the war, killing 1,400. On board that day, traveling from South Africa to England, were 1,500 Italian prisoners of war, military personnel, and women and children. After the attack, and realizing there were German allies and women and children on board, Hartenstein called other U-boats to aid in the rescue. What happens next when he decides to request assistance from the Allies would change the course of the war, leading to even more casualties.

Join SSHSA Education Director Aimee Bachari and the Historical Collections of the Great Lakes Archivist Mark Sprang to reflect on the 50th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. The two discuss what makes this shipwreck so popular, the changes that came about after, and the material related to “Big Fitz” that you can find in Mark’s archive and collections at Bowling Green State University. Most importantly, the Steamship Historical Society remembers the 29 men that were lost that fateful day when the “Big Fitz” went down on November 10, 1975, just 17 miles north-northwest of Whitefish Point, Michigan. Watch the film version of this interview with historic images, video, and documents from both Mark’s archive and the SSHSA archive along with materials in the public domain.

On September 8, 1900, the deadliest natural disaster in American history occurred, when one of the worst Atlantic hurricanes hit Galveston. The Category 4 storm surge was between 8 and 15 feet. Wind speeds were estimated at up to 135 miles per hour. Residents had very little warning and the destruction of bridges and telegraph lines made evacuation to and communication with the mainland impossible. Though the total number of casualties is unknown, estimates range from 6,000 – 12,000. Join Education Director Aimee Bachari for a chat with PowerShips author Eric Pearson who details the undertold story of the vessels that encountered the storm not just in Galveston, but from its beginnings to the Caribbean and the aftermath in the Great Lakes and Canada. You’ll also hear clips from an oral history with Katherine Vedders Paul, a storm survivor from Galveston, courtesy of the Rosenberg Library.

Howard Middleton served as the first Black Port Commissioner in Houston from 1978 to 1996. He was a former Manpower programs director and labor executive when he was appointed to the Port of Houston Authority’s Port Commission. Middleton played a crucial role in the development of the Houston Foreign Trade Zone and was instrumental in the appointment of the Port’s first Black ship pilot, Paul Brown. He passed away in 2023. In this episode, we will continue the theme of race and labor at the Port of Houston, and you’ll hear excerpts from Jason Theriot’s 2006 interview with Howard for the University of Houston’s Center for Public History. Jason interviewed individuals with a long history of working at the Port of Houston and on the Ship Channel. They worked as port captains, ship pilots, commissioners, and longshoremen.

Continuing on from Episode 19, you will hear from Captain William Robb who was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, and went to sea at 16. He served in the Merchant Navy for the United Kingdom during World War II. After the war, he married and came to the US to live and work in 1949. He had heard that the Port of Houston was seeking stevedoring superintendents, and he and his wife relocated to Texas that same year. He spent over 50 years working in the stevedoring business. Captain Bill passed away in 2013. He spoke with Jason Theriot in 2006 as part of a series of oral histories on the Port of Houston for the Center for Public History’s Houston History Project at the University of Houston. They talked about WWII, union troubles, and race and labor in the Port during the peak days of breakbulk cargo.

Education Director Aimee Bachari discussed race and labor on the Houston Ship Channel with Jason Theriot, an independent professional historian and consultant based in Houston, Texas, who specializes in historical research and writing services, focusing on energy, environment, business, and culture along the Gulf Coast. He conducted a series of oral histories on the Port of Houston back in 2006 for the Houston History Project and interviewed individuals with a long history of working at the Port of Houston and on the Ship Channel. You’ll hear segments of his oral history with Charles Mills, who spent 50 years in the maritime industry. Originally from Galveston, Texas, he joined the U.S. Merchant Marine in the late 1930s, served in an integrated unit, and sailed for Lykes Brothers Shipping.

Join Education Director Aimee Bachari for a horror-filled interview with Daniel F. Harrington. On February 11, 1907, in one of New England’s worst maritime tragedies, the Larchmont sank in icy waters off Watch Hill after a collision with the three-masted schooner Harry Knowlton. A former East Providence City Council Member, Harrington began writing on the subject and found the stories of the victims and survivors so interesting that he created an hour-long presentation on the topic and has been touring local libraries and historical societies.

Join Education Director Aimee Bachari for Part II of a discussion on Japanese immigration to Hawai’i by steamship and the practice of picture brides with University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Professor of History and Ethnic Studies Dr. Kelli Nakamura. In this episode, you’ll learn about women’s work on the plantation and the “double day.” Dr. Nakamura also talks about domestic violence and racism in the context of the plantation and the broader Hawaiian community. Topics like World War II and internment are also discussed. Check out our lesson plan on Chinese and Japanese Immigration to America that features this two-part interview here.

Join Education Director Aimee Bachari for Part I of a discussion on Japanese immigration to Hawai’i by steamship and the practice of picture brides with University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Professor of History and Ethnic Studies Dr. Kelli Nakamura. In this episode, you’ll learn about how the American Civil War and the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 fueled a need for sugar plantation workers in Hawai’i. You will also hear about the practice of picture brides, or arranged marriages where partners were selected by photos and personal recommendations of friends and family. Check out our lesson plan on Chinese and Japanese Immigration to America that features this two-part interview here.

On May 7, 1915, Cunard Line’s RMS Lusitania was struck by a torpedo from the German U-20 and sank in just 18 minutes off the south coast of Ireland. She was returning to Liverpool from New York with 1,959 passengers. Of those on board, only 761 survived. 1,198 people drowned including 128 U.S. citizens. Learn about the ship and why this event was pivotal to the course of World War I in this episode. Join us for a chat with historian Jim Rees as he and SSHSA Education Director Aimee Bachari discuss the role that Arklow fisherman played in the rescue of passengers from the Lusitania sinking. Jim is the chairman of the Arklow Maritime Museum in County Wicklow, Ireland and shares the history and maritime heritage of Arklow, how this community museum came to be, and what visitors can see on display. Learn more about the museum at arklowheritage.ie/.

Join Education Director Aimee Bachari and learn about the role of lighthouses in maritime navigation and communication and how and why women held the federal position of lighthouse keepers in the nineteenth century. You will hear about Rhode Island’s Ida Lewis, who is the most famous lighthouse keeper in the United States and how nineteenth century gender norms affected the way in which she was represented in the media with her position in the national spotlight. Check out our Common Core Standards-aligned lesson plan on this topic.

Join us for a conversation with Paul Klee, who took the student ship the SS Groote Beer to Europe when he was just 17 years old. Hear about the last days of travel from point to point and what it was like being a teenager on a ship surrounded by peers. Watch the film version of this interview on our YouTube Channel.

On this episode, you’ll hear a presentation that Archivist Astrid Drew gave to the World Ship Society’s Port of New York Branch back in May, where she discussed the Vincent M. Love Collection currently on loan to SSHSA. Follow along with Astrid’s presentation or dive deeper into this remarkable collection by visiting www.shiphistory.org/love-collection.

Join Archivist Astrid Drew and Assistant Archivists Heather Kisilywicz and Tessa Mediano as they discuss the challenges of preserving and interpreting three unique scrapbooks in the SSHSA collections.

Join us for a chat with Doug Tilden, former VP of United States Lines, South America, and later CEO of Marine Terminals. Doug spent the last five decades in the shipping industry, working his way up from being a dock clerk to serving as the top executive within a Global Fortune 100 corporation. Part II discusses cost reduction in ocean shipping and the evolution of container ships. View the film version of this interview and check out the accompanying lesson plan at https://shiphistory.org/ships-trade/.

Join us for a chat with Doug Tilden, former VP of United States Lines, South America, and later CEO of Marine Terminals. Doug spent the last five decades in the shipping industry, working his way up from being a dock clerk to serving as the top executive within a Global Fortune 100 corporation. In Part I of this series, you will learn about the move from breakbulk cargo to the rise of containerization. Stay tuned for Part II, which will explain cost reduction in ocean shipping and the evolution of container ships. View the film version of this interview and check out the accompanying lesson plan at https://shiphistory.org/ships-trade/.

Join us for a conversation with Brigitte Bentele about her experience immigrating to America from Germany in the 1950s on board the SS United States. You can watch the film version of this interview and check out the accompanying lesson plan at https://shiphistory.org/ships-immigration/.

Join Education Director Aimee Bachari for a chat with Captain Richard Bowen. Learn about his maritime career including being Captain of the Knorr that found the wreck of the Titanic in 1985 on a joint French–American expedition led by Jean-Louis Michel of IFREMER and Robert Ballard of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Join Archivist Astrid Drew and assistant archivists Heather Kisilywicz and Tessa Mediano for a discussion about some of the wonderful collections that make up SSHSA. Find out about the challenges they face in managing an archive that comprises hundreds of thousands of photographs, plans, brochures, books and artifacts.

Join us for a chat with Jane Lyons about what it was like traveling as a diplomatic family and how they kept busy on long voyages. Visit shiphistory.org/transport to see images from her personal collection.

Join us for a chat with PowerShips contributor Eric Pearson about the challenges faced by the Merchant Marine in World War II. Not a PowerShips subscriber? Email info@sshsa.org to request a free sample copy today!

The Steamship Historical Society’s archives and education department teamed up with Christina D’Amico, a genealogist, to create this informative episode for Rhody Radio. Learn about tips and tricks and some free resources to start on your genealogy journey. You can visit https://shiphistory.org/themes/immigration/ to access our research guide.

On this episode of Ship History Radio, we will hear from SHIPS (Ships, History, Influence, and Power Series) interviewee Jim Shaw about how passengers spend their time at sea during long voyages. Jim details the various deck games often played and provides historical context about how these games on ships have changed from the 1910s to the current offerings on cruise ships and everything in between. You can watch the film version of this interview on YouTube.

Learn about Cecilia’s time studying abroad and her decision to take a student ship back from England in June of 1969. In this interview she speaks about the environment of spending time with other students who also had “eye opening experiences” in Europe. She took the SS Aurelia, and it was the last voyage for the ship. She speaks about the protests at Cornell University and the feeling of returning to an America in turmoil – another adventure. See images at https://shiphistory.org/ships-transport/.