The lure of the seas has captured the imagination of humans since the beginning of time and the book “Ships of the Seven Seas” by Hawthorn Daniel is an excellent introduction to the history of ships and seafaring. Published in 1925 by Doubleday, Page & Company of New York it includes an introduction by Franklin D. Roosevelt and with black & white illustrations by Francis J. Rigney (1882 – 1962). Hawthorn covers with text and illustrations: The Development of Ships, The Development of Sails, The perfection of Sails – The Clipper Ships, The Development of Steamships, The Perfection of Steamships, Steamships of Many Types, Ships of War, Ports and Port Equipment, The Art of Seamanship, The Science of Navigation, Lighthouses, Lightships and Buoys, Ship Design, Construction and Repair, Shipping Lines, The Importance of Ships and closing with an Appendix of An Abridged Dictionary of Nautical Words and Expressions. Although it doesn’t include the massive ocean-going container ships of today it is a wonderful book that deserves a spot in any nautical library or maybe as a gift for those that love to sail the seven seas. 

(Lucien) Hawthorne Daniel (1890 – 1981) lived and traveled the world but he was born and buried in Nebraska. A graduate of the United States Naval Academy (Class of 1908) he wrote sea stories and historical novels for teen-age readers but was also a ghost writer in collaboration with prominent individuals in the fields of business, law, exploration, big game hunting and Americanism. Beginning in 1922 until 1968 he did write numerous sea faring books and many nonfiction biographies but was also a war correspondent in WWII.