“The cadets lost no time in getting into the ruins, scouring every corner and pile for dead and injured…the prompt action of the ship’s medical officer resulted in the saving of human life…” John W. Thompson, navigator, USS Nantucket, January 18, 1919, report on crew members assisting in the aftermath of the Great Boston Molasses Flood […]
I originally wrote this summary of Voyage of Mercy for “The History Reader,” the history website hosted by St. Martin’s Press, publisher of Voyage. Enjoy! By Stephen Puleo I describe my book, Voyage of Mercy: The USS Jamestown, the Irish Famine, and the Remarkable Story of America’s First Humanitarian Mission as a story about hope, […]
March 28, 1847 – The Jamestown departs Boston for Ireland (modified excerpt from Voyage of Mercy) On March 28, a Sunday, from the top floor of his house in Boston’s Pemberton Square, Robert Bennet Forbes gazed upon a morning that had broken bright and clear. A cold steady wind from the northwest had blown a […]
March 17, 1847 – Loading the USS Jamestown with food for Ireland (modified excerpt from Voyage of Mercy) As dusk crept across the piers and a chill wind blew from the harbor, Robert Bennet Forbes marveled at the first-day progress of the longshoremen who had spent hours bowing their backs and loading food and provisions […]
The first day of Irish Heritage Month seems like a good time to recognize the remarkable story of Irish-Americans – from the humblest of beginnings upon their arrival on America’s shores, to the vitriolic discrimination they faced and overcame, to their rapid assimilation in a new country, to a celebration of their lofty and innumerable […]
I taught my World War II class at UMass-Boston in the Fall of 2021 and emerged with a sense of optimism and hope. First, a little background. Many of you who have been loyal and kind enough to follow my “author life” know that I’m proud of my dad’s service as a World War II […]