Dated December 6, 1932, this postcard showing the Empress of Asia was addressed to a Mr. A.Y. Brown of Acton, Ontario. The initials of the sender appear to be A.S. Friend and researcher Glenn Wright was attending a postcard show in Merrickville, Ontario, when he made the find while “browsing ships.” The postcard didn’t make …
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Elizabeth Ayre, whose been reading Oceans of Fate, has shared several rare photos from her grandfather’s collection. Her grandfather, Ernest Treloar, served as an engineer on the Empress of Asia during the interwar years. Pages 183-186 in Oceans of Fate describe the January 1926 fatal collision involving the 16,909-gross ton Empress of Asia, steaming outbound …
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Nice crowd on hand for the book launch hosted by The Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 245, in Merrickville, Ont., April 22, 2025.
With Maritime Museum of British Columbia Events Coordinator Anya Zanko at the March 14, 2025, West Coast book launch in Victoria, B.C.
British Columbia Book Launch for Oceans of Fate, Friday, March 14th, Maritime Museum of British Columbia, Victoria. The event begins at 3 p.m. Book signing for Oceans of Fate, Sunday, March 16, Indigo bookstore, Robson Street, Vancouver. The event begins at 12 noon and runs until 5 p.m. Eastern Ontario Book Launch for Oceans of …
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The October/November 2024 issue of Canada’s History Magazine features a separate article I wrote on the last hours of the Empress of Asia. The magazine can easily be subscribed to or purchased where magazines are sold. Meanwhile, the release date for the book Oceans of Fate: Peace and Peril Aboard the Steamship Empress of Asia …
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Early Reviews for Oceans of Fate “The challenge when writing about a ship is not just to find personal stories but to weave them into a compelling narrative that keeps the reader turning the pages…. Black has done a meticulous job of unearthing diaries, journals, and personal letters and photographs of both crews and passengers, …
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When writing or recording history it is always useful to understand that what you capture will in no way come close to being the definitive record. History or the telling of it is not some long-dead event frozen in the past, but an evolution of material and artifacts unearthed through ongoing research and the openness …
Continue reading "Fascinating Logbook On The Chinese Labour Corps"
Oceans of Fate: Peace and Peril Aboard the Steamship Empress of Asia is the next book, published by Toronto-based Dundurn Press, one of Canada’s top book publishers. The release date is February 18, 2025. A quick check of the title online shows it is listed with booksellers around the world–thanks to Dundurn’s marketing team. Oceans …
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