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Vessel Size

Observations on Vessel Size – 1580-1730 David Hudson In discussing vessels of this period it is common for the name and rig to be given followed by a tonnage and […]

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1. Historical Story 2. Research & References All Posts Shipping The three characters’ lives Themes Thomas Button Uncategorized

The lives and some experiences of our leading men – Thomas Button

Admiral Sir Thomas Button (1565-1634) Button was for much of his career Admiral of the Narrow Seas – that water defined by the Bristol Channel and across the whole of […]

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1. Historical Story 2. Research & References All Posts John Bennett People and Characters Poole The three characters’ lives Themes Uncategorized

The lives and some experiences of our leading men – John Bennett

Captain John Bennett RN (1670-1717) Bennett was a Royal Navy captain for parts of his career but also had other interests; sufficient that he left a will worth several millions […]

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3. Miscellaneous Posts All Posts Life was like this then Others People and Characters Shipping Themes

The Fate of the Anne

Early in August 1625, three sailors, Nicholas Nurrey, Robert Rapson and Thomas Marryner arrived in Poole with an ominous tale to tell. A meeting was hastily arranged with the Mayor […]

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Henry Harbin and the Battle of the Fishing Nets 

The Admiralty Court of Poole assumed authority over activities in the harbour, including fishing and the conservation of young fish by the use of nets of suitable mesh size. They […]

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No Friendly Fire

The blockhouse on Brownsea Island was built in 1547, one of a string of coastal defences ordered by King Henry VIII against invasion from the continent. It was based on […]

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Swanskin

With many thanks to Roger Guttridge for his permission to use these extracts from his articles ‘A habit from the past’ and The water that is passed’ for Dorset Life. […]

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The Mulberry Tree

  In the Universal British Directory compiled by Peter Barfoot and John Wilkes (of Milland House, Sussex) it states that’ The (soil) foil of Poole and its environs is particularly […]

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1. Historical Story 3. Miscellaneous Posts All Posts Others People and Characters Pirates (English, Newfoundland, Caribbean) The three characters’ lives Uncategorized Woodes Rogers

What book did Blackbeard read?

The Guardian last week reported that archaeological conservators in North Carolina have made a remarkable discovery about pirates’ reading habits. Blackbeard’s bedtime reading may have been about the exploits of […]

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Fraud and Corruption

Fraud and Corruption contributed by Jenny Oliver In July 1682, William Culliford, an officer in the King’s Customs Service, arrived in Poole prepared to delve into the all too cosy […]