My father didn’t have a Cruise Book. Since other children of plank owners have written us and mentioned their dad’s Cruise Books, my brother Bill and I have wondered why we never saw the Cruise Book growing up. Since my father, a child of the depression and a very large family was “thrifty”, we now realize that he just was not willing (or able) to actually pay for a copy.
Fortunately for me and this website, I met Pat Fedele a year and a half ago. Pat, a terrific tenor, convinced two shipmates to form a singing trio. They called themselves the “3 B’s” and entertained the crew during Happy Hours and other occasions. They were so good that they actually went aboard other ships and performed at their Happy Hours.
Pat is a generous man. Among his collection of memorabilia is a well-worn copy of the Boston Cruise Book. On my second visit to Pat’s home, he allowed me to take his Cruise Book so I could scan it. I sent it back to him when I finished. I now have a large collection of scans – the pages from Pat’s book. We used many of them to flesh out the “Division photos” on this website.
Despite my recent post in which I said I would talk about lagoons and anchorages, I have decided to spend some time posting pictures from the Cruise Book – little slices of life aboard the Boston.
All Cruise Book pics are compliments of Pat Fedele
