The Nautical Magazine first appeared in 1832, and was published monthly well into the twenty-first century. It covers a wide range of subjects, including navigation, meteorology, technology and safety. An important resource for maritime historians, it also includes reports on military and scientific expeditions and on current affairs. The 1834 volume devotes much space to naval news, including lists of ships and their captains, courts martial, promotions and appointments, births, marriages and deaths. It discusses the use of electricity for lighthouses and of steam engines in mines and ships, reports the launch of a new steam frigate, lists recent shipwrecks, and contains the timetables for the Falmouth packet boats to the Mediterranean, North and South America, and the Caribbean. Other contributions include a list of Arctic expeditions from England, a lurid account of a Maori haka and alleged cannibalism, and proposed designs for lightning conductors aboard ship.
