meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
History Daily

The First Solo Voyage Around The World

History Daily

Airship | Noiser | Wondery

History

4.42.1K Ratings

🗓️ 24 April 2025

⏱️ 19 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

April 24, 1895. Joshua Slocum sets off from Boston, Massachusetts in his attempt to become the first person to circumnavigate the world single-handedly.


  • Support the show! Join Into History for ad-free listening and more.


History Daily is a co-production of Airship and Noiser.

Go to HistoryDaily.com for more history, daily.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

There are more ways than ever to listen to History Daily ad-free.

0:04.1

Listen with Wondry Plus in the Wondry app.

0:06.0

As a member of NoisorPlus at noisor.com or in Apple Podcasts,

0:10.6

or you can get all of History Daily plus other fantastic history podcasts at IntoHistory.com.

0:32.1

Okay. It's just before noon on April 24, 1895 in Boston, Massachusetts.

0:38.5

At the harbor, 51-year-old Joshua Slocum hurls a heavy bag onto the deck of his sailboat,

0:44.5

a 36-foot sloop named the spray. Inside the bag are the last clothes and provisions he needs for an epic and historic trip. Joshua intends to become the first person to sail around the

0:50.1

world single-handedly. His preparations are interrupted by a large steamship in the harbor blasting its horn.

0:57.2

Joshua glares at it in disgust.

0:59.6

He despises these modern ships with their boilers and engines.

1:03.7

For a true seaman like him, there is only one way to travel the sea by sail.

1:09.7

As Joshua scowls at the steamer, he barely notices the two figures

1:13.4

appear at the dock behind him. His wife Hetty and his 14-year-old son have come to see him off.

1:19.6

The atmosphere is awkward. Joshua could be gone for years, so he doesn't know what to say.

1:25.8

Rather than embrace his child, Joshua simply straightens the boy's jacket and instructs him

1:30.6

to look after his stepmother. His farewell to Hetty is even less sentimental.

1:35.3

There's not much affection between them, and Joshua doesn't even kiss her goodbye before

1:39.4

turning away and climbing into his boat. Joshua stows his bag in the cramped cabin, finding one last space among all his other supplies.

1:47.9

Then, with barely a look back at shore and his family, Joshua pushes off. His boat slowly drifts away from dock, and his journey has begun.

2:00.4

Joshua Slocum will spend the next three years circumnavigating the globe alone.

2:06.1

Despite his decades of experience, though, the journey will be a perilous one.

2:10.1

Joshua doesn't have much money, and his boat is practically an antique.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Airship | Noiser | Wondery, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Airship | Noiser | Wondery and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.