The Conservancy is thrilled to be hosting journalist Doug Most for a special book talk on Wednesday, September 17 at 7pm (eastern) on Zoom. As the author of the recently-published Launching Liberty: The Epic Race to Build the Ships that Took America to War, Doug will join us to discuss the complex design plans, created by William Francis Gibbs and his firm, that allowed Liberty ships to be built fast and repaired anywhere, greatly increasing the number of ships available to help win World War II.

Doug Most published an excerpt of Launching Liberty as a fascinating essay, “Crossing the Atlantic During Britain’s Darkest Hour in World War II” describing a 1940 journey by the RMS Scythia from Liverpool to New York, with passengers and crew on high alert for an attack at sea from German submarines. To read this riveting piece, click HERE. To purchase your copy of Launching Liberty, click HERE.

We are excited to hear more about this monumental era of ship-building history and how it informed the subsequent emergence of the SS United States.

About Doug Most

Doug Most, an accomplished journalist who worked at newspapers in Washington, D.C., South Carolina, and New Jersey also spent 15 years as the magazine and features editor at The Boston Globe. He is the Assistant Vice President and Executive Editor of the Editorial Department at Boston University.

He is the author of two previously published books, including The Race Underground, a narrative history of Boston and New York’s housing crisis in the late 1800’s which was adapted into a PBS documentary. His most recent book, published in August, tells the human story of the epic race to build thousands of Liberty ships to help win World War II.