Introduction to the Enterprise

Personal Insights

Welcome to Sandcastle V.I.'s special electronic edition of These Are the Voyages: A History of the Ships, Aircraft, and Spacecraft Named Enterprise. This was a project I spent endless hours researching and writing during a period of about 10 years. Until 1996, it remained in drydock -- unpublished and unread by anyone except a few close friends and a good many more publishing company editors who didn't think it was worth publication.

However, I undertook this project, not to become rich and famous, but because of my interest in the subject. I had a story to tell, and I knew there were many Star Trek fans and naval history enthusiasts out there who would be ready to read that story. But I had no way of getting the story out, until the Internet appeared. Through this wonderful new technology, the story of the great ladies named Enterprise and their courageous crews could be told!

Now, finally, in 2011, my efforts are finally in print and available at lulu.com (see flyer below). I will keep the narrative section of "These Are The Voyages" online for a limited time, but I encourage anyone who has an interest in naval history or the name "Enterprise" to click on the flyer below and order your own copy of the book today. It is available from lulu.com both in print and downloadable e-book formats, and includes lots of information that is not in this online version.

Table of Contents

Title Page and Dedication

Preface

Chapter 1 - The Spanish Armada

• Subchapter 1.1 - Mystery Ship
  

Chapter 2 - The Great European Fleets

• Subchapter 2.1 - The Rise of the French Navy
  
• Subchapter 2.2 - The First Royal Navy Enterprise
  

Chapter 3 - The Fight for Independence

• Subchapter 3.1 - An Enterprise for the Continental Navy
  

Chapter 4 - Challenges to a Young Nation

• Subchapter 4.1 - Early French Enterprises
  
• Subchapter 4.2 - Battling the Pirates of the Barbary Coast
  
• Subchapter 4.3 - The War of 1812
  

Chapter 5 - Exploring Strange Worlds

• Subchapter 5.1 - The South American Patrol
  
• Subchapter 5.2 - Exploring the Northwest Passage
  

Chapter 6 - Commerce and the Steamboat

• Subchapter 6.1 - Early American Steamboats
  
• Subchapter 6.2 - Paddlewheelers on the Canadian Frontier
  
• Subchapter 6.3 - Enterprises Down Under
  
• Subchapter 6.4 - Other Merchant Enterprises
  

Chapter 7 - Steam in the Civil War Era

• Subchapter 7.1 - A Confederate Enterprise
  
• Subchapter 7.2 - World Voyager
  
• Subchapter 7.3 - Another Enterprise for the Merchant Marines
  

Chapter 8 - A World at War

• Subchapter 8.1 - The Enterprise of World War I
  
• Subchapter 8.2 - The Royal Navy's Big "E"
  
• Subchapter 8.3 - Defenders of the America's Cup
  

Chapter 9 - Air Power at Sea

• Subchapter 9.1 - Naval Airpower and the "Big E"
  
• Subchapter 9.2 - Victory at Midway
  
• Subchapter 9.3 - Push Across the Pacific
  

Chapter 10 - E=mc²

• Subchapter 10.1 - The Post-War Era
  
• Subchapter 10.2 - Proving the Big E's Worth
  
• Subchapter 10.3 - On Yankee Station
  
• Subchapter 10.4 - On Patrol in the Persian Gulf
  

Chapter 11 - Lighter Than Air

• Subchapter 11.1 - France's Balloon Pioneers
  
• Subchapter 11.2 - The Goodyear Blimps
  

Chapter 12 - The Final Frontier

• Subchapter 12.1 - Leaving the Cradle
  
• Subchapter 12.2 - The 21st Century . . . and Beyond
  

| Home | Intro | Ventures | Sea | Air | Space | SciFi | Racing | Movies | Art | Travel | Exit |

| Intro | Dedication | Foreword | Preface | Spanish Armada | European Fleets | Independence |
| A Young Nation | Exploration | Steamboats | Civil War | World at War | Air Power | Nuclear Power |
| Airships | Final Frontier | Ship Directory | Bibliography |

Last Updated: December 31, 2011