An Armadale naval historian wanted the great naval ships of the past to be recognised so he wrote a book to get the ball rolling.
Armadale’s Gerry Gerhard is an 86-year-old navy veteran who has a sharp mind for the world’s great naval ships.
After joining the navy as a 15-year-old, Mr Gerhard served until he was diagnosed with tuberculosis at 23.
However he did not let this sour his love of the navy and dedicated much of his life to commemorating the ships he adored.
He said he thought his admiration would be more common if there were more available resources on the subject, so he took it upon himself to write his book, Preserved Warships of the World.
“I decided I’d do this because there’s so many ships in the world which are preserved and nobody knows about them,” he said.
“I did go around the world once taking photographs.
“I should think anyone who likes ships would be interested in its content.”
He said the book highlighted the difference between modern ships and the greats of the 20th century, some of which he had family members serve and die on.
“I lost an uncle on a destroyer in the North Sea,” he said.
“My father became an officer in the navy when he was 15 – he died salvaging a destroyer.”
Mr Gerhard donated a copy of his book to the City of Armadale library where he hoped people interested in ships including students would find it a useful resource.
