From Peonies to Pirates

A woman’s career in the Merchant Marines written by Jane Shelley.

For generations, women aboard ship were considered the scourge of the seas, bringing bad luck on a voyage, a belief that persisted in some quarters through the twentieth century. And the thought of a woman being a ship’s officer was completely out of the question. But the tide is slowly turning, in good part to women such as Jane Shelley, who, in her forties, made the life-altering decision to embark on a career as a professional sailor, and, yes, as a ship’s officer. This is the remarkable tale of a woman whose career traversed the flower business, a coin machine enterprise, and, finally, a profession at sea. In her career, Jane dealt with all manner of drama, ranging from a five-day Pacific typhoon through pirate attacks in the Indian Ocean to two mysterious deaths aboard her ship, not to mention routine challenges and mishaps. This is certainly a story of the sea, but, as well, a tale of the determination of a woman working in a man’s world.