William McFee

Born in 1881, William McFee was an English-born writer and marine engineer whose work was deeply shaped by his maritime background. He was born to Canadian parents and followed the family’s seafaring tradition, later turning his practical experience into books that gave readers an unusually convincing picture of life aboard ship.

Before writing full time, McFee worked as a ship’s engineer and served in the merchant marine. His early book Letters from an Ocean Tramp helped establish the voice that would make him known: observant, reflective, and closely tied to the realities of work, travel, and the sea.

He later made his home in the United States and became known as an English-American author of sea stories, novels, essays, and reviews. McFee died in 1966, leaving behind a body of work admired for its realism, technical confidence, and strong sense of atmosphere.