By Their Own Compass
@bytheirowncompass.com
Historian Jeremiah Jenne and journalist Sarah Keenlyside bring you stories of historical travelers, the places they went, and the people they encountered.
(After all, one person's frontier is another person's front door.)
(After all, one person's frontier is another person's front door.)
Our holiday gift to you..
Travel plans gone to rubbish? Flight delayed again?
Listen to our latest episode on travel plans gone horribly wrong. Your flight might not take off faster, but you'll feel better knowing you didn't bankrupt Scotland.
Link below.
Travel plans gone to rubbish? Flight delayed again?
Listen to our latest episode on travel plans gone horribly wrong. Your flight might not take off faster, but you'll feel better knowing you didn't bankrupt Scotland.
Link below.
December 18, 2025 at 10:22 PM
Our holiday gift to you..
Travel plans gone to rubbish? Flight delayed again?
Listen to our latest episode on travel plans gone horribly wrong. Your flight might not take off faster, but you'll feel better knowing you didn't bankrupt Scotland.
Link below.
Travel plans gone to rubbish? Flight delayed again?
Listen to our latest episode on travel plans gone horribly wrong. Your flight might not take off faster, but you'll feel better knowing you didn't bankrupt Scotland.
Link below.
New bonus episode: Sarah Keenlyside talks with Tina Kanagaratnam from @historicshanghai.bsky.social about Emily Hahn's 1930s world and what remains today.
What happened to Emily's Shanghai? Listen now. Link to the full episode in the replies.👇
What happened to Emily's Shanghai? Listen now. Link to the full episode in the replies.👇
December 15, 2025 at 9:26 AM
New bonus episode: Sarah Keenlyside talks with Tina Kanagaratnam from @historicshanghai.bsky.social about Emily Hahn's 1930s world and what remains today.
What happened to Emily's Shanghai? Listen now. Link to the full episode in the replies.👇
What happened to Emily's Shanghai? Listen now. Link to the full episode in the replies.👇
Today is the birthday of writer Bill Bryson, born December 8, 1951:
"I can’t think of anything that excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything... Your whole existence becomes a series of interesting guesses."
"I can’t think of anything that excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything... Your whole existence becomes a series of interesting guesses."
December 8, 2025 at 10:42 AM
Today is the birthday of writer Bill Bryson, born December 8, 1951:
"I can’t think of anything that excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything... Your whole existence becomes a series of interesting guesses."
"I can’t think of anything that excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything... Your whole existence becomes a series of interesting guesses."
New Compass Dispatch featuring Kate Simon, born December 5, 1918, who spent decades telling tourists where to find a decent meal before finally publishing the stories she really wanted to write.
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
December 3, 2025 at 11:10 AM
New Compass Dispatch featuring Kate Simon, born December 5, 1918, who spent decades telling tourists where to find a decent meal before finally publishing the stories she really wanted to write.
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
November 27, 2025 at 9:10 AM
On this date in 1922.
It was the spark that lit global Egyptomania.
Howard Carter peers through a small hole in a sealed doorway in the Valley of the Kings.
The tomb of Tutankhamun.
Lord Carnarvon: “Can you see anything?”
Carter: “Yes. Wonderful things.”
#ThisDayInHistory
It was the spark that lit global Egyptomania.
Howard Carter peers through a small hole in a sealed doorway in the Valley of the Kings.
The tomb of Tutankhamun.
Lord Carnarvon: “Can you see anything?”
Carter: “Yes. Wonderful things.”
#ThisDayInHistory
November 26, 2025 at 8:47 AM
On this date in 1922.
It was the spark that lit global Egyptomania.
Howard Carter peers through a small hole in a sealed doorway in the Valley of the Kings.
The tomb of Tutankhamun.
Lord Carnarvon: “Can you see anything?”
Carter: “Yes. Wonderful things.”
#ThisDayInHistory
It was the spark that lit global Egyptomania.
Howard Carter peers through a small hole in a sealed doorway in the Valley of the Kings.
The tomb of Tutankhamun.
Lord Carnarvon: “Can you see anything?”
Carter: “Yes. Wonderful things.”
#ThisDayInHistory
Happy birthday to Captain James Cook (b. 1728), who proved the Pacific wasn't as empty as Europeans imagined...mainly because millions already lived there. Brilliant cartographer, complicated legacy. Both can be true.
November 7, 2025 at 10:44 AM
Happy birthday to Captain James Cook (b. 1728), who proved the Pacific wasn't as empty as Europeans imagined...mainly because millions already lived there. Brilliant cartographer, complicated legacy. Both can be true.
Today is the birthday of explorer Ann Bancroft, born 1955. First woman to reach both North and South Poles on foot. Walked through conditions that would kill most of us in about 90 minutes. Decided sitting still was for people without frostbite goals. An absolute travel legend.
September 29, 2025 at 3:42 PM
Today is the birthday of explorer Ann Bancroft, born 1955. First woman to reach both North and South Poles on foot. Walked through conditions that would kill most of us in about 90 minutes. Decided sitting still was for people without frostbite goals. An absolute travel legend.
William Adams didn’t set out to become the first Englishman in Japan, a confidant of a warlord, or the inspiration for James Clavell’s Shōgun. It just all rather happened.
Link to this week's Compass Dispatch Newsletter:
bytheirowncompass.substack.com/p/compass-di...
Link to this week's Compass Dispatch Newsletter:
bytheirowncompass.substack.com/p/compass-di...
September 25, 2025 at 3:05 PM
William Adams didn’t set out to become the first Englishman in Japan, a confidant of a warlord, or the inspiration for James Clavell’s Shōgun. It just all rather happened.
Link to this week's Compass Dispatch Newsletter:
bytheirowncompass.substack.com/p/compass-di...
Link to this week's Compass Dispatch Newsletter:
bytheirowncompass.substack.com/p/compass-di...
Junko Tabei would be 86 today. First woman up Everest, but she didn't stop there. Climbed the Seven Summits, cleaned up mountains, took tsunami survivors up Fuji. There's literally an asteroid named after her. "Do not give up. Keep on your quest." What a life.
September 22, 2025 at 11:59 AM
Junko Tabei would be 86 today. First woman up Everest, but she didn't stop there. Climbed the Seven Summits, cleaned up mountains, took tsunami survivors up Fuji. There's literally an asteroid named after her. "Do not give up. Keep on your quest." What a life.
This week's Compass Dispatch includes observations from Sicily on the intersection of film tourism and historical reality. The Godfather locations reveal how Hollywood mythology can overshadow complex local histories.
Also mosquitoes.
bytheirowncompass.substack.com/p/compass-di...
Also mosquitoes.
bytheirowncompass.substack.com/p/compass-di...
September 19, 2025 at 9:30 AM
This week's Compass Dispatch includes observations from Sicily on the intersection of film tourism and historical reality. The Godfather locations reveal how Hollywood mythology can overshadow complex local histories.
Also mosquitoes.
bytheirowncompass.substack.com/p/compass-di...
Also mosquitoes.
bytheirowncompass.substack.com/p/compass-di...
From Hannibal's elephants to Viking logs worth more than stone houses, sometimes the best historical records weren't written with ink.
Read more in this edition of our Compass Dispatches Newsletter, a digest about historical travel and historical travelers.
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
(2/2)
Read more in this edition of our Compass Dispatches Newsletter, a digest about historical travel and historical travelers.
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
(2/2)
September 5, 2025 at 2:27 PM
From Hannibal's elephants to Viking logs worth more than stone houses, sometimes the best historical records weren't written with ink.
Read more in this edition of our Compass Dispatches Newsletter, a digest about historical travel and historical travelers.
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
(2/2)
Read more in this edition of our Compass Dispatches Newsletter, a digest about historical travel and historical travelers.
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
(2/2)
Every traveler shares one universal experience, regardless of era: digestive challenges far from home. Our latest newsletter dives into how archaeologists track ancient journeys through the "evidence" left behind. (1/2)
September 5, 2025 at 2:27 PM
Every traveler shares one universal experience, regardless of era: digestive challenges far from home. Our latest newsletter dives into how archaeologists track ancient journeys through the "evidence" left behind. (1/2)
Co-host Jeremiah is on holiday in his homeland, and we offer some thoughts on that most American of travel institutions: The Interstate Highway System. Infrastructure designed for Cold War logistics, now fully weaponized for family vacations.
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
July 31, 2025 at 10:48 AM
Co-host Jeremiah is on holiday in his homeland, and we offer some thoughts on that most American of travel institutions: The Interstate Highway System. Infrastructure designed for Cold War logistics, now fully weaponized for family vacations.
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
From horses to moon landings in 75 years. Meanwhile, it still takes 4 hours to get to Brighton via the M25 on a Friday afternoon. Progress is relative. 🚀
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
July 24, 2025 at 8:30 PM
From horses to moon landings in 75 years. Meanwhile, it still takes 4 hours to get to Brighton via the M25 on a Friday afternoon. Progress is relative. 🚀
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
open.substack.com/pub/bytheiro...
July 15 is the birthday of Chinese scholar and geographer Gu Yanwu (1613-1682). When the Ming dynasty fell in 1644, rather than serve the new Manchu conquerors, Gu Yanwu chose early retirement and a life of study and travel throughout northern China.
July 15, 2025 at 3:33 PM
July 15 is the birthday of Chinese scholar and geographer Gu Yanwu (1613-1682). When the Ming dynasty fell in 1644, rather than serve the new Manchu conquerors, Gu Yanwu chose early retirement and a life of study and travel throughout northern China.
It’s the 700th anniversary of one of history’s wildest adventures. By Their Own Compass Co-host @jeremiahjenne.com recaps the incredible story of Ibn Battutah.
June 13, 2025 at 11:36 AM
It’s the 700th anniversary of one of history’s wildest adventures. By Their Own Compass Co-host @jeremiahjenne.com recaps the incredible story of Ibn Battutah.
Our weekly roundup of history, travel, and things that made us chuckle over the past week.
substack.com/home/post/p-...
substack.com/home/post/p-...
May 16, 2025 at 2:21 PM
Our weekly roundup of history, travel, and things that made us chuckle over the past week.
substack.com/home/post/p-...
substack.com/home/post/p-...
On this day in 1969, the iconic QE2 set sail on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York. After 39 years of service, 806 transatlantic crossings, and carrying 2.5 million passengers, she now serves as a floating hotel in Dubai. #QE2Anniversary #TravelHistory
May 2, 2025 at 3:28 PM
On this day in 1969, the iconic QE2 set sail on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York. After 39 years of service, 806 transatlantic crossings, and carrying 2.5 million passengers, she now serves as a floating hotel in Dubai. #QE2Anniversary #TravelHistory
On This Day, April 29, 1770: Captain Cook landed at Botany Bay, Australia. This historic voyage changed Western maps forever while beginning a complex new chapter for Aboriginal peoples who had navigated these lands for 60,000 years with their own sophisticated knowledge systems.
April 29, 2025 at 6:20 AM
On This Day, April 29, 1770: Captain Cook landed at Botany Bay, Australia. This historic voyage changed Western maps forever while beginning a complex new chapter for Aboriginal peoples who had navigated these lands for 60,000 years with their own sophisticated knowledge systems.
April 16 is the birthday of Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun (1755-1842), a talented artist who turned exile into opportunity. When the French Revolution forced this former Marie Antoinette's bestie to flee France, she embarked on a 12-year tour of European courts, painting portraits of aristocrats.
April 16, 2025 at 2:33 PM
April 16 is the birthday of Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun (1755-1842), a talented artist who turned exile into opportunity. When the French Revolution forced this former Marie Antoinette's bestie to flee France, she embarked on a 12-year tour of European courts, painting portraits of aristocrats.
Today is the birthday of Evliya Çelebi, the ultimate travel blogger, born in Istanbul on March 25, 1611. He spent 40 years documenting journeys across three continents in a massive 10-volume travelogue. A wonderful blend of scholar, humorist, cultural critic, and storyteller.
March 25, 2025 at 11:36 AM
Today is the birthday of Evliya Çelebi, the ultimate travel blogger, born in Istanbul on March 25, 1611. He spent 40 years documenting journeys across three continents in a massive 10-volume travelogue. A wonderful blend of scholar, humorist, cultural critic, and storyteller.
Happy birthday, I presume? Born March 19, 1813, David Livingstone rose from Scottish child laborer to renowned explorer. Livingstone campaigned against slavery, mapped Africa's interior, and documented Victoria Falls. Stanley may have found him in 1871, but Livingstone never considered himself lost.
March 19, 2025 at 1:43 PM
Happy birthday, I presume? Born March 19, 1813, David Livingstone rose from Scottish child laborer to renowned explorer. Livingstone campaigned against slavery, mapped Africa's interior, and documented Victoria Falls. Stanley may have found him in 1871, but Livingstone never considered himself lost.
February 27 marks the birthday of British explorer and artist Frederick Catherwood (1799-1854). Catherwood's detailed drawings and lithographs, working with John Lloyd Stephens, challenged European assumptions about the civilizations that existed in the Americas prior to Columbus.
February 27, 2025 at 9:44 AM
February 27 marks the birthday of British explorer and artist Frederick Catherwood (1799-1854). Catherwood's detailed drawings and lithographs, working with John Lloyd Stephens, challenged European assumptions about the civilizations that existed in the Americas prior to Columbus.
February 24 marks the birthday of Ibn Battuta, who was born in Tangier in 1304. Over three decades, this founding member of the Historical Travel Hall of Fame journeyed across the known world, from the Iberian Peninsula to modern-day Beijing, logging an estimated 117,000 km.
February 24, 2025 at 4:54 PM
February 24 marks the birthday of Ibn Battuta, who was born in Tangier in 1304. Over three decades, this founding member of the Historical Travel Hall of Fame journeyed across the known world, from the Iberian Peninsula to modern-day Beijing, logging an estimated 117,000 km.