Hello AMSS - I wanted to let you all know about an interesting event coming up this week.
A presentation by Ray Ashley and the National Maritime Historical Society on the history of California's Maritime El Camino Real. August 6th at 4PM. Attendance is free, but you do have to register in advance. Follow this link to register and read more details - https://seahistory.org/first-thursdays-ray-ashley-californias-other-highway/ *Thursday, 6 August 2026 Seminar Series Live Event on Zoom* *Welcome & Lecture at 7:00 PM ET, Q&A to Follow* Seminars are free to attend, although we hope you will support the series with a suggested $10 Seminar Guest Donation <https://seahistory.org/donate_today/>. Hundreds of millions of people have traveled along California’s scenic coastal highway—parts of it labeled US 101, parts US 1—but to generations of Californians and travelers it remains El Camino Real, “The King’s Highway.” In state lore, it is the road that linked the twenty-one Spanish missions, presidios, and ranchos that marked early European settlement in California, later memorialized by the familiar mission-bell signposts along the route. In this presentation, Dr. Ray Ashley asks us to forget the oxcarts for a moment and imagine El Camino Real not as California’s true highway, but as something more like a service road. Long before Spanish mariners arrived, an extensive network of maritime routes carried people, goods, and ideas along the Pacific coast—an ancient maritime highway that connected California by water until the coming of the railroads. Join the National Maritime Historical Society as Dr. Ashley explores how we can understand—and even experience—the traces of this ancient maritime highway in the present day. *About the Speaker* [image: Portrait of Dr. Ray Ashley smiling on the San Diego waterfront with historic ships and the downtown skyline in the background.] Dr. Ray Ashley retired in January 2025 after 30 years as president and CEO of the Maritime Museum of San Diego. He holds a BA in anthropology from UCSD, an MA in maritime history and museum studies from East Carolina University, and a PhD in history from Duke University. Dr. Ashley is a contributor to several professional and historical publications, including *Mains’l Haul*, where he has written the publication’s introductory column since it became a peer-reviewed journal, *American Neptune*, and *Sea History*. He has curated several of the museum’s major exhibitions, including the award-winning* Cook, Melville, and Gauguin: Three Voyages to Paradise* and, most recently, The *Art of Navigation*. Dr. Ashley is also a licensed master mariner with thousands of miles of experience at sea in a variety of vessels, including historic steamships and motor vessels, as well as replicas of an 1848 revenue cutter, an 18th-century British frigate, and a 16th-century Spanish galleon constructed over five years by a team that Dr. Ashley led. Dr. Ashley is chair of the Ships Council for the National Maritime Historical Society and the Historic Ships Committee of USICOMOS. Dr. Ashley has received lifetime achievement awards from the Maritime Alliance/BlueTech in San Diego and the International Maritime Heritage Alliance. In 2014, he was knighted with the rank of Knight Commander, Order of Isabella la Catholica, by direction of His Majesty King Felipe VI of Spain. cheers, Morgan Spriggs -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Ancient Mariners Sailing Society" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/amssracing/CAKqSdTHDo8OTZEPOvR1Mz4TtgnLetHaVYYATXD7FbaLq%3DN2A0Q%40mail.gmail.com.
