Ocean Liner Curator is a focused historical reference project dedicated to the study of ocean liners and major passenger steamships. The project examines these vessels through documented sources, material culture, and design history, applying consistent curatorial standards to interpretation, attribution, and presentation.
This page defines the scope of coverage for the project—what it includes, what it intentionally excludes, and how boundaries are maintained over time.
Scope of Coverage
Ocean Liner Curator focuses on ocean liners and closely related passenger vessels, primarily from the late nineteenth century through the mid-twentieth century, when transoceanic passenger travel represented a distinct industrial, cultural, and design tradition. What qualifies as an ocean liner?
The project covers:
- Ocean liners and major passenger steamships operated on scheduled routes
- Ship design, construction, interiors, and technical context
- Passenger experience as documented through contemporary sources
- Surviving artifacts and ephemera, including printed material and fittings
- Shipping lines as institutions, including branding and service standards
- Primary archival material and scholarly secondary sources
Interpretation emphasizes verifiable evidence, contextual clarity, and restraint. Where possible, claims are grounded in original documentation, period publications, or established historical scholarship.
Interpretive Focus
The project approaches ocean liners as historical objects rather than symbols. Ships are examined as designed systems—technological, commercial, and cultural—rather than as vessels of myth or retrospective narrative.
Interpretation prioritizes:
- Documented design intent
- Contemporary usage and reception
- Material survival and provenance
- Historical context over modern judgment
Narrative emphasis is placed on what can be demonstrated rather than what is popularly assumed.
Intentional Exclusions
Ocean Liner Curator maintains a defined scope in order to preserve clarity and reliability. The following areas fall outside the project’s coverage unless directly relevant to a documented passenger vessel or artifact:
- Speculative reconstructions unsupported by primary or scholarly sources
- Fictionalized or dramatized interpretations presented as history
- Unsourced or circular claims originating from online repetition
- Modern cruise ships and contemporary leisure cruising
- General naval, military, or maritime history unrelated to passenger liners
- Sensational or myth-driven narratives that conflict with available evidence
Exclusion reflects focus, not dismissal. Topics are omitted when sufficient documentation does not exist to support responsible inclusion.
Evidence and Certainty
Historical evidence varies in completeness and reliability. Ocean Liner Curator does not attempt to resolve gaps through conjecture. Where evidence is incomplete, interpretive language reflects varying levels of confidence rather than certainty. The absence of certainty does not preclude responsible interpretation when context can be documented.
Growth and Revision
Ocean Liner Curator is an evolving project. The scope may expand where sufficient documentation exists to support responsible treatment. New material is incorporated cautiously and reviewed against established standards before inclusion. Core methodological standards and scope boundaries are not subject to frequent revision.
Revisions, corrections, and updates are treated as part of the historical process rather than as exceptions. Interpretations may change when new evidence emerges or when earlier assumptions are no longer supported by available sources.
Project Intent
The purpose of Ocean Liner Curator is not exhaustiveness, novelty, or narrative spectacle. The project aims to provide a stable, well-sourced reference grounded in evidence, clarity, and historical restraint.
By maintaining a defined scope, the project seeks to serve readers who value accuracy over embellishment and documentation over assumption.