Author featured as expert in 'Your Q&As: advice'

Family Tree, April 2018

As featured in 'further reading' part of Michelle Higgs article on Royal Navy medical journals

Your Family History, November 2017

Author article on ancestors' Second World War service records as featured in

Family Tree, November 2017

As featured in 'useful sources' part of Nelson's Navy feature

WDYTYA? Magazine – July 2017

As featured in 'further reading' section part of researching your maritime ancestors article

Your Family History magazine, May 2017

As featured in.

Forces War Record 2016

As featured in

Your Family History - March 2016

Indispensable, information to researching the Royal Navy.

Maritime Advisor

This softback gives guidance on tracing Naval Ancestors from the 1600s to the 1960s using records at the National Archives and elsewhere. It covers Officers, Petty Officers and Ratings. Apart from the Royal Navy it also includes details of the Royal marines, Fleet Air Arm, WRNS, the Coastguard and the various auxiliary forces and Naval Dockyards. In each section of the book the author explains which records survive and where to locate them.

Bristol and Avon FHS

This softback gives guidance on tracing Naval Ancestors from the 1600's to the 1960's

Bristol + Avon FHS Journal

Prolific genealogy writer Simon Fowler here turns his expert eye to exploring naval history and tracing naval records. It forms a comprehensive guide to researching men and women in the naval forces as well as specific ships and campaigns. It’s packed with a wealth of information, with resources on naval slang.

Your Family Tree, July 2012

Another in the “Tracing Your…” series, this time tacking a topic of naval ancestors, whose records are completely different from those of men in the Army or Air Force. Fortunately the Navy was just a bureaucratic as the younger Services and Simon says, “if one set of documents is missing then there may well be a duplicate which will do almost as well.”
An excellent guide to researching your sailor ancestors.

West Middlesex Family History Society

This is a concise and practical guide to anyone researching Britain’s naval force from the seventeenth century up until the 1960s and who is keep to research the career of an ancestor who served in the Royal Navy or was connected with it. With information on how to trace an officer, petty officer, or rating this book also covers the specialist and auxiliary services including the Royal marines, the Fleet Air Arm, the naval dockyards and the WRNS.
Each section explains where records can be found and how they can be used for research and recommends the sources available on line as well as books and memoirs.

Root & Branch WSFHS March 2012

This book will be of especial help to those who had an ancestor in the Royal Navy or were connected with it. Fowler provides information about how to trace an officer, petty officer or rating, and he covers the associated specialist and auxiliary services including the Royal Marines, the Fleet Air Arm, the naval dockyards, the WRNS and the Fleet Auxiliary. This book will point you in the direction of individual seamen, finding out about a medal winner, particular ships, campaigns or naval operations.

Journal of the Glasgow and West of Scotland Family History Society, March 2012

Anyone who has tried to research an ancestor in the Royal Navy will be aware of the myriad of confusing records to search. Simon Fowler, once an archivist at The national Archives, has brought these together and given them a sense of order in this useful book… If you have Naval Ancestors this is a helpful addition to your bookshelf.

Federation of Family History Societies

If you have an ancestors who served in either Royal Navy or its affiliated services then this book is likely to be of exceptional use to you… This volume provides an excellent guide for researching ancestors who served in the Royal Navy and its’ affiliated forces, The structure of the book is such that it introduces the reader to the subject and then it helps the reader to enhance their research. As such it provides considerable ‘value added’ to the progress of the research. This work is not just aimed at those researchers with minimal experience. Those with considerable experience will still find this book to be of exceptional value. In short, if you are contemplating conducting research into the Royal Navy and its affiliates then this book is a must have for your personal library.

Military Archive Research, Dec 2011

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