Katherine (@katbhave.bsky.social)

Welcoming Kat Moody to GMH Staff - Global Maritime History Please welcome Katherine Moody to GlobalMaritimeHistory as our Christchurch Correspondent! Katherine Moody is originally from Lincolnshire in the UK and has an undergraduate degree in English Literature. She also has an MA in Museum Studies from University College London where her dissertation looked at museums and the displaying of catastrophic events. She has worked for the Department of Research and Information Services at the RAF Museum, and the respective Departments of Printed Books at the National Army Museum and Imperial War Museum. Since moving to Christchurch, New Zealand she has worked briefly for the Macmillan Brown Library at the University of Canterbury, and for Canterbury Museum where she worked closely with the Antarctic Heritage Trust. Currently on a career break she spent the last decade or so working for Christchurch City Libraries in various roles, including as an Associate Team Leader, and most recently as a Family History Librarian. She has published papers on the Sudan in the First World War, Antarctic explorers in that same war, and libraries in disasters. She has also spoken at conferences on these topics, plus Pat Barker’s Regeneration trilogy and top tips for starting your family history. She was also involved in the organisation of the 2017 LIANZA conference in Christchurch. I adore diving into rabbit holes and coming up with a good story. A lot of my work has been military, but I have managed not to do much work in maritime circles yet (it’s nothing personal!). However since digging into my family history I have managed to discover a bunch of maritime connections – Trinity pilots in Southwold, lifeboatmen in Dunwich, fishermen, and some naval connections. This family history business is dangerous, but totally addictive. I have also been exploring my DNA, which is a complex and scientific area, but has confirmed that I am thoroughly East Anglian! When I’m not exploring my extended family I have been researching amusing, odd or sad stories from the city of Christchurch and the port of Lyttelton, which I intend to develop and share on this blog. I also have a knack for finding rude names in primary sources – I won’t shy away from a funny Fanny! https://globalmaritimehistory.com/welcoming-kat-moody-to-gmh-staff/