History buff Gerard Thornton returns to the museum to present the story of 25-year-old New York World reporter Nellie Bly, whose voyage on the luxury ocean liner SS Augusta Victoria in 1889 marked the beginning of a 72-day journey around the world.

Gerard Thornton was born in Coney Island, New York, and attended SUNY Maritime College, where he earned his degree in marine transportation and became licensed to serve as officer in the United States Merchant Marine. He has worked in positions both afloat and ashore in the maritime industry for over 30 years, with much of his work devoted to the operation of tugboats and barges. Gerard is currently operations and logistics manager for Covanta Sustainable Solutions, an energy from waste company that transports New York City garbage by barge and rail to be used in powerplants to provide electricity. Gerard is a fan of anything nautical or old, including ships, trains and early cinema. He lives in New Jersey with his wife Cathy, and two children, Cassandra and Gage, and their dog named Howie.