John Townley

Deep Background:

John Townley is a writer, historian, editor, author, photojournalist, recording artist, producer, and publicist.  His books and articles range from scholarly papers for the halls of academe to unabashed tabloid feature writing. In the editorial/publishing chair, he has headed daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly magazines both on staff and freelance.

John has produced recordings for labels as wide-ranging as Columbia Records and the National Geographic Society. A pioneer of professional multitrack recording and production, he designed and built the first 12-track recording studios in both New York and San Francisco, famous for Frank Zappa’s many recordings, and still writes extensively on the recording business for a variety of periodicals.

As founding president of The Confederate Naval Historical Society, he received the first-ever Federal award for leading an F.B.I. investigation and prosecution of looters of historic sunken ships under The National Historic Shipwrecks Act. 
    
Former program developer at The Mariners' Museum in Newport News, Virginia and New York's South Street Seaport Museum, his papers have been published by the Society for Historical Archaeology, Mystic Seaport Museum, and the U.S. Naval Academy.

Liaison (public affairs) officer and instructor aboard the Polish youth-training tall ship Zawisza Czarny in the 1992 Columbus Tall Ships Race, John was also director of Maritime Music International’s seven 1994 maritime festival productions in the U.S., Canada, and Europe.