Marine boiler research often starts with technical training manuals

What books are useful for studying naval steam boilers and engines?

Start with contemporary stoker and engineering manuals, including Flanagan's Marine Boilers Questions and Answers and older technical works on engines, boilers, and propellers.

Marine machinery research often requires manuals written for the people expected to operate the equipment. Suggested starting points include a 1912 stoker's manual, G. T. H. Flanagan's Marine Boilers Questions and Answers, and an older work on American marine engines, boilers, and screw propellers. These demanding technical sources explain the machinery in more detail than narrative ship histories usually provide.