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The Internet Time Travel Database

Circa AD 1700 to 1799

Time Periods

Anno 7603

Literal: The year 7603

by Johan Herman Wessel
After lovers Julie and Leander wonder how the world would be if each other had the better qualities of the opposite gender, the fairy Feen takes them forward in time to see the effects that raising children in just that way has had.

Although the play is universally reviled for a lack of literary aspirations, it has developed a bit of a cult following as perhaps the earliest example of social science fiction (don’t pay attention to the fairy behind the curtain) and human time travel!

— Michael Main
Now my children! You wish to remake each other? Julie, you want your lover transformed into a more tender companion? And you Leander, you would rather that your Julie had a more aggressive bearing?
[ex=bare]Anno 7603 | The year 7603[/ex] by Johan Herman Wessel (Unpreformed play, 1781).

Rip Van Winkle

by Washington Irving
Ah, poor man, Rip Van Winkle was his name, but it's twenty years since he went away from home with his gun, and never has been heard of since,—
“Rip Van Winkle” by Washington Irving, in The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent., No. 1 (C. S. Van Winkle, June 1819).

The Dancing Cavalier

by Don Lockwood, Cosmo Brown, and Kathy Selden, directed by Roscoe Dexter
Of course, this early talkie shouldn't be in our list because the writer himself—as Cosmo Brown—says it’s all just a dream, but when one of our correspondents pointed out that none other than Don Lockwood and Lina Lamont starred in  The Dancing Cavalier (née The Dueling Cavalier), we couldn’t resist. Note: Lina Lamont’s voice was dubbed over by writer Kathy Selden, but due to Lamont’s underhanded ploys, Selden went uncredited in the original release.
— Dora Bailey
How’s this? We throw a modern section into the picture. The hero’s a young hoofer in a Broadway show, right? Now he sings and he dances, right? But one night backstage, he’s reading A Tale of Two Cities, in between numbers, see? And a sandbag falls and hits him on the head, and he dreams he’s back during the French Revolution, right? Well, this way we get in the modern dancing numbers—♫Charleston, Charleston♫—but in the dream part, we can still use the costume stuff!
The Dancing Cavalier by Don Lockwood, Cosmo Brown, and Kathy Selden, directed by Roscoe Dexter (premiered at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, California early May 1928).

Berkeley Square

by Sonya Levien and John L. Balderston, directed by Frank Lloyd
Leslie Howard reprises his dual role of two Peter Standishes from the 1929 Broadway stage performance of Balderston’s Berkeley Square, which in turn was loosely based on Henry James’s unfinished novel The Sense of the Past. The timeslips result in 18th-century Peter exchanging places with his 20th-century version, and they occur via thunderstorms and an overpowering belief by present-day Peter that the house and a diary he found there are somehow calling him to the past.
— Michael Main
I believe that when I go back to my house at Berkeley Square at half past five tonight, I shall walk straight into the 18th century and meet the people living there.
Berkeley Square by Sonya Levien and John L. Balderston, directed by Frank Lloyd (premiered at an unknown movie theater, New York City, 13 September 1933).

Brick Bradford

by George Plympton, Arthur Hoerl, and Lewis Clay, directed by Spencer Gordon Bennett and Thomas Carr
In fifteen episodes, Brick travels to the moon to protect a rocket interceptor while his pals take the time top to the 18th century to find a critical hidden formula.
— Michael Main
Maybe tomorrow you’ll be visiting your great, great grandmother. 
Brick Bradford by George Plympton, Arthur Hoerl, and Lewis Clay, directed by Spencer Gordon Bennett and Thomas Carr (at movie theaters, USA, 18 December 1947).

The House in the Square

by Ranald MacDougall and Joseph L. Mankiewicz, directed by Roy Ward Baker
John Balderston’s play Berkeley Square is updated to the 1950s where Peter Standish, now an atomic scientist, is once again transported back to the 18th century (unfortunately, not via a nuclear accident) to woo beautiful Kate Petigrew.
— Michael Main
Roger, I believe the 18th century still exists. It’s all around us, if only we could find it. Put it this way: Polaris, the North Star, is very bright, yet its light takes nearly fifty years to reach us. For all we know, Polaris may have ceased to exist somewhere around 1900. Yet we still see it, its past is our present. As far as Polaris is concerned, Teddy Roosevelt is just going down San Juan hill.
The House in the Square by Ranald MacDougall and Joseph L. Mankiewicz, directed by Roy Ward Baker (at movie theaters, UK, October 1951).

Mickey Mouse, 22 October 1951 to 22 January 1952

Uncle Wombat’s Tock-Tock Time Machine

by Bill Walsh and Floyd Gottfredson
Mickey Mouse, 22 October 1951 to 22 January 1952, “Uncle Wombat’s Tock-Tock Time Machine” by Bill Walsh and Floyd Gottfredson, 22 October 1951 to 22 January 1952 [newspaper syndication].

Casper the Friendly Ghost Theatrical #34

Red White and Boo

by Isadore Klein, directed by Izzy Sparber and Myron Waldman
Every Casper cartoon had the same plot, including at least one (“Red, White and Boo”) from 1955 where Casper wonders whether people in the past will also be scared of him, so he uses a time machine to visit a caveman, Robert Fulton, Paul Revere, General Washington, and a Revolutionary War battle.
— Michael Main
Gee, maybe people in the past won’t be scared of me.
“Red White and Boo” by Isadore Klein, directed by Izzy Sparber and Myron Waldman (21 October 1955).

Journey into Mystery #33

There’ll Be Some Changes Made

by Carl Wessler and Steve Ditko
Paul Haines spends his days stewing over the money his 18th-centery ancestor wasted, until he realizes that there’s a way he can get it. I found the story oddly disquieting in that Paul never really faced punishment for his crime and he got the girl too boot—definitely not the usual weird fiction pattern, although I’ll still tag it that way.
— Michael Main
Change the past! Why haven’t I thought of this before? It can be done!
“There’ll Be Some Changes Made” by Carl Wessler and Steve Ditko, in Journey into Mystery #33 (Atlas Comics, April 1956).

Journey into Mystery #35

The Long Journey

by unknown writers
College janitor Tad Sheen has discovered a chemical formula that he believes will take him through time.
— Michael Main
Tad was certain that if he mixed ammonia with a chemical he had brewed called Dyproxylin, then heated this mixture in a flask to boiling, chilled it suddenly, you could, by breathing the fumes, project yourself forward in time.
“The Long Journey!” by unknown writers, in Journey into Mystery #35 (Atlas Comics, June 1956).

The Boy and the Pirates

by Lillie Hayward and Jerry Sackheim, directed by Bert I. Gordon
Young Jimmy Warren asks a genie to send him from present-day Massachusetts to the time of Blackbeard, and the genie obliges! But now, in order to avoid becoming a genie himself, Jimmy must trick the pirate into returning to Massachusetts.
— Michael Main
This is a funny lookin’ bottle—yeah, neat. But I bet if I took it home, Pop would say, “It’s just another piece of junk.” Nobody let’s me do anything I want to. I wish I was far away from here; I wish I was on a pirate ship.
The Boy and the Pirates by Lillie Hayward and Jerry Sackheim, directed by Bert I. Gordon (at movie theaters, USA, 13 April 1960).

Fantastic Four #5

Prisoners of Doctor Doom!

by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Joe Sinnott
The Marvel Comics Brand began in 1939 with the first edition of Marvel Comics. Throughout the ’40s and ’50s, some of the Timely and Atlas comics had the slogan “A Marvel Magazine,” ”Marvel Comic,” or a small “MC” on the cover. As for me personally, I was hooked when Marvel started publishing the Fantastic Four in 1961. During the sixties, I devoured as many Marvels as I could as they arrived at the local Rexall Drug Store or swapping comcs with my pals, and this is the first of those Marvel issues in the ’60s involved superhero time travel.

Nowadays, we all know that Doc Doom is far too smart to think the most profitable way to use his time platform is by sending three of the FF into the past with orders to bring back Blackbeard’s treasure (while keeping the fourth member of their team captive). And yet, the story has a charm that stems from the causal loop of Ben Grimm’s presence in the past actually causing the legend of Blackbeard, which in turn caused Doom to send the loveable lunk back.

And now I shall send you back. . . hundreds of years into the past! You will have forty-eight hours to bring me Blackbeard’s treasure chest! Do not fail!
“Prisoners of Doctor Doom!” by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Joe Sinnott, in Fantastic Four 5 (Marvel Comics, July 1962).

Time Bandits

by Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam, directed by Terry Gilliam
A boy’s bedroom is invaded by six dwarves who have stolen The Supreme Being’s map, which naturally leads both boy and dwarves on adventures through time.
— Michael Main
Is it all ready? Right. Come on then. Back to creation. We mustn’t waste any more time. They’ll think I’ve lost control again and put it all down to evolution.
Time Bandits by Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam, directed by Terry Gilliam (at movie theaters, USA, 16 July 1981).

The Magic Tree House 4

Pirates Past Noon

by Mary Pope Osborne
Jack and Annie are thrown into a pack of pirates in the Caribbean who are intent on finding Captain Kidd’s treasure.
— Michael Main
“No one escapes Cap’n Bones!” he roared. His breath was terrible.
Pirates Past Noon by Mary Pope Osborne (Random House, March 1994).

The Magic Tree House 22

Revolutionary War on Wednesday

by Mary Pope Osborne
In their second quest to find a sample of writing to save Camelot, Jack and Annie find themselves at the start of the American Revolution as Washington and his men prepare to cross the Delaware.
— Michael Main
“Yes! And you have to keep going for our sake,” said Annie. “For the sake of the future children of America, sir.”
Revolutionary War on Wednesday by Mary Pope Osborne (Random House, September 2000).

Magic Tree House: Merlin Mission 5*

Carnival at Candlelight

by Mary Pope Osborne
While on a mission to prove to Merlin that they can use magic wisely, Jack and Annie travel to eighteenth-century Venice, Italy, to save the city from disaster.
— based on fandom.com
Carnival at Candlelight by Mary Pope Osborne (Random House, March 2005) [print · e-book].

Edelstein Trilogie, Book 1

Rubinrot

English release: Ruby Red Literal: Ruby red

by Kerstin Gier
Sixteen-year-old Gwendolyn Shepherd [Gwyneth in the English translation] always seems to be in the shadow of her cousin Charlotte Montrose, just because Charlotte—born the day before “Gwenny”—is prophesized to be the twelfth and final carrier of a rare time-travel gene passed down through the centuries. But Gwenny doesn’t mind, as she can’t think of anything worse than Charlotte’s carefully prescribed upbringing and the prospect of dizzy spells sending her uncontrollably through time. As the first book of the tightly connected Edelstein Trilogy, the plot plods through Gwenny’s anxious awakening to complicated family mysteries and to her feelings for the pompous Gideon de Villiers, aka time traveler #11.
— Michael Main
Es regnete fürchterlich. Ich hätte besser nicht nur den Regenmantel, sondern auch Gummistiefel angezogen. Mein Lieblings-Magnolienbaum an der Ecke ließ traurif sein Blüten hängen. Brevor ich ihn erreicht hatte, war ich schon dreimal in eine Pfütze getreten. Als ich gerade eine vierte umgehen wollte, riss es mich vollkommen ohne Vorwarnung von den Beinen. Mein magen fuhr Achterbahn und die Straße verschwamm vor meinen Augen zu einem grauen Fluss.
It was raining cats and dogs, and I wished I’d put on my wellies. The flowers on my favorite magnolia tree on the corner were drooping in a melancholy way. Before I reached it, I’d already splashed through three puddles. Just as I was trying to steer my way around a fourth, I was swept suddenly off my soggy feet. My stomach flip-flopped, and before my eyes, the street blurred into a grey river.
English
[ex=bare]Rubinrot | Ruby red[/ex] by Kerstin Gier (Arena Verlag, January 2009).

Magic Tree House: Merlin Mission 13*

Moonlight on the Magic Flute

by Mary Pope Osborne
Jack and Annie travel to Vienna, Austria, in 1762, where they meet the young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his sister and help save the young budding genius’s life through music.
— based on fandom.com
Moonlight on the Magic Flute by Mary Pope Osborne (Random House, March 2009) [print · e-book].

Edelstein Trilogie, Book 2

Saphirblau

English release: Sapphire Blue Literal: Sapphire blue

by Kerstin Gier
Apart from amusing blustering from the Count during her trips to the 18th century, time travel took a back seat to Gwenny’s on-again-off-again romance with Gideon in this second book of the trilogy. Gwenny’s new pal, the ghost/demon/gargoyle Xemerius, was enjoyable, though we wish that he would be time traveller #13.
— Michael Main
Rubinrot, Begabt mit der Magie des Raben, Schließt G-Dur den Kreis, Den zwölf gebildet haben.
Ruby Red, with G-major, the magic of the raven, brings the Circle of Twelve home into safe haven.
English
[ex=bare]Saphirblau | Sapphire blue[/ex] by Kerstin Gier (Arena Verlag, January 2010).

Pug

by Theodora Goss
In the time of Napoleon, a sickly English girl discovers a dog in her garden, and the dog leads her through a door to other times and places.
— Michael Main
(Imagine our relief to learn of Waterloo.)
“Pug” by Theodora Goss, in Asimov’s Science Fiction, July 2011.

Outlander novella

Virgins

by Diana Gabaldon
The two title-virgins in this prequel to the Outlander time travel series are Jamie Fraser and his pal Ian, who undertake a mercenary adventure near Bourdeaux in 1740. During their adventure, they may or may not have changed their status as virgins in the art of lovemaking (we’ll never tell), but will say that at the conclusion of the story, they were still time travel virgins.
— Michael Main
The job offered was simple. Rebekah was to be married to the son of the chief rabbi of the Paris synagogue. The ancient Torah was part of her dowry, as was a sum of money that made D’Eglise’s eyes glisten. The Doctor wished to engage D’Eglise to deliver all three items—the girl, the scroll, and the money—safely to Paris; the Doctor himself would travel there for the wedding, but later in the month, as his business in Bordeaux detained him.
“Virgins” by Diana Gabaldon, in Dangerous Women, edited by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois (Harper Voyager, November 2013).

Mr. Peabody and Sherman

Time-Travel Trouble!

by Billy Wrecks
A short picture book of the 2014 Mr. Peabody and Sherman movie. The images are all from the movie’s CGI (or at least generated by the same process).
— Michael Main
Sheman was supposed to keep the time machine secret, but he broke the rules. He took his friend Penny back in time to ancient Egypt.
Time-Travel Trouble! by Billy Wrecks (Random House Children’s Books, July 2014).

How to Stop Time

by Matt Haig
As a 400-something-year-old member of the Albatross Society, Tom Hazard ages less than a month for each year of life. But now, after falling in the 21st-century and butting heads with the Society, he seems to be on a mental trip that covers his entire life (but not an actual time traveling trip).
— Michael Main
But as time goes by, at birthdays or other annual markers, people begin to notice you aren’t getting any older.
How to Stop Time by Matt Haig (Canongate Books, July 2017).

The Ottoman Secret

by Raymond Khoury
Secret police agent Kamal teams with his sister-in-law Nisreen, fleeing through time from pursuing gunmen who killed Nisreen’s family because toprotect the secret that their world was created by a violent temporal disruptor who altered history in favor of an autocratic Islam theocracy.
— Michael Main
Nisreen: I want to know how it is different and why he wanted to change it. Don’t you see? That’s how the world was supposed to be.

Ramazan: Assuming no one else had gone back and changed things before he did.

The Ottoman Secret by Raymond Khoury (Michael Joseph, May 2019).

The Magic Tree House 32*

To the Future, Ben Franklin!

by Mary Pope Osborne
Jack and Annie bring a rather fainthearted and confused Ben Franklin to their own time, hoping to convince him to sign the Constitution.
— Michael Main
Morgan’s telling us to take Ben to Frog Creek. To our time.
To the Future, Ben Franklin! by Mary Pope Osborne (Random House, July 2019).

Paris Magic

[writer unknown], directed by Mary Anne Spier, produced by Laine Cummings
I love that show! A young woman time-travelling her way through the French Revolution!
— Laine Cummings
♫ I traveled back in time and love has come my way. ♫
Paris Magic [writer unknown], directed by Mary Anne Spier, produced by Laine Cummings (Moosehead Theater, Greenville, Maine, 3 July 2020).

Flashback

written and directed by Caroline Vigneaux
After high-powered lawyer Charlie Leroy gets her client cleared from a rape charge by claiming that the accuser’s lacy underwear was consent to have sex, Charlie finds herself transported by a divine cabdriver to historical moments that were key for women’s rights.
— Michael Main
Attends . . . si maman n'épouse pas papa, je vais pas naître. Je viens de me tuer.
Wait . . . if Mom never marries Dad, I won’t be born. I just killed myself.
English
Flashback written and directed by Caroline Vigneaux (Amazon Prime, 11 November 2021).
as of 3:28 p.m. MDT, 18 May 2024
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