Jerry O’Connor has never had any formal training in writing or history, yet he excels at both.

O’Connor, 67, of Elmhurst recently was asked to lecture aboard the famed Queen Mary 2 ship, which goes from New York to Southampton, Hampshire, the United Kingdom.

Taking off May 27 for the first of four Atlantic Ocean crossings, O’Connor will speak about six topics, including Chicago architecture such as the First Chicago School of Architecture, he said.

“None of my background suited me for what I do, which is lecturing and writing about history,” the Chicago certified-tour guide said. “Writing about things came kind of spontaneously when I was doing my first tour.”

O’Connor said a group of friends encouraged him to write about the Fountain of Time, one of the remaining pieces of the World’s Fair. He sent the Chicago Tribune an article about it, and it was published in its Sunday Magazine in October 1965, thus launching an established and honorable career.

“What I do and what I have done has come about to me in an acquired way rather than having degrees conferred upon me,” said O’Connor, who was a theater major at Loyola University Chicago.

“I’ve always enjoyed history. I see it as a continuous movement and stream. I can’t analyze one part of it without analyzing another part of it.”

Focusing mostly on the 20th century, O’Connor has seen such things as the Churchill War Room before it was open as a museum. He said he researches, writes and discusses events that he believes have been overlooked in favor of larger things.

“What I do has to be important, and it can’t just be trivial,” O’Connor said. “I don’t just aimlessly look for something to do. I have to make it worthwhile.”

O’Connor started a Chicago tour company 32 years ago, Chicago Is ..., which his son Michael now runs, he said. He still gives walking and bus tours, which, he said, along with his other activities, fills up his days since his wife, Joanne, died about three years ago.

After being refused twice to come aboard the Queen Mary 2 as a lecturer, requirements loosened, and O’Connor was able to give a presentation to the board in the United Kingdom. Despite forgetting the proper plug adapter for his laptop to show a video and having to wing it, O’Connor knew he had the job.

“I realized I was going to be selected when they started talking about what crossings I should do,” O’Connor said. “I guess a combination of circumstances and good old luck and stubbornness that got me through many years (scored the job).”

Linda Kimball, director of Oasis, an organization catering to adults age 50 and older, said O’Connor has been lecturing since 2001 and is a crowd favorite.

“Jerry is one of our most professional speakers. He does an amazing amount of research on every topic that he presents,” Kimball said. “He is one of our most popular instructors because he is able to adapt his teaching styles to his audience.”

For U.S. Navy veteran O’Connor, who has received honors such as being named the United States Naval Institute’s 2001 Author of the Year, being allowed to lecture on the Queen Mary 2 is the icing on the cake.

“I really enjoy everything that I do, but the high point for me has to be being selected to lecture on the Queen Mary 2,” O’Connor said. “That rises above everything else. It’s a recognition I never expected.”