Simple traverse boards were used in northern Europe by the 16th century to keep a record of a ship's movements. They were circular and had a series of holes along lines marking the 32 points of the compass. Pegs were attached to the board by string and placed in the correct hole for the course being steered, normally one hole for each half hour of the watch, as measured by a sand-glass. At the end of each watch the records were written down, usually by the ship's master, and the pegs pulled out ready for the next watch. The circular section of this traverse board has eight holes along each compass point and eight lead pegs attached with string to the central wooden peg. The north point is indicated with a fleur-de-lys, as was common on compass cards, and the other seven principal points are marked NO, O, SO, S, SW, W and NM.

Later versions, like this one, also had a series of holes along the bottom to record the ship's speed, which was measured with a log and line. This example has 15 columns, each with four holes. There are eight lead pegs for use with the speed table.