Charles W. Chipp
Encyclopedia
Charles Winans Chipp was a United States Navy
officer and explorer.
, he was educated at the United States Naval Academy
in Newport, Rhode Island
and Annapolis, Maryland
. After graduating in 1868, he served in the steam frigate USS Franklin, flagship of the European Squadron
. In 1871, he participated in the United States expedition to Korea. In 1873 he served in USS Juniata when that ship was ordered to the coast of Greenland
to search for the Arctic steamer Polaris. Also serving aboard Juniata was Lieutenant George W. DeLong
, who would later be Chipp's commanding officer. After service in several other ships, Chipp was ordered to San Francisco to serve as Executive Officer of USS Jeannette
, with DeLong commanding. Jeannette was fitting out for her mission, which would be to attempt to sail to the North Pole
via the Bering Strait
.
on her voyage of exploration. At that time, DeLong wrote to his wife:
Jeannette reached St. Lawrence Bay, Siberia
, August 27, 1879, then headed north into the Chukchi Sea
. She became trapped in the pack ice near Wrangel Island
and in June 1881 was crushed and sank. After the ship's crew trudged across the rugged ice to open water, they set out in three small boats toward the Siberian mainland. The boats were commanded by DeLong, Chipp and Chief Engineer George W. Melville
. On September 12, 1881, the three boats were separated in a storm. Lieutenant Chipp's boat, with Chipp and seven other men aboard, was never seen again and no trace of it was ever found.
, in the Alexander Archipelago
in southeastern Alaska is also named for him.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
officer and explorer.
Biography
Born in Kingston, New YorkKingston, New York
Kingston is a city in and the county seat of Ulster County, New York, USA. It is north of New York City and south of Albany. It became New York's first capital in 1777, and was burned by the British Oct. 16, 1777, after the Battles of Saratoga...
, he was educated at the United States Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
in Newport, Rhode Island
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
and Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It had a population of 38,394 at the 2010 census and is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east of Washington, D.C. Annapolis is...
. After graduating in 1868, he served in the steam frigate USS Franklin, flagship of the European Squadron
European Squadron
The European Squadron, also known as the European Station, was a part of the United States Navy in the late 19th century and the early 1900s. The squadron was originally named the Mediterranean Squadron and renamed following the American Civil War...
. In 1871, he participated in the United States expedition to Korea. In 1873 he served in USS Juniata when that ship was ordered to the coast of Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
to search for the Arctic steamer Polaris. Also serving aboard Juniata was Lieutenant George W. DeLong
George W. DeLong
George Washington DeLong was a United States Navy officer and explorer.- Biography :Born in New York City, he was educated at the United States Naval Academy in Newport, Rhode Island...
, who would later be Chipp's commanding officer. After service in several other ships, Chipp was ordered to San Francisco to serve as Executive Officer of USS Jeannette
USS Jeannette (1878)
The first USS Jeannette was originally HMS Pandora, a Philomel-class gunvessel of the Royal Navy, and was purchased in 1875 by Sir Allen Young for his arctic voyages in 1875-1876. The ship was purchased in 1878 by James Gordon Bennett, Jr., owner of the New York Herald; and renamed Jeannette...
, with DeLong commanding. Jeannette was fitting out for her mission, which would be to attempt to sail to the North Pole
North Pole
The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as the point in the northern hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface...
via the Bering Strait
Bering Strait
The Bering Strait , known to natives as Imakpik, is a sea strait between Cape Dezhnev, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, Russia, the easternmost point of the Asian continent and Cape Prince of Wales, Alaska, USA, the westernmost point of the North American continent, with latitude of about 65°40'N,...
.
Tragic Arctic voyage
On July 8, 1879, USS Jeannette stood out to sea through the Golden GateGolden Gate
The Golden Gate is the North American strait connecting San Francisco Bay to the Pacific Ocean. Since 1937 it has been spanned by the Golden Gate Bridge...
on her voyage of exploration. At that time, DeLong wrote to his wife:
Chipp is, as he always was and always will be, calm and earnest. He has always something to do, and is always doing it in that quiet, steady and sure manner of his. He smiles rarely and says very little, but I know where he is and how reliable and true he is in every respect.
Jeannette reached St. Lawrence Bay, Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
, August 27, 1879, then headed north into the Chukchi Sea
Chukchi Sea
Chukchi Sea is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean. It is bounded on the west by the De Long Strait, off Wrangel Island, and in the east by Point Barrow, Alaska, beyond which lies the Beaufort Sea. The Bering Strait forms its southernmost limit and connects it to the Bering Sea and the Pacific...
. She became trapped in the pack ice near Wrangel Island
Wrangel Island
Wrangel Island is an island in the Arctic Ocean, between the Chukchi Sea and East Siberian Sea. Wrangel Island lies astride the 180° meridian. The International Date Line is displaced eastwards at this latitude to avoid the island as well as the Chukchi Peninsula on the Russian mainland...
and in June 1881 was crushed and sank. After the ship's crew trudged across the rugged ice to open water, they set out in three small boats toward the Siberian mainland. The boats were commanded by DeLong, Chipp and Chief Engineer George W. Melville
George W. Melville
George Wallace Melville was an engineer of the United States Navy who became a rear admiral.-Civil War:Melville was born in New York City on 10 January 1841. After graduating from Brooklyn Collegiate and Polytechnic Institute, he entered the U.S...
. On September 12, 1881, the three boats were separated in a storm. Lieutenant Chipp's boat, with Chipp and seven other men aboard, was never seen again and no trace of it was ever found.
Namesakes
The Chipp River in northern Alaska was named in honor of Lieutenant Charles W. Chipp. Chipp Peak on Kupreanof IslandKupreanof Island
Kupreanof Island is an island in the Alexander Archipelago in southeastern Alaska. The island is long and wide with a total land area is , making it the 13th largest island in the United States and the 170th largest island in the world. The Lindenberg Peninsula, on the southeast side of the...
, in the Alexander Archipelago
Alexander Archipelago
The Alexander Archipelago is a long archipelago, or group of islands, of North America off the southeastern coast of Alaska. It contains about 1,100 islands, which are the tops of the submerged coastal mountains that rise steeply from the Pacific Ocean. Deep channels and fjords separate the...
in southeastern Alaska is also named for him.
Publications
- DeLong, The Voyage of the Jeannette, comprising his journals, edited by his widow, Mrs. Emma J. (Wotton) DeLong (1883)
- Leonard F. Guttridge, Icebound: The Jeannette Expedition's Quest for the North Pole (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1986) ISBN 0-87021-330-X.
- Michael Robinson, The Coldest Crucible: Arctic Exploration and American Culture (Chicago, 2006)
- John Wilson DanenhowerJohn Wilson DanenhowerJohn Wilson Danenhower was a United States Navy officer and explorer.-Biography:Born in Chicago, Illinois, Danenhower attended local public schools, then accepted appointment to the United States Naval Academy in 1866...
, The Narrative of the Jeannette (Boston, 1882) - Melville, In the Lena Delta (Boston, 1885)