Harry McNish
Encyclopedia
Harry McNish (11 September 1874 – 24 September 1930) was the carpenter on Sir Ernest Shackleton
Ernest Shackleton
Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton, CVO, OBE was a notable explorer from County Kildare, Ireland, who was one of the principal figures of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration...

's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition
Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition
The Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition , also known as the Endurance Expedition, is considered the last major expedition of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. Conceived by Sir Ernest Shackleton, the expedition was an attempt to make the first land crossing of the Antarctic continent...

 of 1914–1917. He was responsible for much of the work that ensured the crew's survival after their ship, the Endurance
Endurance (1912 ship)
The Endurance was the three-masted barquentine in which Sir Ernest Shackleton sailed for the Antarctic on the 1914 Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition...

, was destroyed when it became trapped in pack ice in the Weddell Sea
Weddell Sea
The Weddell Sea is part of the Southern Ocean and contains the Weddell Gyre. Its land boundaries are defined by the bay formed from the coasts of Coats Land and the Antarctic Peninsula. The easternmost point is Cape Norvegia at Princess Martha Coast, Queen Maud Land. To the east of Cape Norvegia is...

. He modified the small boat, James Caird
James Caird (boat)
The voyage of the James Caird was an open boat journey from Elephant Island in the South Shetland Islands to South Georgia in the southern Atlantic Ocean, a distance of...

, that allowed Shackleton and five men (including McNish) to make a voyage of hundreds of miles to fetch help for the rest of the crew. He briefly refused to follow orders on the crew's long trek pulling the boats across the pack ice, and, despite his efforts during the journey, was one of only four of the crew not to receive the Polar Medal
Polar Medal
The Polar Medal is a medal awarded by the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. It was instituted in 1857 as the Arctic Medal and renamed the Polar Medal in 1904.-History:...

.

After the expedition he returned to work in the Merchant Navy and eventually emigrated to New Zealand, where he worked on the docks in Wellington until ill-health forced his retirement. He died destitute in the Ohiro Benevolent Home in Wellington.

Early life

Harry "Chippy" McNish was born in 1874 in the former Lyons Lane near the present site of the library in Port Glasgow
Port Glasgow
Port Glasgow is the second largest town in the Inverclyde council area of Scotland. The population according to the 1991 census for Port Glasgow was 19426 persons and in the 2001 census was 16617 persons...

, Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Renfrewshire, the others being Inverclyde to the west and East Renfrewshire to the east...

, Scotland. He was part of a large family, being the third of eleven children born to John and Mary Jane (née Wade) McNish. His father was a journeyman
Journeyman
A journeyman is someone who completed an apprenticeship and was fully educated in a trade or craft, but not yet a master. To become a master, a journeyman had to submit a master work piece to a guild for evaluation and be admitted to the guild as a master....

 shoemaker. McNish held strong socialist views, was a member of the United Free Church of Scotland
United Free Church of Scotland
The United Free Church of Scotland is a Scottish Presbyterian denomination formed in 1900 by the union of the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland and the Free Church of Scotland...

 and detested bad language. He married three times: in 1895 to Jessie Smith, who died in February 1898; in 1898 to Ellen Timothy, who died in December 1904; and finally to Lizzie Littlejohn in 1907.

There is some confusion as to the correct spelling of his name. He is variously referred to as McNish, McNeish, and in Alexander Macklin
Alexander Macklin
Alexander Hepburne Macklin OBE MC TD was a British doctor who served as one of the two surgeons on Sir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1914–1917. In 1922 he joined Shackleton on his last expedition on the Quest.-Early life:Alexander Macklin was born in 1889 in...

's diary of the expedition he is listed as MacNish. The MacNeish spelling is common, notably in Shackleton's and Frank Worsley
Frank Worsley
Frank Arthur Worsley DSO and Bar, OBE, RD was a New Zealand sailor and explorer.After serving in the Pacific, and especially in the New Zealand Post Office's South Pacific service he joined Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of...

's accounts of the expedition and on McNish's headstone, but McNish is also widely used, and appears to be the correct version. On a signed copy of the expedition photo his signature appears as "H. MacNish", but his spelling is in general idiosyncratic, as revealed in the diary he kept throughout the expedition. There also is a question regarding McNish's nickname. "Chippy" was a traditional nickname for a shipwright; both this and the shorter "Chips" (as in wood chips from carpentry) seem to have been used.

Endurance

The aim of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition was to be the first to cross the Antarctic
Antarctic
The Antarctic is the region around the Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica and the ice shelves, waters and island territories in the Southern Ocean situated south of the Antarctic Convergence...

 continent
Continent
A continent is one of several very large landmasses on Earth. They are generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, with seven regions commonly regarded as continents—they are : Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia.Plate tectonics is...

 from one side to the other. McNish was apparently attracted by Shackleton's advertisement for the expedition (although there are doubts as to whether the advertisement ever appeared):
McNish, at 40, was one of the oldest members of the crew of the Endurance (Shackleton though was seven months older). He suffered from piles
Hemorrhoid
Hemorrhoids or haemorrhoids , are vascular structures in the anal canal which help with stool control. They become pathological or piles when swollen or inflamed. In their physiological state they act as a cushion composed of arterio-venous channels and connective tissue that aid the passage of...

 and rheumatism
Rheumatism
Rheumatism or rheumatic disorder is a non-specific term for medical problems affecting the joints and connective tissue. The study of, and therapeutic interventions in, such disorders is called rheumatology.-Terminology:...

 in his legs, and was regarded as somewhat odd and unrefined, but also highly respected as a carpenter — Frank Worsley
Frank Worsley
Frank Arthur Worsley DSO and Bar, OBE, RD was a New Zealand sailor and explorer.After serving in the Pacific, and especially in the New Zealand Post Office's South Pacific service he joined Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of...

, the captain of the Endurance, refers to him as a "splendid shipwright". The pipe-smoking Scot was, however, the only man of the crew that Shackleton was "not dead certain of". His Scots accent was described as rasping like "frayed cable wire".

During the initial stage of the voyage to Antarctica from Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

, he was kept busy with a number of routine tasks. He worked on the pram dinghy Nancy Endurance; made a small chest of drawers for Shackleton; specimen shelves for the biologist, Robert Clark
Robert Clark (biologist)
Robert Selbie Clark was the biologist on Sir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1914–1917.-Early life:...

; instrument cases for Leonard Hussey
Leonard Hussey
Leonard Duncan Albert Hussey OBE was an English meteorologist, archeologist, explorer and member of Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic and Shackleton–Rowett Expeditions...

, the meteorologist; and put up wind screens to protect the helmsman. He constructed a false deck, extending from the poop-deck to the chart-room to cover the extra coal that the ship had taken on board. He also acted as the ship's barber. As the ship pushed into the pack ice in the Weddell Sea
Weddell Sea
The Weddell Sea is part of the Southern Ocean and contains the Weddell Gyre. Its land boundaries are defined by the bay formed from the coasts of Coats Land and the Antarctic Peninsula. The easternmost point is Cape Norvegia at Princess Martha Coast, Queen Maud Land. To the east of Cape Norvegia is...

 it became increasingly difficult to navigate. McNish constructed a six-foot wooden semaphore on the bridge to enable the navigating officer to give the helmsman directions, and built a small stage over the stern to allow the propeller to be watched in order to keep it clear of the heavy ice.

When the ship became trapped in pack ice his duties expanded to constructing makeshift housing, and, once it became clear that the ship was doomed, to altering the sledges for the journey over the ice to open water. He built the quarters where the crew took their meals (nicknamed The Ritz) and cubicles where the men could sleep. These were all christened as well; McNish shared The Sailors’ Rest with Alfred Cheetham
Alfred Cheetham
Alfred Cheetham was a member of several Antarctic expeditions. He served as third officer for both the Nimrod and Imperial Trans-Antarctic expeditions. He died at sea when his ship was torpedoed during World War I.-Early life:...

, the Third Officer
Third Officer
Third Officer may refer to:*Third Officer , a rarely used rank in civil aviation companies*Third mate, a merchant marine rank*A rank in the Women's Royal Naval Service corresponding to Sub-Lieutenant in the Royal Navy...

. Assisted by the crew, he constructed kennels for the dogs on the upper deck. Once Endurance became trapped, and the crew were spending the days on the ice, McNish erected goalposts and football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 became a daily fixture for the men. To pass the time in the evening, McNish joined Frank Wild
Frank Wild
Commander John Robert Francis Wild CBE, RNVR, FRGS , known as Frank Wild, was an explorer...

, Tom Crean, James McIlroy, Worsley and Shackleton playing poker in the wardroom
Wardroom
The wardroom is the mess-cabin of naval commissioned officers above the rank of Midshipman. The term the wardroom is also used to refer to those individuals with the right to occupy that wardroom, meaning "the officers of the wardroom"....

.

The pressure from the ice caused Endurance to start to take on water. To prevent the ship from flooding McNish built a cofferdam
Cofferdam
A cofferdam is a temporary enclosure built within, or in pairs across, a body of water and constructed to allow the enclosed area to be pumped out, creating a dry work environment for the major work to proceed...

, caulking
Caulking
Caulking is one of several different processes to seal joints or seams in various structures and certain types of piping. The oldest form of caulking is used to make the seams in wooden boats or ships watertight, by driving fibrous materials into the wedge-shaped seams between planks...

 it with strips of blankets and nailing strips over the seams, standing for hours up to his waist in freezing water as he worked. He could not prevent the pressure from the ice crushing the ship though and was experienced enough to know when to stop trying. Once the ship had been destroyed he was put in charge of rescuing the stores from what had been The Ritz. With McNish in charge it took only a couple of hours to open the deck far enough to retrieve a good quantity of provisions.

On the ice

During his watch one night while the crew were camped on the ice, a small part of the ice floe broke away and he was only rescued due to the quick intervention of the men of the next watch who threw him a line allowing him to jump back to safety. Shackleton reported that McNish calmly mentioned his narrow escape the next day after further cracks appeared in the ice. Mrs. Chippy
Mrs. Chippy
Mrs. Chippy was a cat who accompanied Sir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1914–17, and—along with some of the sled dogs—was eventually shot after the expedition's ship, the Endurance, was destroyed when it became trapped in pack ice.- Life :Mrs...

, the cat McNish had brought on board, had to be shot after the loss of the Endurance, as it was obvious he would not survive the harsh conditions. McNish apparently never forgave Shackleton for giving the order.

McNish proposed building a smaller craft from the wreckage of the ship, but was overruled, with Shackleton instead deciding to head across the ice to open water pulling the ship's three lifeboats. McNish had been suffering with piles and homesickness almost even before the voyage had begun, and once the ship was lost his frustration began to grow. He vented his feelings in his diary, targeting his tent-mates' language:
In great pain while pulling sledges across the ice, McNish briefly rebelled, refusing to take his turn in the harness and protesting to Frank Worsley that since the Endurance had been destroyed the crew was no longer under any obligation to follow orders. Accounts vary as to how Shackleton handled this: some report that he threatened to shoot McNish; others that he read him the ship's articles, making it clear that the crew were still under obligation until they reached port. McNish's assertion would have normally been correct: duty to the master (and pay) normally stopped when a ship was lost, but the articles the crew had signed for the Endurance had a special clause inserted in which the crew agreed "to perform any duty on board, in the boats, or on the shore as directed by the master and owner". Aside from this, McNish really had no choice but to comply: he could not survive alone and could not continue with the rest of the party unless he obeyed orders. Eventually, Shackleton decided that the attempt to pull the boats had been a mistake, and decided that the only solution was to wait for the movement of the ice to bring the party to open water.

As supplies began to dwindle the party grew hungry. McNish records that he smoked himself sick trying to alleviate the pangs of hunger and although he thought the shooting of the dogs terribly sad, he was happy to eat the meat they provided:
When the ice finally brought the camp to the edge of the pack ice, Shackleton decided that the three boats, the James Caird, Stancomb Wills and Dudley Docker, should make initially for Elephant Island. McNish had prepared the boats as best he could for a long journey in the open ocean, building up their sides to give them a higher clearance from the water.

Elephant Island and the James Caird

On the sea journey to Elephant Island, McNish was in the James Caird
James Caird (boat)
The voyage of the James Caird was an open boat journey from Elephant Island in the South Shetland Islands to South Georgia in the southern Atlantic Ocean, a distance of...

with Shackleton and Frank Wild
Frank Wild
Commander John Robert Francis Wild CBE, RNVR, FRGS , known as Frank Wild, was an explorer...

. As they approached the island, Wild, who had been at the tiller for 24 hours straight, was close to collapse, so Shackleton ordered McNish to relieve him. McNish was not in a much better state himself and, despite the terrible conditions, he fell asleep after half an hour. The boat swung around and a huge wave drenched him. This was enough to wake him, but Shackleton, seeing McNish too was exhausted, ordered him to be relieved.

After the crew had made it to Elephant Island, Shackleton decided to take a small crew and make for South Georgia, where there was a possibility that they would find crews from the whaling ships to help effect a rescue for the rest of the men. McNish was called upon by Shackleton to make the James Caird seaworthy for the long voyage and was selected as part of the crew, possibly because Shackleton was afraid of the effect he would have on morale if left behind with the other men. For his part, McNish seemed happy to go; he was unimpressed by the island and the chances of survival for the men overwintering there:

McNish used the mast of another of the boats, the Stancomb Wills, to strengthen the keel and build up the small 22 foot (6.7 m) long boat, so it would withstand the seas during the 800 mile (1480 km) trip. He caulked it using a mixture of seal blood and flour, and, using wood and nails taken from packing cases and the runners of the sledges, he built a makeshift frame which was then covered with canvas. Shackleton was worried the boat "bore a strong likeness to stage scenery", only giving the appearance of sturdiness. He later admitted that the crew could not have lived through the voyage without it.
When launching the boat McNish and John Vincent
John Vincent (sailor)
John Vincent was an English seaman and member of Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition. He was one of the five men who accompanied Shackleton on his epic crossing from Elephant Island to South Georgia and was one of only four of the crew of Endurance not to receive the Polar...

 were thrown from the deck into the sea. Although soaked, both were unharmed, and managed to exchange some clothes with the Elephant Island party before the James Caird set off. The mood on board was buoyant and McNish recorded in his diary on 24 April 1916:
The mood did not last though: conditions aboard the small craft during the trip were terrible, with the crew constantly soaked and cold. McNish impressed Shackleton with his ability to bear up under the strain (more so than the younger Vincent, who collapsed from exhaustion and cold). The six men split into two watches of four hours: three of the men would handle the boat while the other three lay beneath the canvas decking attempting to sleep. McNish shared a watch with Shackleton and Crean. All the men complained of pains in their legs and, on the fourth day out from Elephant Island, McNish suddenly sat down and removed his boots, revealing his legs and feet were white and puffy with the early signs of trench foot
Trench foot
Trench foot is a medical condition caused by prolonged exposure of the feet to damp, unsanitary, and cold conditions. It is one of many immersion foot syndromes...

. On seeing the state of McNish's feet Shackleton ordered all the men to remove their boots.

South Georgia

The crew of the James Caird reached South Georgia on 10 May 1916, 15 days after setting out from Elephant Island. They landed in Cave Cove
Cave Cove
Cave Cove is a small cove on King Haakon Bay, South Georgia, best known for its connection to Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition expedition. It was where the James Caird landed on 10 May 1916 after its tumultuous voyage from Elephant Island, and this is commemorated by a small plaque...

 on King Haakon Bay
King Haakon Bay
King Haakon Bay, or King Haakon Sound, is an inlet on the southern coast of the island of South Georgia. The inlet is approximately long and wide.The inlet was named for King Haakon VII of Norway by Carl Anton Larsen the founder of Grytviken...

; it was on the wrong side of the island, but it was a relief for all of them to make land; McNish wrote in his diary:

They found albatross
Albatross
Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds allied to the procellariids, storm-petrels and diving-petrels in the order Procellariiformes . They range widely in the Southern Ocean and the North Pacific...

 chicks and seals to eat, but despite the relative comfort of the island compared to the small boat, they still urgently needed to reach the whaling station at Husvik
Husvik
Husvik is a former whaling station on the north-central coast of South Georgia Island. It was one of three such stations in Stromness Bay, the other two being Stromness and Leith Harbour. Husvik initially began as a floating, offshore factory site in 1907. In 1910, a land station was constructed...

 on the other side of the island to fetch help for the men on Elephant Island. It was clear that McNish and Vincent could not continue, so Shackleton left them in the care of McCarthy camped in the upturned James Caird, and with Worsley and Crean made the hazardous trip over the mountains. McNish took screws from the James Caird and attached them to the boots of the men making the journey to help them grip the ice. He also fashioned a crude sledge from driftwood he found on the beach, but it proved too clumsy to be practical. When Shackleton's party set off on 18 May 1916, McNish accompanied them for a few hundred yards but he was unable to go any further. He shook hands with each of the men, wished them good luck and then Shackleton sent him back. Putting McNish in command of the remaining men, Shackleton charged him to wait for relief and if none had come by the end of winter to attempt to sail to the east coast. Once Shackleton's party had crossed the mountains and arrived in Husvik, he sent Worsley with one of the whaler's ships, Samson, to pick up McNish and the other men. After seeing the emaciated and drawn McNish on his arrival at the whaling station, Shackleton recorded that he felt that the rescue had come just in time for him.

Polar medal

Whatever the true story of the rebellion on the ice, neither Worsley nor McNish ever mentioned the incident in writing. Shackleton omitted it entirely from South, his account of the expedition, and referred to it only tangentially in his diary: "Everyone working well except the carpenter. I shall never forget him in this time of strain and stress". The event was recorded in the ship's log, but the log entry was struck during the sea voyage in the James Caird, Shackleton being impressed by the carpenter's show of "grit and spirit". Nevertheless, McNish's name appeared on the list of the four men not recommended for the Polar Medal in the letter sent by Shackleton on his return. Macklin thought the denial of the medal unjustified:

Macklin believed that Shackleton may have been influenced in his decision by Worsley who shared a mutual enmity with McNish, and had accompanied Shackleton back from Antarctica. Members of the Scott Polar Research Institute
Scott Polar Research Institute
The Scott Polar Research Institute is a centre for research into the polar regions and glaciology worldwide. It is a sub-department of the Department of Geography in the University of Cambridge, located on Lensfield Road in the south of Cambridge ....

, New Zealand Antarctic Society and Caroline Alexander, the author of Endurance, have criticised Shackleton's denial of the award to McNish, and there is an ongoing campaign to have him awarded the medal posthumously.

Later life, memorials and records

After the expedition McNish returned to the Merchant Navy, working on various ships. He often complained that his bones permanently ached due to the conditions during the journey in the James Caird; he would reportedly sometimes refuse to shake hands because of the pain. He divorced Lizzie Littlejohn on 2 March 1918, by which time he had already met his new partner, Agnes Martindale. McNish had a son named Tom and Martindale had a daughter named Nancy. Although she is mentioned frequently in his diary, it appears McNish was not Nancy's father. He spent 23 years in the Navy in total during his life, but eventually secured a job with the New Zealand Shipping Company. After making five trips to New Zealand he moved there in 1925, leaving behind his wife and all of his carpentry tools. He worked on the waterfront in Wellington until his career was ended by an injury. Destitute, he would sleep in the wharf sheds under a tarpaulin and relied on monthly collections from the dockworkers. He was found a place in the Ohiro Benevolent Home, but his health continued to deteriorate and he died on 24 September 1930 in Wellington Hospital
Wellington Hospital, New Zealand
Wellington Hospital is Wellington, New Zealand's main hospital located in the suburb of Newtown. It is the main hospital run by Capital & Coast District Health Board , the others including Kapiti Health Centre, and Kenepuru Hospital...

. He was buried in Karori Cemetery, Wellington, on 26 September 1930, with full naval honours; HMS Dunedin
HMS Dunedin
HMS Dunedin was a Danae-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was launched from the yards of Armstrong Whitworth, Newcastle-on-Tyne on 19 November 1918 and commissioned on 13 September 1919...

(which happened to be in port at the time) provided twelve men for the firing party and eight bearers. However, his grave remained unmarked for almost thirty years; the New Zealand Antarctic Society (NZAC) erected a headstone on 10 May 1959. In 2001, it was reported that the grave was untended and surrounded by weeds, but in 2004, the grave was tidied and a life size bronze sculpture of McNish’s beloved cat, Mrs. Chippy, was placed on his grave by NZAC. His grandson, Tom, believes this tribute would have meant more to him than receiving the Polar Medal.

In 1958 the British Antarctic Survey
British Antarctic Survey
The British Antarctic Survey is the United Kingdom's national Antarctic operation and has an active role in Antarctic affairs. BAS is part of the Natural Environment Research Council and has over 400 staff. It operates five research stations, two ships and five aircraft in and around Antarctica....

 named a small island in his honour, "McNeish Island", which lies in the approaches to King Haakon Bay, South Georgia. The island was renamed "McNish Island
McNish Island
McNish Island is the larger of two islands lying at the east side of Cheapman Bay on the south side of South Georgia. It was surveyed by the South Georgia Survey in the period 1951-57, and named by the United Kingdom Antarctic Place-Names Committee for Harry McNish , carpenter on Sir Ernest...

" in 1998 after his birth certificate was presented to the United Kingdom Antarctic Place-Names Committee. On 18 October 2006, a small, oval wall plaque commemorating his achievements was unveiled at the Port Glasgow Library in his home town, and earlier in the same year he was the subject of an exhibition at the McLean Museum and Art Gallery, Greenock
Greenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...

. His journals are held in the Alexander Turnbull Library in Wellington, New Zealand.
Gravestone of Harry McNeish in Karori Cemetery with statue of Mrs Chippy erected by the New Zealand Antarctic Society

Further reading

- an account of the expedition from the point of view of McNish's cat, Mrs Chippy. Many of the accounts of events are drawn from primary sources. - an account of McNish's story told by "Mrs McNeish" (probably Agnes Martindale).
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