Isaac Israel Hayes
Encyclopedia
Isaac Israel Hayes was an Arctic
explorer and physician.
Hayes was born in Chester County
, Pennsylvania
. After completing his medical studies at the University of Pennsylvania
, Hayes signed on as ship's surgeon for an 1853-5 expedition
led by Elisha Kent Kane to search for John Franklin
. His 1854 exploration of the east coast of Ellesmere Island
north of 79° North
resulted in new and accurately mapped geographical discoveries. Hayes was apparently the first non-aboriginal explorer of Ellesmere.
Hayes led his own expedition 1860-1 which claimed to have reached the farthest north land ever, on the Ellesmere Island coast at 81°35' North, 70°30' West. It was later found that this position is deep within Ellesmere, not on the coast, and that Hayes's resulting map of Ellesmere north of 80° North
was erroneous, possibly because he had represented seriously non-noon sextant observations of the Sun as having been taken at noon, but more likely due to his having deliberately inverted the 2nd digit in his report of his farthest's lone lower limb sextant double altitude of the sun, to read 56°52′ instead of the true observation 59°52′. It is hard to explain how else he could have produced a latitude too high by one and a half degrees in tandem with an exactly correct longitude.
Hayes's 1861 farthest was at Cape Collinson, less than 10 miles north of 80° north, longitude 70°30′ west.
Hayes returned to the United States in 1861 claiming also to have seen the fictional Open Polar Sea
reported by Elisha Kent Kane in 1855. The Civil War, however, had come to preoccupy Americans and diminished public interest in Hayes' reports of discovery.
During the American Civil War
, Hayes commanded Satterlee Hospital
, a sprawling Union army
4,500-bed hospital in Philadelphia.
The United States Range
on Canada's Ellesmere Island
is named after his ship.
Ostrov Kheysa
, an island in Franz Josef Land
(Russia) is named after Isaac I. Hayes.
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
explorer and physician.
Hayes was born in Chester County
Chester County, Pennsylvania
-State parks:*French Creek State Park*Marsh Creek State Park*White Clay Creek Preserve-Demographics:As of the 2010 census, the county was 85.5% White, 6.1% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American or Alaskan Native, 3.9% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian, 1.8% were two or more races, and 2.4% were...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. After completing his medical studies at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, Hayes signed on as ship's surgeon for an 1853-5 expedition
Second Grinnell Expedition
The Second Grinnell Expedition of 1853 was an American effort, financed by Henry Grinnell, to determine the fate of the Franklin's lost expedition. Led by Dr. Elisha Kent Kane, the team explored areas northwest of Greenland, now called Grinnell Land...
led by Elisha Kent Kane to search for John Franklin
John Franklin
Rear-Admiral Sir John Franklin KCH FRGS RN was a British Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. Franklin also served as governor of Tasmania for several years. In his last expedition, he disappeared while attempting to chart and navigate a section of the Northwest Passage in the Canadian Arctic...
. His 1854 exploration of the east coast of Ellesmere Island
Ellesmere Island
Ellesmere Island is part of the Qikiqtaaluk Region of the Canadian territory of Nunavut. Lying within the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, it is considered part of the Queen Elizabeth Islands, with Cape Columbia being the most northerly point of land in Canada...
north of 79° North
79th parallel north
The 79th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 79 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane, in the Arctic. It crosses the Atlantic Ocean, Europe, Asia, the Arctic Ocean and North America....
resulted in new and accurately mapped geographical discoveries. Hayes was apparently the first non-aboriginal explorer of Ellesmere.
Hayes led his own expedition 1860-1 which claimed to have reached the farthest north land ever, on the Ellesmere Island coast at 81°35' North, 70°30' West. It was later found that this position is deep within Ellesmere, not on the coast, and that Hayes's resulting map of Ellesmere north of 80° North
80th parallel north
The 80th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 80 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane, in the Arctic. It crosses the Atlantic Ocean, Europe, Asia, the Arctic Ocean and North America....
was erroneous, possibly because he had represented seriously non-noon sextant observations of the Sun as having been taken at noon, but more likely due to his having deliberately inverted the 2nd digit in his report of his farthest's lone lower limb sextant double altitude of the sun, to read 56°52′ instead of the true observation 59°52′. It is hard to explain how else he could have produced a latitude too high by one and a half degrees in tandem with an exactly correct longitude.
Hayes's 1861 farthest was at Cape Collinson, less than 10 miles north of 80° north, longitude 70°30′ west.
Hayes returned to the United States in 1861 claiming also to have seen the fictional Open Polar Sea
Open Polar Sea
The Open Polar Sea was a hypothesized ice-free ocean surrounding the North Pole. This unproven theory was once so widely believed that many exploring expeditions used it as justification for attempts to reach the North Pole by sea, or to find a navigable sea route between Europe and the Pacific...
reported by Elisha Kent Kane in 1855. The Civil War, however, had come to preoccupy Americans and diminished public interest in Hayes' reports of discovery.
During the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, Hayes commanded Satterlee Hospital
Satterlee Hospital
Satterlee U.S.A. General Hospital, which existed from 1862 to 1865 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was one of the largest Union Army hospitals of the Civil War....
, a sprawling Union army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
4,500-bed hospital in Philadelphia.
The United States Range
United States Range
The United States Range is one of the most northern mountain ranges in the world and of the Arctic Cordillera and is surpassed only by the Challenger Mountains to the northwest. The range is located on the northeastern region of Ellesmere Island in Nunavut, Canada and is part of the Innuitian...
on Canada's Ellesmere Island
Ellesmere Island
Ellesmere Island is part of the Qikiqtaaluk Region of the Canadian territory of Nunavut. Lying within the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, it is considered part of the Queen Elizabeth Islands, with Cape Columbia being the most northerly point of land in Canada...
is named after his ship.
Ostrov Kheysa
Heiss Island
Heiss Island is an island in Franz Josef Land, Russia.It is located in the central area of the archipelago, north of Hall Island, between Champ Island and Wilczek Land. Its area is 132 km²....
, an island in Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land, Franz Joseph Land, or Francis Joseph's Land is an archipelago located in the far north of Russia. It is found in the Arctic Ocean north of Novaya Zemlya and east of Svalbard, and is administered by Arkhangelsk Oblast. Franz Josef Land consists of 191 ice-covered islands with a...
(Russia) is named after Isaac I. Hayes.
Further reading
- Douglas W. Wamsley, Polar Hayes: The Life and Contributions of Isaac Israel Hayes, M.D, (American Philosophical Society Press, 2009) ISBN 0871692627
- Michael Robinson, The Coldest Crucible: Arctic Exploration and American Culture (University of Chicago Press, 2006)