McClure Arctic Expedition
Encyclopedia
The McClure Arctic Expedition of 1850, among numerous British search efforts to determine the fate of the Franklin's lost expedition
, is distinguished as the voyage during which Robert McClure
became the first person to confirm and transit the Northwest Passage
by a combination of sea travel and sledging. McClure and his crew spent three years locked in the pack ice aboard the HMS Investigator
before abandoning it before making their escape across the ice. Rescued by the HMS Resolute, which was itself later lost to the ice, McClure returned to England in 1854, where he was knighted and rewarded for completing the passage.
under James Clark Ross
in 1848, which returned in 1849 without discovering a trace of the lost explorer. Faced with a continuing lack of progress, the British Admiralty on January 15, 1850 ordered a new expedition to "obtain intelligence, and to render assistance to Sir John Franklin and his companions, and not for the purposes of geographical or scientific research," although a completion of the proposed Northwest Passage from the opposite direction would not be without merit.
Two ships were assigned to this task. The Enterprise was returned to the search under Captain Richard Collinson
, and the Investigator under Commander Robert J. McClure in his first Arctic command. Extensive repairs were required for both ships, which had already weathered Arctic service, including the installation of a modern Sylvester's Heating Apparatus. The Investigator, her figurehead representing a walrus, had been fitted with a 10-horsepower locomotive engine and strenghtened extensively in 1848.
Preserved meat was secured from Gamble of Cork, Ireland, and although some spoilage was experienced, it had no major impact on the voyage (subsequently discovered to be the case with Franklin ).
Double rations of preserved limes were provisioned to offset scurvy
. A seven month voyage across the Atlantic, around Cape Horn, and up the Pacific to the Bering Strait
was planned to reach the pack ice during the most ice-free Arctic season. The ships were provisioned for a 3 year voyage.
interpreter. By March 5 they had crossed the equator southward and slave ships were observed in the latitude of Rio De Janeiro, described by the expedition surgeon Alexander Armstrong as 'suspicious.' Their southernmost extent, the Strait of Magellan
, was obtained on March 15, the Enterprise always well ahead of the slower Investigator. The two ships lost direct contact after the strait was completed, although McClure reported (by bottle-message) that he considered their company formally parted on February 1, 1850.
Continuing north through several storms, nearly 1000 lbs of stored biscuit was ruined by water leakage, but was later offset by fresh supplies from the Sandwich Islands. On June 15, the Investigator re-crossed the equator amid clear skies and tropical birds, already having journeyed nearly 15,000 miles. Spirits ran high, with McClure noting of the crew in his journal, "I have much confidence in them. With such a spirit what may not be expected, even if difficulties should arise?" On July 1, they made port at Honolulu, taking on fresh provisions, and having missed the Enterprise by only one day. Five days later McClure set out heading north-west, and aided by prevailing winds made the Arctic Circle on July 28, bypassing his consort ship and HMS Herald
. The crew busied themselves by readying the arctic gear as they prepared to explore the Arctic alone.
and entered unexplored waters and the first ice floes.
Meanwhile the Enterprise, arriving at Point Barrow about a fortnight later than the Investigator, found its passage blocked by ice and had to turn back and winter in Hong Kong
, losing an entire season before returning again the following year, this time successfully. The two ships never made contact for the remainder of their journeys, and the Enterprise carried out its own separate Arctic explorations.
On August 8, McClure and the Investigator made contact with local Inuit
, who offered no news of Franklin, and were unaccustomed to seeing sailing ships. Making their way along the coast east of Point Barrow
, message cairn
s were left at the site of each landing, crews occasionally trading with local Inuit but obtaining no news of Franklin. The progress north-west was frustrated by ice and shoals, and at one time the Investigator became grounded so firmly that all stores had to be unloaded to her boats (one of which capsized, losing 3344 lbs of dried beef) before she could be freed. Alternating between pressing ice flows, then open water, McClure's continued to advance to the north-east, reaching the solid pack ice on August 19.
Contact was made with several groups of local Inuit near Point Warren near the Mackenzie River
, one of which reported the death of a European. It was soon determined not to be a member of Franklin's party, but that of an overland expedition
of Sir John Richardson two years earlier. The ice to the north remained impenetrable, but they made Franklin Bay
to the west by September 3 amid much wildlife in air and sea. After sighting an extent of Banks Island
, claiming it as "Baring Land", a brief land exploration was made, presumably the first. A rock formation at a prominent cape was named Nelson Head
on September 7 after its imagined resemblance to Lord Nelson. The coast was followed in hopes of access to the north.
Periods of good progress were made, until a wind change caused the ice to close in around the Investigator on September 10, just as they had discovered a route of some promise, the Prince of Wales Strait
. Their progress through the ice was deliberate and slow, aided at times by the use of ice anchors and saws. Daily temperatures were now around 10°F. By the 16th, they had reached 73°10′ N, 117°10′ W, logged as her most advanced position. Just short of Barrow's Strait, the rudder was unshipped and winter preparations were begun. A year's worth of provisions were brought on deck in anticipation of the ship being crushed by the pack ice. The dangerously drifting pack finally ground to a halt on September 23.
At times violently shifted by the grinding pack ice, the Investigator endured just south of Princess Royal Island
, the pack becoming less violent by September 27, 1850. On the last day of September, the temperature fell below zero for the first time, as the top-gallant masts were taken down for the winter and the last birds were observed. Periods of calm were often punctuated by violent ice movement. McClure noted "The crushing, creaking, and straining are beyond description, and the officer of the watch, when speaking to me, is obliged to put his mouth close to my ear, on account of the deafening noise." The ship was lifted several feet, and black powder was used to blast any nearby hummocks that threatened.
Several explorations across the ice to land were made, and observations left McClure with no doubt as to the existence of a Northwest Passage. In mid-October, formal possession of Prince Albert's Land and several nearby islands was taken. The crew began the routines that would characterize their Winter Quarters, which included lessons in reading, writing, and arithmetic. Hunting opportunities were sparse, although five musk oxen were taken around this time, extending rations (some lost to spoilage) with fresh meat.
As spring returned, the decks of the Investigator were cleared of snow and repairs begun. Additional local expeditions were mounted, but none with the object of attempting to meet with concurrent regional rescue expeditions; the Resolute under Captain Horatio Austin, believed to be near Melville Island, the Assistance under Captain Erasmus Ommanney
, the Pioneer under Lt. John B. Cator, and the Intrepid under Sherard Osborn
as well as more distant ships under Captain William Penney, Admiral Sir John Ross
, the expedition
under Lt. Edwin De Haven
and the overland expedition
of John Rae
. By mid-May, additional hunting and exploration parties were sent out to supplement the provisions as temperatures rose above zero, some returning with frost-bitten invalids, one having met an isolated group of Inuit seal hunters. No traces of Franklin were found. As summer returned, the seven-foot thick ice showed signs of diminishing, the surfaces pooling with water. An early break up was anticipated.
Preparations were made for the ship's anticipated release from the ice. Late June temperatures reached a high of 53°F, but the ice maintained its hold on the Investigator until it was released on July 14, soon under sail amid the grinding floe near the Princess Royal Islands. Progress northward was made, the ship often attached to larger floes, and there was even some anticipation of completing the passage in that direction. However, with August this progress slowed to a crawl as the ice offered few chances to advance through the solid northerly ice. On August 14, they attained their northern-most position at 73°14′19″ N, 115°32′30″ W in the Prince of Wales Strait
. It was later suggested that, if the Investigator had been equipped with a screw propeller, she could have pressed the 45 miles to Melville Island, completed the Northwest Passage, and returned to England in that same year.
The decision to abandon the strait and proceed around the south coast of Baring Island led them to open water and a wider area of search. Rounding to the north east, they continued through the loose ice until conditions compelled them to secure the ship to an iceberg for protection. Explorations of the nearby coast were made, revealing abandoned Inuit camps and the unusual discovery of petrified wood from an extensive forest at 74°27′ N. As winter showed signs of return, they were threatened by the ice several times while still attached to their iceberg. These events were successfully managed by the crew, often by blasting the ice, but McClure chose not to set off from the iceberg for nearby open water, passing several opportunities to do so.
.
Diminishing provisions, as well as the subsequent caching of food at the Princess Royal Islands left them with fewer than ideal stores. By October, heating was briefly curtailed until the more severe periods of winter, with temperatures below deck holding near −10°F. Hunting parties were generally successful, although their exploration frustratingly revealed extents of open water that would have provided escape, only 8 miles outside of Mercy Bay. As winter pressed on, the weakening hunting parties frequently required rescue. On November 10, the final 'housing in' of the ship commenced, largely sealing it for the winter. The crew busied themselves in the manufacture of needed items, and adopted patches of gun wadding as their currency. Tedium was severe, with two crewmen briefly going mad with boredom. In December, storms rose up as temperatures continued to fall.
1852 began with the crew generally healthy, maintained largely by the reindeer
venison
provided by the hunters, temperatures reaching −51°F. Frequent hunting of nearby reindeer continued to supplement the provisions, although the hunters suffered from the cold and occasionally required rescue. Despite the occasional fresh meat, the crew continued to gradually weaken. Of all the ships searching for Franklin the previous year, now only Enterprise and Investigator, separated, remained in the arctic.
On April 11, Captain McClure led seven men out by sledge with 28 days of provisions to reach Melville Island across the ice, and hopefully to make contact with other English explorers in the area. In late April the first case of scurvy was observed, with several others soon to follow. McClure's party returned on May 7, relating that poor visibility and soft snow had hampered their progress. They did not reach Melville Island, but obtained enough of a view of the straight and large harbor to determine that Captain Austin's forces were not present. They did, however, find the cairn
left by Sir Edward Parry
during his 1819-20 expedition, which also contained a June 1851 communication from Captain Austin. This did not, however, include the information that traces of Franklin's expedition had been found the previous year at Beechey Island
.
June found the crews preparing for their expected liberation from the ice of Mercy Bay, and although temperatures rose, it was cooler than the previous year. Cases of scurvy continued to increase, although hunting and gathering of the emerging sorrel
provided improvement. By mid-month, the ice outside the bay was already in motion, showing some open water by the 31st. The bay ice remained fixed. By September all hopes of freeing the ship had evaporated, and McClure planned for the possibility of abandoning the ship in the spring, writing that "nothing but the most urgent necessity will induce me to take such a step."
. A smaller party of 8 men would proceed back along the shore of Banks Land, to the cache and boat set by McClure in 1851, then making for the Hudson's Bay Company's
post on the Mackenzie River
for rescue. This would stretch the provisions for the crews remaining on board the Investigator. To this end, food rations were immediately reduced, and hunting success became ever more critical, which now included mice.
With October, the health of the crew continued to decline, the coming winter the coldest yet. The ship was prepared for winter as temperatures below deck were below freezing. Full darkness returned on November 7. Morale and physical activity, including hunting, waned. The officers continued hunting, often requiring rescue as temperatures reached −65°F. 1852 ended with the crew weaker and more afflicted than ever before, although not a single member of the crew had been lost.
1853 brought the coldest conditions yet, once reaching −67°F. The crew passed the days with minimal activity, working on small projects of necessity and hunting when possible, since McClure had prepared no diversions for his crew. Rations were thin and the sick bay was full, even minor illnesses bringing exaggerated disability to the weakened crew. McClure continued preparing for his spring escape parties, planning to send the weaker able men in order to improve the long-term chances of those left behind. Crew selections were made and announced on March 3, to the disappointment of those to be left behind. Full rations were restored to those men preparing to set out in mid-April, and their health improved. Still, on April 5, the first crew member, John Boyle, succumbed to illness, which impacted morale and underscored the dire nature of their situation.
of H.M.S. Resolute, which was wintering off Melville Island under Captain Henry Kellett
28 days away by sledge. The Resolute was accompanied by the Intrepid, laying supply depots off Melville Island for the continued search of Franklin and now McClure (having located one of McClure's stashed messages from 1852). Afterwards, Pim described meeting McClure:
Two days later, Pim left for the Resolute, followed soon by McClure and six men, who would journey for 16 days.
Despite the encouraging news of relief, conditions aboard the Investigator were still deteriorating. Scurvy advanced with the reduced rations, and on April 11 another crewman died, and another on the following day. Some exercise was possible for the crew, breathing aided by the modern Jeffreys respirator.
On April 15, the 28-man traveling party, now concentrated on Melville Island alone, set out on three sledges. Four days later, McClure reached the ships and met with Captain Kellett
and Commander McClintock. McClure returned on May 19, with the surgeon of the Resolute, Dr. W.T. Domville. A medical survey was made to determine whether the Investigator could be adequately manned if freed from the ice. The assessment fell short of the requirements, "utterly unfit to undergo the rigour of another winter in this climate," making the abandonment of the Investigator inevitable, ordered by Captain Kellett of the Resolute. The official announcement was made, and all men were put back on full rations for the first time in 20 months. A beach supply depot was established by the end of May, accompanied by a cairn and a monument to the fallen crew members.
On June 3, final flags were raised and the remaining crew abandoned the Investigator, travelling by sledge to the Resolute, with 18 days of provisions and McClure leading the way on foot. Progress across the thawing pack ice was slow, as the four sledges weighed between 1,200 and 1,400 lbs. The weakened crew made Melville Island on June 12, and reached the ships on the 17th.
A party of invalids had been taken from the Resolute to Beechey Island
and the North Star to be returned to England in October 1853, along with the first news of the Investigator and the Northwest Passage to the outside world. Hunting supplemented the provisions while the Resolute and Intrepid waited for their own release from the ice. The breakup came on August 18 and the ships followed the edge of the pack ice before becoming fixed in the ice in early November at 70°41′ N, 101°22′ W. The combined crews prepared for another winter in the ice, while another crewman died on the 16th. Far from shore, no effective hunting could be resumed. With 1854 began the fifth year of Arctic service for the crew of the Investigator.
. Despite these unfavorable circumstances, the North Star was reached on April 23–27 by the parties. Even with this relief, another man succumbed at Beechey Island. They occupied themselves searching the surrounding area for additional traces of Franklin, as Beechey Island was now known to be his first winter quarters. Meanwhile, the Resolute and Intrepid were themselves abandoned, with their crews joining the Beechey Island camp on May 28.
An exploration party by the Resolute had earlier made contact with Captain Collinson and the Enterprise and learned of their own path of search. A report on the condition of the Investigator, now abandoned some 12 months, was also obtained and indicated that she was tattered, leaking but otherwise intact and held by the ice - Mercy Bay was still solid. By mid-August, the North Star was herself released from the ice, although two other nearby ships (Assistance and her tender Pioneer) were abandoned on the 25th. They proceeded along Greenland and reached the English port of Ramsgate
on October 6, 1854, having been gone four years and ten months and losing five men.
and pardoned for the loss of the Investigator, according to custom. he was awarded a share of the £10,000 prize for completing a Northwest Passage, knighted and decorated. He never made another Arctic voyage.
Despite this overall success, several points of controversy were raised:
archeologists looking for the HMS Investigator
found it fifteen minutes after they started a sonar
scan of Banks Island
, Mercy Bay
, Northwest Territories
. The archeology crew has no plans to raise the ship, but will do a thorough sonar scan of the area and send a Remotely Operated Vehicle
. Parks Canada archeologists scheduled dives on the Investigator site for 15 days beginning July 10, 2011 to gather detailed photographic documentation of the wreck. Led by Marc-Andre Bernier, the team of six divers were the first to visit the wreck, which lies partually buried in silt just 150 meters off the north shore of Banks Island.
The subsequent salvage of metals and materials from the abandoned Investigator is considered a turning point in the material use of the Copper Inuit
.
The McClure Strait
is named after Captain McClure.
On 29 October 2009 a special service of thanksgiving was held in the chapel at the Old Royal Naval College
in Greenwich, to accompany the rededication of the national monument to Sir John Franklin there. The service also included the solemn re-internment of the remains of Lieutenant Henry Thomas Dundas Le Vesconte, the only remains ever repatriated to England, entombed within the monument in 1873. The event brought together members of the international polar community and invited guests included polar travellers, photographers and authors and many descendants of Sir John Franklin and his men and the families of those who went to search for him, including Admiral Sir Francis Leopold McClintock
, Rear Admiral Sir John Ross
and Vice Admiral Sir Robert McClure among many others. This gala event, directed by the Rev Jeremy Frost and polar historian Dr Huw Lewis-Jones
, celebrated the contributions made by the United Kingdom in the charting of the Canadian North and honoured the loss of life in the pursuit of geographical discovery. The Navy was represented by Admiral Nick Wilkinson, prayers were led by the Bishop of Woolwich
and among the readings were eloquent tributes from Duncan Wilson, chief executive of the Greenwich Foundation and H.E. James Wright, the Canadian High Commissioner. At a private drinks reception in the Painted Hall which followed this Arctic service, Chief Marine Archaeologist for Parks Canada
Robert Grenier spoke of his ongoing search for the missing expedition ships. The following day a group of polar authors went to London's Kensal Green Cemetery
to pay their respects to the Arctic explorers buried there. After some difficulty, McClure's gravestone was located. It is hoped that his memorial may be conserved in the future.
Franklin's lost expedition
Franklin's lost expedition was a doomed British voyage of Arctic exploration led by Captain Sir John Franklin that departed England in 1845. A Royal Navy officer and experienced explorer, Franklin had served on three previous Arctic expeditions, the latter two as commanding officer...
, is distinguished as the voyage during which Robert McClure
Robert McClure
Sir Robert John Le Mesurier McClure was an Irish explorer of the Arctic.In 1854, he was the first to transit the Northwest Passage , as well as the first to circumnavigate the Americas.-Early life and career:He was born at Wexford, in Ireland, the posthumous son of one of Abercrombie's captains,...
became the first person to confirm and transit the Northwest Passage
Northwest Passage
The Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...
by a combination of sea travel and sledging. McClure and his crew spent three years locked in the pack ice aboard the HMS Investigator
HMS Investigator (1848)
HMS Investigator was a merchant ship purchased in 1848 to search for Sir John Franklin's lost expedition. She made two voyages to the Arctic and had to be abandoned in 1853 after becoming trapped in the ice. Her wreckage was found in July 2010 on Banks Island, in the Beaufort Sea...
before abandoning it before making their escape across the ice. Rescued by the HMS Resolute, which was itself later lost to the ice, McClure returned to England in 1854, where he was knighted and rewarded for completing the passage.
Preparation
Lady Jane Franklin pressed the search for the Franklin Expedition, missing since 1847, into a national priority. McClure had served as first lieutenant of the HMS EnterpriseHMS Enterprise (1848)
HMS Enterprise was an Arctic discovery ship laid down as a merchant vessel and purchased in 1848 before launch to search for Sir John Franklin's lost expedition. She made two Arctic voyages before becoming a coal depot, and was finally sold in 1903...
under James Clark Ross
James Clark Ross
Sir James Clark Ross , was a British naval officer and explorer. He explored the Arctic with his uncle Sir John Ross and Sir William Parry, and later led his own expedition to Antarctica.-Arctic explorer:...
in 1848, which returned in 1849 without discovering a trace of the lost explorer. Faced with a continuing lack of progress, the British Admiralty on January 15, 1850 ordered a new expedition to "obtain intelligence, and to render assistance to Sir John Franklin and his companions, and not for the purposes of geographical or scientific research," although a completion of the proposed Northwest Passage from the opposite direction would not be without merit.
Two ships were assigned to this task. The Enterprise was returned to the search under Captain Richard Collinson
Richard Collinson
Sir Richard Collinson was an English naval officer and explorer of the Arctic.He was born in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England, then part of County Durham...
, and the Investigator under Commander Robert J. McClure in his first Arctic command. Extensive repairs were required for both ships, which had already weathered Arctic service, including the installation of a modern Sylvester's Heating Apparatus. The Investigator, her figurehead representing a walrus, had been fitted with a 10-horsepower locomotive engine and strenghtened extensively in 1848.
Preserved meat was secured from Gamble of Cork, Ireland, and although some spoilage was experienced, it had no major impact on the voyage (subsequently discovered to be the case with Franklin ).
Double rations of preserved limes were provisioned to offset scurvy
Scurvy
Scurvy is a disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C, which is required for the synthesis of collagen in humans. The chemical name for vitamin C, ascorbic acid, is derived from the Latin name of scurvy, scorbutus, which also provides the adjective scorbutic...
. A seven month voyage across the Atlantic, around Cape Horn, and up the Pacific to 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,...
was planned to reach the pack ice during the most ice-free Arctic season. The ships were provisioned for a 3 year voyage.
The initial voyage
On January 10, 1850, the rapidly prepared ships set out from Woolrich, England, then completing the loading of supplies in Plymouth on the 20th. The crew numbered 66, including German clergyman John Meirtsching, who served as InuitInuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
interpreter. By March 5 they had crossed the equator southward and slave ships were observed in the latitude of Rio De Janeiro, described by the expedition surgeon Alexander Armstrong as 'suspicious.' Their southernmost extent, the Strait of Magellan
Strait of Magellan
The Strait of Magellan comprises a navigable sea route immediately south of mainland South America and north of Tierra del Fuego...
, was obtained on March 15, the Enterprise always well ahead of the slower Investigator. The two ships lost direct contact after the strait was completed, although McClure reported (by bottle-message) that he considered their company formally parted on February 1, 1850.
Continuing north through several storms, nearly 1000 lbs of stored biscuit was ruined by water leakage, but was later offset by fresh supplies from the Sandwich Islands. On June 15, the Investigator re-crossed the equator amid clear skies and tropical birds, already having journeyed nearly 15,000 miles. Spirits ran high, with McClure noting of the crew in his journal, "I have much confidence in them. With such a spirit what may not be expected, even if difficulties should arise?" On July 1, they made port at Honolulu, taking on fresh provisions, and having missed the Enterprise by only one day. Five days later McClure set out heading north-west, and aided by prevailing winds made the Arctic Circle on July 28, bypassing his consort ship and HMS Herald
HMS Herald (1822)
HMS Herald was an Atholl-class 28-gun sixth-rate corvette of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1821 as HMS Termagant, commissioned in 1824 as Herald and converted to a survey ship in 1845...
. The crew busied themselves by readying the arctic gear as they prepared to explore the Arctic alone.
The Arctic reached
Rather than waiting to rendezvous with the Enterprise, the unusual decision was made to take the Investigator alone into the ice near Cape Lisburne. On July 20, McClure had sent a letter (via the Herald) notifying the Secretary of the Admiralty of this intent, stating that since the Enterprise had already detached from the expedition, and proceeding on alone was the best contingency plan available to insure the success of their mission. The ice fields were sighted on August 2 at 72°1′ north. Unable to find open leads, they rounded Point BarrowPoint Barrow
Point Barrow or Nuvuk is a headland on the Arctic coast in the U.S. state of Alaska, northeast of Barrow. It is the northernmost point of all the territory of the United States, at...
and entered unexplored waters and the first ice floes.
Meanwhile the Enterprise, arriving at Point Barrow about a fortnight later than the Investigator, found its passage blocked by ice and had to turn back and winter in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, losing an entire season before returning again the following year, this time successfully. The two ships never made contact for the remainder of their journeys, and the Enterprise carried out its own separate Arctic explorations.
On August 8, McClure and the Investigator made contact with local Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
, who offered no news of Franklin, and were unaccustomed to seeing sailing ships. Making their way along the coast east of Point Barrow
Point Barrow
Point Barrow or Nuvuk is a headland on the Arctic coast in the U.S. state of Alaska, northeast of Barrow. It is the northernmost point of all the territory of the United States, at...
, message cairn
Cairn
Cairn is a term used mainly in the English-speaking world for a man-made pile of stones. It comes from the or . Cairns are found all over the world in uplands, on moorland, on mountaintops, near waterways and on sea cliffs, and also in barren desert and tundra areas...
s were left at the site of each landing, crews occasionally trading with local Inuit but obtaining no news of Franklin. The progress north-west was frustrated by ice and shoals, and at one time the Investigator became grounded so firmly that all stores had to be unloaded to her boats (one of which capsized, losing 3344 lbs of dried beef) before she could be freed. Alternating between pressing ice flows, then open water, McClure's continued to advance to the north-east, reaching the solid pack ice on August 19.
Contact was made with several groups of local Inuit near Point Warren near the Mackenzie River
Mackenzie River
The Mackenzie River is the largest river system in Canada. It flows through a vast, isolated region of forest and tundra entirely within the country's Northwest Territories, although its many tributaries reach into four other Canadian provinces and territories...
, one of which reported the death of a European. It was soon determined not to be a member of Franklin's party, but that of an overland expedition
Rae-Richardson Arctic Expedition
The Rae-Richardson Polar Expedition of 1848 was an early British effort to determine the fate of the lost Franklin Polar Expedition. Led overland by Sir John Richardson and John Rae, the team explored the accessible areas along Franklin's proposed route near the Mackenzie and Coppermine rivers...
of Sir John Richardson two years earlier. The ice to the north remained impenetrable, but they made Franklin Bay
Franklin Bay
Franklin Bay is a large inlet in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is a southern arm of the Amundsen Gulf, southeastern Beaufort Sea. The bay measures long, and wide at its mouth. The Parry Peninsula is to the east, and its southern area is called Langton Bay.Franklin Bay receives the...
to the west by September 3 amid much wildlife in air and sea. After sighting an extent of Banks Island
Banks Island
One of the larger members of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Banks Island is situated in the Inuvik Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is separated from Victoria Island to its east by the Prince of Wales Strait and from the mainland by Amundsen Gulf to its south. The Beaufort Sea lies...
, claiming it as "Baring Land", a brief land exploration was made, presumably the first. A rock formation at a prominent cape was named Nelson Head
Nelson Head
Nelson Head is a Canadian Arctic hypsographic cape in the Northwest Territories. The most southerly point of Banks Island, it protrudes into the Amundsen Gulf.It is the ancestral home of Kangiryuarmiut, a Copper Inuit subgroup.-Naming:...
on September 7 after its imagined resemblance to Lord Nelson. The coast was followed in hopes of access to the north.
Periods of good progress were made, until a wind change caused the ice to close in around the Investigator on September 10, just as they had discovered a route of some promise, the Prince of Wales Strait
Prince of Wales Strait
The Prince of Wales Strait is a strait in the Northwest Territories of Canada separating Banks Island to the northwest from Victoria Island to the southeast. It extends from Viscount Melville Sound in the northeast to Amundsen Gulf in the southwest. From late winter it is filled by ice that usually...
. Their progress through the ice was deliberate and slow, aided at times by the use of ice anchors and saws. Daily temperatures were now around 10°F. By the 16th, they had reached 73°10′ N, 117°10′ W, logged as her most advanced position. Just short of Barrow's Strait, the rudder was unshipped and winter preparations were begun. A year's worth of provisions were brought on deck in anticipation of the ship being crushed by the pack ice. The dangerously drifting pack finally ground to a halt on September 23.
At times violently shifted by the grinding pack ice, the Investigator endured just south of Princess Royal Island
Princess Royal Island
Princess Royal Island is the largest island on the North Coast of British Columbia, Canada. It is located amongst the isolated inlets and islands east of Hecate Strait on the British Columbia Coast. At , it is the fourth largest island in British Columbia...
, the pack becoming less violent by September 27, 1850. On the last day of September, the temperature fell below zero for the first time, as the top-gallant masts were taken down for the winter and the last birds were observed. Periods of calm were often punctuated by violent ice movement. McClure noted "The crushing, creaking, and straining are beyond description, and the officer of the watch, when speaking to me, is obliged to put his mouth close to my ear, on account of the deafening noise." The ship was lifted several feet, and black powder was used to blast any nearby hummocks that threatened.
Several explorations across the ice to land were made, and observations left McClure with no doubt as to the existence of a Northwest Passage. In mid-October, formal possession of Prince Albert's Land and several nearby islands was taken. The crew began the routines that would characterize their Winter Quarters, which included lessons in reading, writing, and arithmetic. Hunting opportunities were sparse, although five musk oxen were taken around this time, extending rations (some lost to spoilage) with fresh meat.
The Northwest Passage
On October 21, Captain McClure embarked on a seven-man sledge trip north-east to confirm his observations of a Northwest Passage. McClure provided that confirmation upon his return on the 31st, having seen an unblocked strait to the distant Melville Island from a 600 feet (182.9 m) on Banks Island. The entry placed in the ship's log read:
"October 31st, the Captain returned at 8.30. A.M., and at 11.30. A.M., the remainder of the parting, having, upon the 26th instant, ascertained that the waters we are now in communicate with those of Barrow Strait, the north-eastern limit being in latitude 73°31′, N. longitude 114°39′, W. thus establishing the existence of a NORTH-WEST PASSAGE between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans."
The first winter and summer
The sun departed on November 11, with temperatures averaging −10°F with the below-deck temperature of 48°F, the crew in good health. Below deck air quality was maintained by increased ventillation and regular airing out of the quarters. 1851 was welcomed in as the crew amused themselves, occasionally catching foxes or spotting seals. Winter temperatures averaging −37°F, and on February 3 the sun returned after 83 days of darkness. An emergency depot of provisions and a whaleboat were made on the nearby island. Reindeer, arctic fox, hare, raven, wolf and a polar bear were observed as local expeditions resumed.As spring returned, the decks of the Investigator were cleared of snow and repairs begun. Additional local expeditions were mounted, but none with the object of attempting to meet with concurrent regional rescue expeditions; the Resolute under Captain Horatio Austin, believed to be near Melville Island, the Assistance under Captain Erasmus Ommanney
Erasmus Ommanney
thumb|right|Sir Erasmus OmmanneyAdmiral Sir Erasmus Ommanney KCB, FRS, FRGS, JP was a Royal Navy officer and an Arctic explorer of the Victorian era.-Early life:...
, the Pioneer under Lt. John B. Cator, and the Intrepid under Sherard Osborn
Sherard Osborn
Sherard Osborn , was a Royal Navy admiral and Arctic explorer.-Early life:Born in Madras, he was the son of an Indian army officer...
as well as more distant ships under Captain William Penney, Admiral Sir John Ross
John Ross (Arctic explorer)
Sir John Ross, CB, was a Scottish rear admiral and Arctic explorer.Ross was the son of the Rev. Andrew Ross, minister of Inch, near Stranraer in Scotland. In 1786, aged only nine, he joined the Royal Navy as an apprentice. He served in the Mediterranean until 1789 and then in the English Channel...
, the expedition
First Grinnell Expedition
The First Grinnell Expedition of 1850 was the first American effort, financed by Henry Grinnell, to determine the fate of the lost Franklin Polar Expedition. Led by Lieutenant Edwin De Haven, the...
under Lt. Edwin De Haven
Edwin De Haven
Edwin Jesse De Haven was a United States Navy officer and explorer of the first half of the 19th century.He was born in Philadelphia and became a midshipman at the age of 10, serving until 1857...
and the overland expedition
Rae-Richardson Arctic Expedition
The Rae-Richardson Polar Expedition of 1848 was an early British effort to determine the fate of the lost Franklin Polar Expedition. Led overland by Sir John Richardson and John Rae, the team explored the accessible areas along Franklin's proposed route near the Mackenzie and Coppermine rivers...
of John Rae
John Rae
John Rae may refer to:* John Rae , Scottish economist and author of Statement of Some New Principles on the Subject of Political Economy* John Rae , Scottish explorer of the Arctic...
. By mid-May, additional hunting and exploration parties were sent out to supplement the provisions as temperatures rose above zero, some returning with frost-bitten invalids, one having met an isolated group of Inuit seal hunters. No traces of Franklin were found. As summer returned, the seven-foot thick ice showed signs of diminishing, the surfaces pooling with water. An early break up was anticipated.
Preparations were made for the ship's anticipated release from the ice. Late June temperatures reached a high of 53°F, but the ice maintained its hold on the Investigator until it was released on July 14, soon under sail amid the grinding floe near the Princess Royal Islands. Progress northward was made, the ship often attached to larger floes, and there was even some anticipation of completing the passage in that direction. However, with August this progress slowed to a crawl as the ice offered few chances to advance through the solid northerly ice. On August 14, they attained their northern-most position at 73°14′19″ N, 115°32′30″ W in the Prince of Wales Strait
Prince of Wales Strait
The Prince of Wales Strait is a strait in the Northwest Territories of Canada separating Banks Island to the northwest from Victoria Island to the southeast. It extends from Viscount Melville Sound in the northeast to Amundsen Gulf in the southwest. From late winter it is filled by ice that usually...
. It was later suggested that, if the Investigator had been equipped with a screw propeller, she could have pressed the 45 miles to Melville Island, completed the Northwest Passage, and returned to England in that same year.
The decision to abandon the strait and proceed around the south coast of Baring Island led them to open water and a wider area of search. Rounding to the north east, they continued through the loose ice until conditions compelled them to secure the ship to an iceberg for protection. Explorations of the nearby coast were made, revealing abandoned Inuit camps and the unusual discovery of petrified wood from an extensive forest at 74°27′ N. As winter showed signs of return, they were threatened by the ice several times while still attached to their iceberg. These events were successfully managed by the crew, often by blasting the ice, but McClure chose not to set off from the iceberg for nearby open water, passing several opportunities to do so.
The second winter and summer in Mercy Bay
Subsequent efforts to move the ship further eastward made slow progress, but occasional stretches of open water contributing to their progress towards Melville Island. Rather than following the pack ice east, McClure chose to take refuge in an open bay. On September 23 the ice made an end to their progress, as the ship was made ready for a second winter - entering the bay they now occupied seen by some of the crew as a dire mistake. Ship's surgeon Armstrong went so far as to state "Entering this bay was the fatal error of our voyage." The pack ice would have taken them within 50 miles of Melville Island, and improved their chance of an early break-up in the spring. The location of their wintering was 74°6′ N. 117°55′ W., and was subsequently named Mercy BayMercy Bay
Mercy Bay is a Canadian Arctic waterway in the Northwest Territories. It is a southern arm of M'Clure Strait on northeast Banks Island. The mouth of Castel Bay is less than to the west...
.
Diminishing provisions, as well as the subsequent caching of food at the Princess Royal Islands left them with fewer than ideal stores. By October, heating was briefly curtailed until the more severe periods of winter, with temperatures below deck holding near −10°F. Hunting parties were generally successful, although their exploration frustratingly revealed extents of open water that would have provided escape, only 8 miles outside of Mercy Bay. As winter pressed on, the weakening hunting parties frequently required rescue. On November 10, the final 'housing in' of the ship commenced, largely sealing it for the winter. The crew busied themselves in the manufacture of needed items, and adopted patches of gun wadding as their currency. Tedium was severe, with two crewmen briefly going mad with boredom. In December, storms rose up as temperatures continued to fall.
1852 began with the crew generally healthy, maintained largely by the reindeer
Reindeer
The reindeer , also known as the caribou in North America, is a deer from the Arctic and Subarctic, including both resident and migratory populations. While overall widespread and numerous, some of its subspecies are rare and one has already gone extinct.Reindeer vary considerably in color and size...
venison
Venison
Venison is the meat of a game animal, especially a deer but also other animals such as antelope, wild boar, etc.-Etymology:The word derives from the Latin vēnor...
provided by the hunters, temperatures reaching −51°F. Frequent hunting of nearby reindeer continued to supplement the provisions, although the hunters suffered from the cold and occasionally required rescue. Despite the occasional fresh meat, the crew continued to gradually weaken. Of all the ships searching for Franklin the previous year, now only Enterprise and Investigator, separated, remained in the arctic.
On April 11, Captain McClure led seven men out by sledge with 28 days of provisions to reach Melville Island across the ice, and hopefully to make contact with other English explorers in the area. In late April the first case of scurvy was observed, with several others soon to follow. McClure's party returned on May 7, relating that poor visibility and soft snow had hampered their progress. They did not reach Melville Island, but obtained enough of a view of the straight and large harbor to determine that Captain Austin's forces were not present. They did, however, find the cairn
Cairn
Cairn is a term used mainly in the English-speaking world for a man-made pile of stones. It comes from the or . Cairns are found all over the world in uplands, on moorland, on mountaintops, near waterways and on sea cliffs, and also in barren desert and tundra areas...
left by Sir Edward Parry
William Edward Parry
Sir William Edward Parry was an English rear-admiral and Arctic explorer, who in 1827 attempted one of the earliest expeditions to the North Pole...
during his 1819-20 expedition, which also contained a June 1851 communication from Captain Austin. This did not, however, include the information that traces of Franklin's expedition had been found the previous year at Beechey Island
Beechey Island
Beechey Island is an island located in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago of Nunavut, Canada, in Wellington Channel. It is separated from the southwest corner of Devon Island by Barrow Strait...
.
June found the crews preparing for their expected liberation from the ice of Mercy Bay, and although temperatures rose, it was cooler than the previous year. Cases of scurvy continued to increase, although hunting and gathering of the emerging sorrel
Sorrel
Common sorrel or garden sorrel , often simply called sorrel, is a perennial herb that is cultivated as a garden herb or leaf vegetable...
provided improvement. By mid-month, the ice outside the bay was already in motion, showing some open water by the 31st. The bay ice remained fixed. By September all hopes of freeing the ship had evaporated, and McClure planned for the possibility of abandoning the ship in the spring, writing that "nothing but the most urgent necessity will induce me to take such a step."
The third winter
On September 8, McClure announced his plan for springtime escape, in which 26 of the crew would make for Cape Spencer (550 miles away), where Austin had left a cache and a boat, and from there, to seek rescue on Baffin BayBaffin Bay
Baffin Bay , located between Baffin Island and the southwest coast of Greenland, is a marginal sea of the North Atlantic Ocean. It is connected to the Atlantic via Davis Strait and the Labrador Sea...
. A smaller party of 8 men would proceed back along the shore of Banks Land, to the cache and boat set by McClure in 1851, then making for the Hudson's Bay Company's
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
post on the Mackenzie River
Mackenzie River
The Mackenzie River is the largest river system in Canada. It flows through a vast, isolated region of forest and tundra entirely within the country's Northwest Territories, although its many tributaries reach into four other Canadian provinces and territories...
for rescue. This would stretch the provisions for the crews remaining on board the Investigator. To this end, food rations were immediately reduced, and hunting success became ever more critical, which now included mice.
With October, the health of the crew continued to decline, the coming winter the coldest yet. The ship was prepared for winter as temperatures below deck were below freezing. Full darkness returned on November 7. Morale and physical activity, including hunting, waned. The officers continued hunting, often requiring rescue as temperatures reached −65°F. 1852 ended with the crew weaker and more afflicted than ever before, although not a single member of the crew had been lost.
1853 brought the coldest conditions yet, once reaching −67°F. The crew passed the days with minimal activity, working on small projects of necessity and hunting when possible, since McClure had prepared no diversions for his crew. Rations were thin and the sick bay was full, even minor illnesses bringing exaggerated disability to the weakened crew. McClure continued preparing for his spring escape parties, planning to send the weaker able men in order to improve the long-term chances of those left behind. Crew selections were made and announced on March 3, to the disappointment of those to be left behind. Full rations were restored to those men preparing to set out in mid-April, and their health improved. Still, on April 5, the first crew member, John Boyle, succumbed to illness, which impacted morale and underscored the dire nature of their situation.
Relief and the fourth winter
Preparations for the escape parties continued, despite their slim chances for success. On April 6, a detail of men digging Boyle's grave observed a figure approaching from seaward. It was Lieutenant Bedford PimBedford Clapperton Trevelyan Pim
Admiral Bedford Clapperton Trevelyan Pim, RN, MP, FRGS was a Royal Navy officer, Arctic explorer, barrister, and author...
of H.M.S. Resolute, which was wintering off Melville Island under Captain Henry Kellett
Henry Kellett
Vice Admiral Sir Henry Kellett KCB was a British naval officer and explorer.-Naval career:Kellett joined the Royal Navy in 1822...
28 days away by sledge. The Resolute was accompanied by the Intrepid, laying supply depots off Melville Island for the continued search of Franklin and now McClure (having located one of McClure's stashed messages from 1852). Afterwards, Pim described meeting McClure:
"Who are you, and where (did) you come from?"
"Lieutenant Pim, Herald, Capt. Kellett." This was more inexplicable to M'Clure, as I was the last person he shook hands with in Behring's Straits.
Two days later, Pim left for the Resolute, followed soon by McClure and six men, who would journey for 16 days.
Despite the encouraging news of relief, conditions aboard the Investigator were still deteriorating. Scurvy advanced with the reduced rations, and on April 11 another crewman died, and another on the following day. Some exercise was possible for the crew, breathing aided by the modern Jeffreys respirator.
On April 15, the 28-man traveling party, now concentrated on Melville Island alone, set out on three sledges. Four days later, McClure reached the ships and met with Captain Kellett
Henry Kellett
Vice Admiral Sir Henry Kellett KCB was a British naval officer and explorer.-Naval career:Kellett joined the Royal Navy in 1822...
and Commander McClintock. McClure returned on May 19, with the surgeon of the Resolute, Dr. W.T. Domville. A medical survey was made to determine whether the Investigator could be adequately manned if freed from the ice. The assessment fell short of the requirements, "utterly unfit to undergo the rigour of another winter in this climate," making the abandonment of the Investigator inevitable, ordered by Captain Kellett of the Resolute. The official announcement was made, and all men were put back on full rations for the first time in 20 months. A beach supply depot was established by the end of May, accompanied by a cairn and a monument to the fallen crew members.
On June 3, final flags were raised and the remaining crew abandoned the Investigator, travelling by sledge to the Resolute, with 18 days of provisions and McClure leading the way on foot. Progress across the thawing pack ice was slow, as the four sledges weighed between 1,200 and 1,400 lbs. The weakened crew made Melville Island on June 12, and reached the ships on the 17th.
A party of invalids had been taken from the Resolute to Beechey Island
Beechey Island
Beechey Island is an island located in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago of Nunavut, Canada, in Wellington Channel. It is separated from the southwest corner of Devon Island by Barrow Strait...
and the North Star to be returned to England in October 1853, along with the first news of the Investigator and the Northwest Passage to the outside world. Hunting supplemented the provisions while the Resolute and Intrepid waited for their own release from the ice. The breakup came on August 18 and the ships followed the edge of the pack ice before becoming fixed in the ice in early November at 70°41′ N, 101°22′ W. The combined crews prepared for another winter in the ice, while another crewman died on the 16th. Far from shore, no effective hunting could be resumed. With 1854 began the fifth year of Arctic service for the crew of the Investigator.
Escape and return
Plans were made to detach the crew of the Investigator to the North Star at Beechey Island in the spring of 1854. These three sledge parties set out on April 10–12. The journey was severe, but the crews were in improved condition. Socks routinely froze to feet and had to be cut off to fight frostbiteFrostbite
Frostbite is the medical condition where localized damage is caused to skin and other tissues due to extreme cold. Frostbite is most likely to happen in body parts farthest from the heart and those with large exposed areas...
. Despite these unfavorable circumstances, the North Star was reached on April 23–27 by the parties. Even with this relief, another man succumbed at Beechey Island. They occupied themselves searching the surrounding area for additional traces of Franklin, as Beechey Island was now known to be his first winter quarters. Meanwhile, the Resolute and Intrepid were themselves abandoned, with their crews joining the Beechey Island camp on May 28.
An exploration party by the Resolute had earlier made contact with Captain Collinson and the Enterprise and learned of their own path of search. A report on the condition of the Investigator, now abandoned some 12 months, was also obtained and indicated that she was tattered, leaking but otherwise intact and held by the ice - Mercy Bay was still solid. By mid-August, the North Star was herself released from the ice, although two other nearby ships (Assistance and her tender Pioneer) were abandoned on the 25th. They proceeded along Greenland and reached the English port of Ramsgate
Ramsgate
Ramsgate is a seaside town in the district of Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century and is a member of the ancient confederation of Cinque Ports. It has a population of around 40,000. Ramsgate's main attraction is its coastline and its main...
on October 6, 1854, having been gone four years and ten months and losing five men.
Aftermath and controversy
Upon return to England, McClure was immediately court martialledCourt-martial
A court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
and pardoned for the loss of the Investigator, according to custom. he was awarded a share of the £10,000 prize for completing a Northwest Passage, knighted and decorated. He never made another Arctic voyage.
Despite this overall success, several points of controversy were raised:
When the ambitious McClure severed contact with their consort ship Enterprise before reaching Arctic waters, he essentially initiated a solo voyage. Described alternately as a combination of faulty communications or outright deception, this decision increased the risk to the expedition by eliminating the benefits of cooperation.
The voyage's September 1851 progress was stalled by McClure's decision not to push more aggressively towards open water. Much effort was made with little advancement after that, which was considered by ship's surgeon Armstrong to be a critical failure contributing to their subsequent problems.
Armstrong also considered the entry into Mercy Bay (which became their second winter quarters and final position) rather than following the coastal ice floes to be a major mistake. It eliminated any possible future opportunities to press towards Melville Island through the pack ice. Failing to attempt a meeting with Captain Austin on Melville Island in April 1851 may also have contributed to the hardships endured.
McClure's two-party escape plan for spring 1853 was viewed by the ship's surgeon as recklessly dangerous, considering the weakened state of the crews and the extents of their proposed journeys. It has also been suggested that the plan was simply a ploy to eliminate the weakest two-thirds of the crew to extend the rations for McClure and his chosen few aboard the Investigator.
Crew
H.M.S. Investigator
R. J. Le M. M'Clure, Commander
Wm. H. Haswell, Lieutenant
Samuel G. Cresswell, Do.
H. H. Sainsbury, Mate (Died on board HMS Resolute Nov. 14, 1853)
Robert Wynniatt, Do.
Stephen Court, Second Master (Rated Acting Master Apr. 19, 1853)
Alex. Armstrong, M.D., Surgeon
Henry Piers, Assistant-Surgeon
Joseph C. Paine, Clerk in charge
George J. Ford, Carpenter
George Kennedy, Acting Boatswain
Richard A. Ross, Quartermaster (Disrated A.B. Dec. 14, 1850)
John Davies, A.B. (Rated Quartermaster Apr. 15, 1853)
John Kerr, Gunner's Mate (Died on board HMS Investigator Apr. 13 1853)
Henry Bluff, Boatswain's Mate
Samuel Mackenzie, A.B.
Charles Steel, A.B.
Edward Fawcett, Boatswain's Mate
James Evans, Caulker
George Gibbs, A.B.
James Williams, Captain of the Hold
Peter Thompson, Captain of the Foretop
Samuel Relfe, A.B.
Thomas Morgan, A.B. (Died on board HMS North Star May 22, 1854)
John Eames, A.B. (Died on board HMS Investigator Apr. 11, 1853)
William Batten, A.B.
Charles Anderson, A.B.
Isaac Stubberfield, Ship's Cook
Frederick Taylor, A.B.
Henry Gauen, Carpenter's Mate
George Brown, A.B. (Rated Quartermaster Dec. 24, 1850)
Cornelius Hulott, Captain's Coxswain
William Whitefield, Carpenter's Crew
Michael Flynn, Quartermaster
Mark Bradbury, A.B.
James Nelson, A.B.
William Carroll, A.B.
George Olley, A.B.
John Calder, Captain of Forecastle
John Ramsay, A.B.
Henry Stone, Blacksmith
Henry Sugden, Sub. Officer's Steward
Henry May, Quartermaster
Joseph Facey, Sailmaker
James M'Donald, A.B.
George L. Milner, Gun-room Steward
John Wilcox, Paymaster and Paymaster's Steward
Robert Tiffeny, Captain of Maintop
John Boyle, A.B. (Died at Mercy Bay, Apr. 6, 1853)
Thomas Toy, A.B.
Samuel Bonnsall, A.B.
Ellis Griffiths, A.B.
Mark Griffiths, A.B.
John Keefe, A.B.
Thos. S. Carmichael, A.B.
John Woon, Sergeant of Marines
J. B. Farquharson, Corporal of Marines
George Parfitt, Private of Marines
Elias Bow, Private of Marines
James Biggs, Private of Marines (Rated Corporal, Apr. 15, 1853)
Thomas Bancroft, Private of Marines
Thomas King, Private of Marines
James Saunders, Private of Marines
Johan A. Mierching, Esquimaux Interpreter
Ship located
In July 2010, Parks CanadaParks Canada
Parks Canada , also known as the Parks Canada Agency , is an agency of the Government of Canada mandated to protect and present nationally significant natural and cultural heritage, and foster public understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment in ways that ensure their ecological and commemorative...
archeologists looking for the HMS Investigator
HMS Investigator (1848)
HMS Investigator was a merchant ship purchased in 1848 to search for Sir John Franklin's lost expedition. She made two voyages to the Arctic and had to be abandoned in 1853 after becoming trapped in the ice. Her wreckage was found in July 2010 on Banks Island, in the Beaufort Sea...
found it fifteen minutes after they started a sonar
Sonar
Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect other vessels...
scan of Banks Island
Banks Island
One of the larger members of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Banks Island is situated in the Inuvik Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is separated from Victoria Island to its east by the Prince of Wales Strait and from the mainland by Amundsen Gulf to its south. The Beaufort Sea lies...
, Mercy Bay
Mercy Bay
Mercy Bay is a Canadian Arctic waterway in the Northwest Territories. It is a southern arm of M'Clure Strait on northeast Banks Island. The mouth of Castel Bay is less than to the west...
, Northwest Territories
Northwest Territories
The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...
. The archeology crew has no plans to raise the ship, but will do a thorough sonar scan of the area and send a Remotely Operated Vehicle
Remotely operated vehicle
A remotely operated vehicle is a tethered underwater vehicle. They are common in deepwater industries such as offshore hydrocarbon extraction. An ROV may sometimes be called a remotely operated underwater vehicle to distinguish it from remote control vehicles operating on land or in the air. ROVs...
. Parks Canada archeologists scheduled dives on the Investigator site for 15 days beginning July 10, 2011 to gather detailed photographic documentation of the wreck. Led by Marc-Andre Bernier, the team of six divers were the first to visit the wreck, which lies partually buried in silt just 150 meters off the north shore of Banks Island.
Legacy
McClure is credited as being the first to complete the Northwest Passage (by boat and sledge). Despite some questionable behavior, he was granted a share of the £10,000 prize for completing the passage.The subsequent salvage of metals and materials from the abandoned Investigator is considered a turning point in the material use of the Copper Inuit
Copper Inuit
Copper Inuit are a Canadian Inuit group who live north of the tree line, in Nunavut's Kitikmeot Region and the Northwest Territories's Inuvik Region. Most historically lived in the area around Coronation Gulf, on Victoria Island, and southern Banks Island.Their western boundary was Wise Point,...
.
The McClure Strait
McClure Strait
The M'Clure Strait is a strait on the edge of the Canadian Northwest Territories. It forms the northwestern end of one of the routes through the Northwest Passage. The strait was named for Robert McClure, an Irish Arctic explorer serving in the Royal Navy...
is named after Captain McClure.
On 29 October 2009 a special service of thanksgiving was held in the chapel at the Old Royal Naval College
Old Royal Naval College
The Old Royal Naval College is the architectural centrepiece of Maritime Greenwich, a World Heritage Site in Greenwich, London, described by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation as being of “outstanding universal value” and reckoned to be the “finest and most...
in Greenwich, to accompany the rededication of the national monument to Sir John Franklin there. The service also included the solemn re-internment of the remains of Lieutenant Henry Thomas Dundas Le Vesconte, the only remains ever repatriated to England, entombed within the monument in 1873. The event brought together members of the international polar community and invited guests included polar travellers, photographers and authors and many descendants of Sir John Franklin and his men and the families of those who went to search for him, including Admiral Sir Francis Leopold McClintock
Francis Leopold McClintock
Admiral Sir Francis Leopold McClintock or Francis Leopold M'Clintock KCB, FRS was an Irish explorer in the British Royal Navy who is known for his discoveries in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago.-Biography:...
, Rear Admiral Sir John Ross
John Ross (Arctic explorer)
Sir John Ross, CB, was a Scottish rear admiral and Arctic explorer.Ross was the son of the Rev. Andrew Ross, minister of Inch, near Stranraer in Scotland. In 1786, aged only nine, he joined the Royal Navy as an apprentice. He served in the Mediterranean until 1789 and then in the English Channel...
and Vice Admiral Sir Robert McClure among many others. This gala event, directed by the Rev Jeremy Frost and polar historian Dr Huw Lewis-Jones
Huw Lewis-Jones
Huw Lewis-Jones is a British historian, editor, broadcaster and art director. Formerly historian and Curator of Art at the Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge, Dr Lewis-Jones left Cambridge in June 2010 to pursue a number of book and broadcasting projects...
, celebrated the contributions made by the United Kingdom in the charting of the Canadian North and honoured the loss of life in the pursuit of geographical discovery. The Navy was represented by Admiral Nick Wilkinson, prayers were led by the Bishop of Woolwich
Bishop of Woolwich
The Bishop of Woolwich is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Southwark, in the Province of Canterbury, England....
and among the readings were eloquent tributes from Duncan Wilson, chief executive of the Greenwich Foundation and H.E. James Wright, the Canadian High Commissioner. At a private drinks reception in the Painted Hall which followed this Arctic service, Chief Marine Archaeologist for Parks Canada
Parks Canada
Parks Canada , also known as the Parks Canada Agency , is an agency of the Government of Canada mandated to protect and present nationally significant natural and cultural heritage, and foster public understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment in ways that ensure their ecological and commemorative...
Robert Grenier spoke of his ongoing search for the missing expedition ships. The following day a group of polar authors went to London's Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in Kensal Green, in the west of London, England. It was immortalised in the lines of G. K. Chesterton's poem The Rolling English Road from his book The Flying Inn: "For there is good news yet to hear and fine things to be seen; Before we go to Paradise by way of...
to pay their respects to the Arctic explorers buried there. After some difficulty, McClure's gravestone was located. It is hoped that his memorial may be conserved in the future.
Contrasts with the Franklin Expedition
- As with the Second Grinnell ExpeditionSecond Grinnell ExpeditionThe 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...
, McClure employed an Inuit interpreter. Franklin's expedition included no interpreters or Inuit, whose regional expertise may have enhanced their chances of survival.
- Banks Island provided enough game to offset the severest onset of scurvy and wasting. During their voyage, the McClure expedition took 112 Reindeer, 7 musk ox, 3 seal, 4 polar bears, 2 wolves, and numerous fox, hares, lemmings, mice and a variety of birds and fish. Franklin appears to have fared much worse, as the game near Beechey Island was more seasonal and sparse. This lack of fresh food, combined with the extensive spoilage of the cheaply canned provisions, were a contributing liability to Franklin's expedition.
- McClure also benefited from the regular construction of message cairns along his route - one of which was indeed discovered by the Resolute, leading directly to their rescue. Only one message cairn is known to have been left by Franklin, despite an ample supply of message canisters. Additional messages by Franklin would have corrected many of the search efforts, which incorrectly guessed at his ultimate route.