Lost as Where We Are
1 day ago
Showing posts with label John Irving. Show all posts
Showing posts with label John Irving. Show all posts
Saturday, January 13, 2018
Accounting For The 105 Survivors
An estimated 59 Franklin crewmen can be accounted for by counting all known sites except Terror Bay and Starvation Cove. Including the lower estimates for Terror Bay and Starvation Cove the total comes to 95. Using the higher estimates yields a slightly unrealistic total of 109 considering 105 survivors were stated to be alive at Crozier's Landing on April 25, 1848.
The list includes crewmen found by the Inuit, crewmen whom were found by searchers such as Schwatka and those found more recently by archaeologists.
In some cases such as the Todd Islets and Booth Point the number has been inferred from physical findings and eyewitness Inuit accounts.
The numbers for Terror Bay and Starvation Cove are estimates.
Lt John Irving 1
Grave presumed to belong to Lieutenant John Irving of HMS Terror.
Gore Point 1
A crude grave containing a skull was found by Schwatka's expedition. Schwatka's Inuit guide Toolooah identified the skull as belonging to a white man.
Near Point Le Vesconte 1
A partially disinterred skeleton from a grave containing blue cloth and gilt buttons.
4 Miles South of Point Le Vesconte 1
A partially disinterred skeleton from a grave containing a belt buckle and percussion caps.
Erebus Bay Boat Places 23
A total of 23 crewmen were spread out over about 2 miles roughly centered on the archaeological site known as NgLj-2.
Terror Bay 30-to-40 (Estimated)
The site of the Terror Bay camp was wiped clean by the sea sometime between the Hall and Schwatka expeditions. The Inuit indicated a large number of dead were found here. Most were cannibalized by the few remaining survivor(s).
Tee-Ke-Ta told Hall that the tent was longer than 25-ft. Woodman page 155. Assuming 24-inches per crewman a 30-ft tent would hold 30 crewmen and a 40-ft tent would hold 40 crewmen.
Gladman Point 1
The Peglar/Armitage/Gibson skeleton found by McClintock near Gladman Point.
3 Miles Southeast of Gladman Point 1
A grave containing a skeleton and a few buttons was found by Royal Canadian Rangers during the 1973 Northern Quest Exercise.
Douglas Bay 7
Gibson found 7 skulls here therefore an absolute minimum of 7 crewmen can be accounted for at this location. The total may be higher.
Setumenin 2
Two graves were found here by the Inuit. The skeleton of Harry Goodsir (originally misidentified as that of Henry Le Vesconte) was found here and retrieved by Hall.
Booth Point 2
Inuit found 1 crewman in a grave. Beattie found the remains of 1 cannibalized crewman. It seems unlikely to me that these are the same set of remains.
Todd Islets 7
The Inuit described finding 5 crewmen on Todd Island (Keeuna). An additional 2 crewmen were found on nearby Kookar Island. David Woodman discusses how he arrived at this total on pages 159-to-170.
Islet Near Starvation Cove 7
Neninook reported seven skeletons, partially buried in the sand, on an islet about 5 miles northwest of Starvation Cove. These crewmen had boots with nails driven into the souls like the example found in the 1980s.
Tikeraniyou 3
Located 12 to 15 miles northwest of Starvation Cove and near Thunder Cove
Thunder Cove 1
A skull was found at Thunder Cove in 1926.
Starvation Cove 6-to-10 (Estimate)
Schwatka's expedition was the first to visit Starvation Cove and were told that 6-to-10 crewmen were found there.
An absolute minimum of 4 men can be accounted for here because Learmonth found 3 mandibles (jaw bones) and 1 "whole skull."
South of Starvation Cove 1
Furthest South known crewman. Found 5 miles South of Starvation Cove by the local Inuit who searched the area during Schwatka's expedition. This individual was not in a grave but lying on the surface.
Wednesday, October 25, 2017
Supunger's Victory Point Grave and Tomb
Is there a tomb near Victory Point or just one grave?
Schwatka's expedition found an open grave at Crozier's Landing. The grave was built on the surface by arranging stones in a rectangular pattern and then closing off the top with flat slabs. This grave is often attributed to Lieutenant John Irving based on:
1) Blue cloth and gilt buttons present in the grave indicating the grave belonged to an officer.
2) A medal with John Irving's name on it being found at the edge of the grave.
Charles Hall collected testimony from an Inuit man named Supunger who visited the same area and also described finding a grave. However, Hall recorded Supunger as describing a much more elaborate tomb dug into the ground and marked with a large wooden post.
Eyewitness testimony of the grave (or graves) found at or near Victory Point is given below.
Credit must be given to Dr Russell Potter of Rhode Island College and David C. Woodman for transcribing and publishing the text in Charles Hall's notebooks kept at the Smithsonian. These notebooks have been a valuable source of eyewitness accounts.
The Grave Found By Schwatka's Party
William H. Gilder, Schwatka's Search: Sledging the Arctic in Quest of the Franklin Records Kessinger Publishing, Page 61
CHAPTER VIII.
IRVING's GRAVE.
The next day we stayed at Cape Jane Franklin to make a preliminary search of the vicinity. Lieutenant Schwatka and I went up Collinson Inlet, but saw no traces of white men. Henry and Frank, who had been sent up the coast, were more fortunate. About a mile and a half above camp they came upon the camp made by Captain Crozier, with his entire command from the two ships, after abandoning the vessels. There were several cooking stoves, with their accompanying copper
kettles, besides clothing, blankets, canvas, iron and brass implements, and an open grave, wherein was found a quantity of blue cloth, part of which seemed to have been a heavy overcoat, and a part probably wrapped around the body. There was also a large quantity of canvas in and around the grave, with coarse stitching through it and the cloth, as though the body had been incased as if for burial at sea. Several gilt buttons were found among the rotting cloth and mould in the bottom
of the grave, and a lens, apparently the object-glass of a marine telescope. Upon one of the stones at the foot of the grave Henry found a medal, which was thickly covered with grime, and was so much the color of the clay stone on which it rested as to nearly escape detection. It proved to be a silver medal, two and a half inches in diameter, with a bass-relief portrait of George IV., surrounded by the words,
GEORGIUS IIII., D. G. BRITTANNIARUM REX, 1820.
on the obverse, and on the reverse a laurel wreath surrounded by
SECOND MATHEMATICAL PRIZE, ROYAL NAVAL COLLEGE,
and in closing
AWARDED TO JOHN IRVING. MID-SUMMER, 1880.
This at once identified the grave as that of Lieutenant John Irving, third officer of the Terror. Under the head was found a figured silk pocket-handkerchief, neatly folded, the colors and pattern in a remarkable state of preservation. The skull and a few other bones only were found in and near by the grave. They were carefully gathered together, with a few pieces of the cloth and the other articles, to be brought away for interment where they may hereafter rest undisturbed. A re-burial on King William Land would be only until the grave was again found by the natives, when it would certainly be again torn open and despoiled
Lieutenant Frederick Schwatka The Long Arctic Search
The Marine Historical Society Inc, 1965, Page 82
"The reader must remember that nearly all Arctic graves are built upon the surface, being side walled with large stones collected in the vicinity. No doubt, the natives had broken open the grave to obtain whatever articles contained, but the medal, which identified the grave, fortunately had eluded their vigilance.
Just outside the broken down walls of the grave, we came upon the skull. The larger bones were scattered over a wide area; the smaller and more perishable ones having been completely lost. In grave was found the object-glass of a marine telescope, and a few officer's gilt-buttons stamped with an anchor and surrounded by a crown. Under the head was a colored silk handkerchief, still in a fair state of preservation, and many pieces of coarsely stitched canvas, showing that this had been used as a receptacle for the body when interred. From this fact I inferred that the body had never been buried from the ships, where sufficient work (especially after they had determined upon abandonment) could have been procured to construct a coffin; but Lieut. Irving belong to a party that had returned to the ships, after it had become evident that all could not escape, as they had originally thought when they first abandoned them.
The skull and a few other bones were found in and nearby the grave. They were carefully gathered together, with a few pieces of cloth and other articles, to be brought home for interment where they may hereafter rest undisturbed. A reburial on King William Land would be only until the grave was again opened by the natives and despoiled."
Heinrich Klutschak Overland To Starvation Cove, In search of Franklin
University of Toronto Press 1987, Page 83
"...I spotted a cairn and near it a human skull. It was a grave made of flat slabs of sandstone, like a grave vault but built above ground. It had once been covered but had obviously been subjected to search. The skull (indisputably that of a white man) lay outside, along with other human bones. Inside the grave a luxuriant growth of moss was flourishing on some remnants of cloth which, judging by the buttons and fine texture, had once belonged to an English officer's uniform. A silk handkerchief in a remarkably good state of preservation lay at the head end and above it on a rock a silver medal measuring 2 1/2 to 2 3/4 inches in diameter lay openly exposed."
The Grave Found By The Inuit
Testimony of Supunger:
From the notes of Charles Hall
http://visionsnorth.blogspot.com/2009/10/franklin-memorial.html
http://www.ric.edu/faculty/rpotter/temp/Schwatka_and_Supunger.pdf
First Interview:
"He said that near the sea ice was a large tupik of same kind of material as that now covering the habitation of E-bier-bing & Too-koo-li-too ... (after the dome of his Igloo fell in last evening, [Ebierbing] spread a canvas over the walls so that he has a Kong-mong (Half tupik & half Igloo.)) A little way inland from this tupik wh. was not erect but prostrate he & his uncle came to place where they found a skeleton of a Kob-lu-na (white man) some parts of it having clothing on while other parts were without any it having been torn off by wolves or foxes. Near this skeleton they saw a stick standing erect wh. had been broken off - the part broken off lying close by. From the appearance both he & his uncle thought the stick, or rather small pillar or post, had been broken off by a Ni-noo (polar bear) on taking hold of that part of the wooden pillar wh. was erect they found it firmly fixed - could not move it a bit. But what attracted their attention the most on arriving at this pillar was a stone - or rather several large flat stones lying flat on the sandy ground & tight to-gether. After much labor one of these stones was loosened from its carefully fixed position & by great exertions of both nephew & uncle the stone was lifted up a little at one edge just sufficient that they could see that another tier of large flat stones firmly & tightly fitted together was underneath. This discouraged them in their purpose wh. was to remove the stones to see what had been buried there for they was [sic] quite sure that something valuable was underneath.”
Second Interview:
"Monday, June 4, 1866. An interview with Su-pung-er who with his family (natives of Pelly Bay) came with us keeping with our company most of the way from Lat. 68F8-00-00 N, Long. 88F8-17'-15" W (where I & my party met them) to this place. 3h-00 P.M. Present Su-pung-er, myself, my good Too-koo-li-too & the widow Mam-mark. Su-pung-er had just told us that when he & his uncle were on Ki-ik-tung (as the natives denominate King Williams Land) they saw something that was a great curiosity to them & they could not make out what it was for. From his description of it, Too-koo-li-too suggests that it was a cook stove - it was very heavy & all iron. It had on one side or end a great many small pieces of iron close enough together to make it look something like spears - fish spears. By his language & symbolizing, these pieces of iron can be none other than a grate in the stove for burning hard coal. There were several heavy Oot-koo-seeks (kettles) with handles or bales. Too-koo-li-too has asked Su-pung-er why he did not get these kettles. He answers that he & uncle had as much of other things as they could carry & these Oot-koo-seeks were very heavy. Su-pung-er himself had 3 Boats oars & a mast besides some smaller articles that he found. The place where this curiosity (stove) was, was close by the large tu-pik (tent). The tent they found was close by the coast above Back's Bay, not far from Victory Point as Su-pung-er has shown on the chart that I placed before him. A little back (inland) from the tent, was where his uncle 1st found a large piece of wood - a post or pillar sticking up & this drew his uncle's attention to something by it. The pillar was broken off. They both thought it had been broken off by a Ni-noo. This post or pillar was sticking upright in the ground & was beside some flat stones that were very tight to-gether. They thought there must be something covered up by these stones & they tried very hard to get one loose. There was a hole near one end that appeared to have been made by some strong wild animal. After trying to raise one of these stones & failing they went back to where the tupik was. After a while they concluded to go & make other attempts to raise some of the stones where the pillar was found. At last they were successful in raising enough of the stones to see what they covered up. They found a hole of the depth from the feet up to the navel & of a length more than a man's height & wider than the width of a man's shoulders & this was all nicely walled with flat stones placed one above another, flatwise. In this vault they found a clasp knife, a skeleton bone of a man's leg & a human head (skull). There was much water, mud & sand at the bottom of the vault. The sand had been carried in by water, as they thought, running in at the hole that had been made by the wild animal on one side of the vault. Near this vault they saw parts of a human skeleton with fragments of clothing on the limbs. There was no head about these skeleton bones & Su-pung-er & his uncle concluded that the same wild animal that had made the hole in the vault had taken these skeleton bones out of the vault & dragged them where he & his uncle saw them. Su-pung-er had on this page at my desire just been marking out with my pen the vault covered with stones. It is a very rude draft as Nuk-er-zhoo (who happened to come in at the time Su-pung-er was making it) placed his finger on this plan before the ink had dried thus defacing it. I will have Su-pung-er make another & then proceed to describe it."
Testimony of Ockarnawole
William H. Gilder, Schwatka's Search: Sledging the Arctic in Quest of the Franklin RecordsKessinger Publishing, Page 56
"An old Netchillik, named Ockarnawole, stated that five years ago he and his son, who was also present in the igloo, made an excursion along the north-western coast of King William Land. Between Victory Point and Cape Felix they found some things in a small cask near the salt water. In a monument that he did not take down, he found between the stones five jack-knives and a pair of scissors, also a small flat piece of tin, now lost; saw no graves at this place, but found what, from his description of the way the handle was put on, was either an adze or a pickaxe. A little north of this place found a tent place and three tin cups. About Victory Point found a grave, with a skeleton, clothes, and a jack-knife with one blade broken. Saw no books. In a little bay on the north side of Collinson Inlet saw a quantity of clothes. There was plenty of snow on the ground at the time they were there. Viewing this statement in the light of our subsequent search upon this ground, I am inclined to believe that the grave they found was not at Victory Point, but was Irving's grave, about three miles below there. We saw no evidence of any grave at Victory Point, though we made a particularly extended search around that entire section of the country. The little bay spoken of is also probably the little bay where Lieutenant Irving's grave was discovered. There is a little bay on the north side of Collinson Inlet, but Lieutenant Schwatka and I visited it several times without finding any traces of clothing or any other evidences of white men having been there; and from what we saw at other places it seems almost impossible that there could have been much there as late as five years ago without some indications remaining. The vicinity of places where boats had been destroyed, or camps where clothing was found, were invariably indicated by pieces of cloth among the rocks, at greater or less intervals, for a long distance--sometimes as far as one or two miles on either side, and it would be almost impossible to escape seeing the principal point when led to it by such gradually cumulative evidence."
 |
| Sketch by Heinrich Klutschak |
Schwatka's expedition found an open grave at Crozier's Landing. The grave was built on the surface by arranging stones in a rectangular pattern and then closing off the top with flat slabs. This grave is often attributed to Lieutenant John Irving based on:
1) Blue cloth and gilt buttons present in the grave indicating the grave belonged to an officer.
2) A medal with John Irving's name on it being found at the edge of the grave.
Charles Hall collected testimony from an Inuit man named Supunger who visited the same area and also described finding a grave. However, Hall recorded Supunger as describing a much more elaborate tomb dug into the ground and marked with a large wooden post.
Eyewitness testimony of the grave (or graves) found at or near Victory Point is given below.
Credit must be given to Dr Russell Potter of Rhode Island College and David C. Woodman for transcribing and publishing the text in Charles Hall's notebooks kept at the Smithsonian. These notebooks have been a valuable source of eyewitness accounts.
The Grave Found By Schwatka's Party
William H. Gilder, Schwatka's Search: Sledging the Arctic in Quest of the Franklin Records Kessinger Publishing, Page 61
CHAPTER VIII.
IRVING's GRAVE.
The next day we stayed at Cape Jane Franklin to make a preliminary search of the vicinity. Lieutenant Schwatka and I went up Collinson Inlet, but saw no traces of white men. Henry and Frank, who had been sent up the coast, were more fortunate. About a mile and a half above camp they came upon the camp made by Captain Crozier, with his entire command from the two ships, after abandoning the vessels. There were several cooking stoves, with their accompanying copper
kettles, besides clothing, blankets, canvas, iron and brass implements, and an open grave, wherein was found a quantity of blue cloth, part of which seemed to have been a heavy overcoat, and a part probably wrapped around the body. There was also a large quantity of canvas in and around the grave, with coarse stitching through it and the cloth, as though the body had been incased as if for burial at sea. Several gilt buttons were found among the rotting cloth and mould in the bottom
of the grave, and a lens, apparently the object-glass of a marine telescope. Upon one of the stones at the foot of the grave Henry found a medal, which was thickly covered with grime, and was so much the color of the clay stone on which it rested as to nearly escape detection. It proved to be a silver medal, two and a half inches in diameter, with a bass-relief portrait of George IV., surrounded by the words,
GEORGIUS IIII., D. G. BRITTANNIARUM REX, 1820.
on the obverse, and on the reverse a laurel wreath surrounded by
SECOND MATHEMATICAL PRIZE, ROYAL NAVAL COLLEGE,
and in closing
AWARDED TO JOHN IRVING. MID-SUMMER, 1880.
This at once identified the grave as that of Lieutenant John Irving, third officer of the Terror. Under the head was found a figured silk pocket-handkerchief, neatly folded, the colors and pattern in a remarkable state of preservation. The skull and a few other bones only were found in and near by the grave. They were carefully gathered together, with a few pieces of the cloth and the other articles, to be brought away for interment where they may hereafter rest undisturbed. A re-burial on King William Land would be only until the grave was again found by the natives, when it would certainly be again torn open and despoiled
Lieutenant Frederick Schwatka The Long Arctic Search
The Marine Historical Society Inc, 1965, Page 82
"The reader must remember that nearly all Arctic graves are built upon the surface, being side walled with large stones collected in the vicinity. No doubt, the natives had broken open the grave to obtain whatever articles contained, but the medal, which identified the grave, fortunately had eluded their vigilance.
Just outside the broken down walls of the grave, we came upon the skull. The larger bones were scattered over a wide area; the smaller and more perishable ones having been completely lost. In grave was found the object-glass of a marine telescope, and a few officer's gilt-buttons stamped with an anchor and surrounded by a crown. Under the head was a colored silk handkerchief, still in a fair state of preservation, and many pieces of coarsely stitched canvas, showing that this had been used as a receptacle for the body when interred. From this fact I inferred that the body had never been buried from the ships, where sufficient work (especially after they had determined upon abandonment) could have been procured to construct a coffin; but Lieut. Irving belong to a party that had returned to the ships, after it had become evident that all could not escape, as they had originally thought when they first abandoned them.
The skull and a few other bones were found in and nearby the grave. They were carefully gathered together, with a few pieces of cloth and other articles, to be brought home for interment where they may hereafter rest undisturbed. A reburial on King William Land would be only until the grave was again opened by the natives and despoiled."
Heinrich Klutschak Overland To Starvation Cove, In search of Franklin
University of Toronto Press 1987, Page 83
"...I spotted a cairn and near it a human skull. It was a grave made of flat slabs of sandstone, like a grave vault but built above ground. It had once been covered but had obviously been subjected to search. The skull (indisputably that of a white man) lay outside, along with other human bones. Inside the grave a luxuriant growth of moss was flourishing on some remnants of cloth which, judging by the buttons and fine texture, had once belonged to an English officer's uniform. A silk handkerchief in a remarkably good state of preservation lay at the head end and above it on a rock a silver medal measuring 2 1/2 to 2 3/4 inches in diameter lay openly exposed."
The Grave Found By The Inuit
Testimony of Supunger:
From the notes of Charles Hall
http://visionsnorth.blogspot.com/2009/10/franklin-memorial.html
http://www.ric.edu/faculty/rpotter/temp/Schwatka_and_Supunger.pdf
First Interview:
"He said that near the sea ice was a large tupik of same kind of material as that now covering the habitation of E-bier-bing & Too-koo-li-too ... (after the dome of his Igloo fell in last evening, [Ebierbing] spread a canvas over the walls so that he has a Kong-mong (Half tupik & half Igloo.)) A little way inland from this tupik wh. was not erect but prostrate he & his uncle came to place where they found a skeleton of a Kob-lu-na (white man) some parts of it having clothing on while other parts were without any it having been torn off by wolves or foxes. Near this skeleton they saw a stick standing erect wh. had been broken off - the part broken off lying close by. From the appearance both he & his uncle thought the stick, or rather small pillar or post, had been broken off by a Ni-noo (polar bear) on taking hold of that part of the wooden pillar wh. was erect they found it firmly fixed - could not move it a bit. But what attracted their attention the most on arriving at this pillar was a stone - or rather several large flat stones lying flat on the sandy ground & tight to-gether. After much labor one of these stones was loosened from its carefully fixed position & by great exertions of both nephew & uncle the stone was lifted up a little at one edge just sufficient that they could see that another tier of large flat stones firmly & tightly fitted together was underneath. This discouraged them in their purpose wh. was to remove the stones to see what had been buried there for they was [sic] quite sure that something valuable was underneath.”
Second Interview:
"Monday, June 4, 1866. An interview with Su-pung-er who with his family (natives of Pelly Bay) came with us keeping with our company most of the way from Lat. 68F8-00-00 N, Long. 88F8-17'-15" W (where I & my party met them) to this place. 3h-00 P.M. Present Su-pung-er, myself, my good Too-koo-li-too & the widow Mam-mark. Su-pung-er had just told us that when he & his uncle were on Ki-ik-tung (as the natives denominate King Williams Land) they saw something that was a great curiosity to them & they could not make out what it was for. From his description of it, Too-koo-li-too suggests that it was a cook stove - it was very heavy & all iron. It had on one side or end a great many small pieces of iron close enough together to make it look something like spears - fish spears. By his language & symbolizing, these pieces of iron can be none other than a grate in the stove for burning hard coal. There were several heavy Oot-koo-seeks (kettles) with handles or bales. Too-koo-li-too has asked Su-pung-er why he did not get these kettles. He answers that he & uncle had as much of other things as they could carry & these Oot-koo-seeks were very heavy. Su-pung-er himself had 3 Boats oars & a mast besides some smaller articles that he found. The place where this curiosity (stove) was, was close by the large tu-pik (tent). The tent they found was close by the coast above Back's Bay, not far from Victory Point as Su-pung-er has shown on the chart that I placed before him. A little back (inland) from the tent, was where his uncle 1st found a large piece of wood - a post or pillar sticking up & this drew his uncle's attention to something by it. The pillar was broken off. They both thought it had been broken off by a Ni-noo. This post or pillar was sticking upright in the ground & was beside some flat stones that were very tight to-gether. They thought there must be something covered up by these stones & they tried very hard to get one loose. There was a hole near one end that appeared to have been made by some strong wild animal. After trying to raise one of these stones & failing they went back to where the tupik was. After a while they concluded to go & make other attempts to raise some of the stones where the pillar was found. At last they were successful in raising enough of the stones to see what they covered up. They found a hole of the depth from the feet up to the navel & of a length more than a man's height & wider than the width of a man's shoulders & this was all nicely walled with flat stones placed one above another, flatwise. In this vault they found a clasp knife, a skeleton bone of a man's leg & a human head (skull). There was much water, mud & sand at the bottom of the vault. The sand had been carried in by water, as they thought, running in at the hole that had been made by the wild animal on one side of the vault. Near this vault they saw parts of a human skeleton with fragments of clothing on the limbs. There was no head about these skeleton bones & Su-pung-er & his uncle concluded that the same wild animal that had made the hole in the vault had taken these skeleton bones out of the vault & dragged them where he & his uncle saw them. Su-pung-er had on this page at my desire just been marking out with my pen the vault covered with stones. It is a very rude draft as Nuk-er-zhoo (who happened to come in at the time Su-pung-er was making it) placed his finger on this plan before the ink had dried thus defacing it. I will have Su-pung-er make another & then proceed to describe it."
Testimony of Ockarnawole
William H. Gilder, Schwatka's Search: Sledging the Arctic in Quest of the Franklin RecordsKessinger Publishing, Page 56
"An old Netchillik, named Ockarnawole, stated that five years ago he and his son, who was also present in the igloo, made an excursion along the north-western coast of King William Land. Between Victory Point and Cape Felix they found some things in a small cask near the salt water. In a monument that he did not take down, he found between the stones five jack-knives and a pair of scissors, also a small flat piece of tin, now lost; saw no graves at this place, but found what, from his description of the way the handle was put on, was either an adze or a pickaxe. A little north of this place found a tent place and three tin cups. About Victory Point found a grave, with a skeleton, clothes, and a jack-knife with one blade broken. Saw no books. In a little bay on the north side of Collinson Inlet saw a quantity of clothes. There was plenty of snow on the ground at the time they were there. Viewing this statement in the light of our subsequent search upon this ground, I am inclined to believe that the grave they found was not at Victory Point, but was Irving's grave, about three miles below there. We saw no evidence of any grave at Victory Point, though we made a particularly extended search around that entire section of the country. The little bay spoken of is also probably the little bay where Lieutenant Irving's grave was discovered. There is a little bay on the north side of Collinson Inlet, but Lieutenant Schwatka and I visited it several times without finding any traces of clothing or any other evidences of white men having been there; and from what we saw at other places it seems almost impossible that there could have been much there as late as five years ago without some indications remaining. The vicinity of places where boats had been destroyed, or camps where clothing was found, were invariably indicated by pieces of cloth among the rocks, at greater or less intervals, for a long distance--sometimes as far as one or two miles on either side, and it would be almost impossible to escape seeing the principal point when led to it by such gradually cumulative evidence."
Monday, March 9, 2015
Franklin Expedition Links
A list of online resources, especially books and papers, that would be useful to anyone who is starting to build their own Franklin library.
Books available online:
The Voyage of the Fox, by Sir Francis Leopold McClintock, 1860
McClintock's expedition found the boat in Erebus Bay and the Victory Point note.
Schwatka's search, by William Henry Gilder, New York, 1881
Schwatka's expedition visited Starvation Cove, searched King William Island and interviewed an Inuit man who had been on board HMS Erebus when she was found West of Adelaide peninsula.
The Search For Franklin, A narrative of the American expedition under lieutenant Schwatka. 1899
Schwatka's account of his search expedition.
Narrative of the second Arctic expedition made by Charles F. Hall, by Nourse, Washington, 1879
C. F. Hall's search for Franklin and life with the Inuit. Hall eventually reached the southeast corner of King William Island.
Lieut. John Irving, R.N., of H.M.S. "Terror," in Sir John Franklin's last expedition to the Arctic regions :a memorial sketch with letters. Edinburgh : D. Douglas, 1881. Includes letters written by Lt. Irving sent back from Greenland in 1845. Two sketches drawn by Irving are included. (Thanks to Russell Potter for finding this copy).
The carreer, last voyage and fate, of Captain Sir John Franklin, by Sherard Osborn, London 1860
Famous voyagers and explorers, by Sarah Knowles Bolton, 1893
Articles from past issues of The Beaver:
Sir John Franklin's Last Voyage, by William Gibson, June 1937. Gibson found 7 skulls located on an islet in Douglas Bay (South shore of KWI) along with fragments of oak and pine.
Footnotes to the Franklin Search, Spring 1955. Information and drawings of Halkett inflatable boats. A photograph of Dr John Rae's own Halkett boat is shown. The Inuit described an inflatable Halkett boat to Hall that may have been used by Franklin survivors.
Rae's Franklin Relics, by Robert Kerr, March 1954. A note on artifacts recovered by Dr Rae.
A Further Clue in the Franklin Mystery, by W. G. McKenzie, 1969. Land and sea search of O'Reilly Island.
Articles from Arctic:
The “Boat Place” Burial: New Skeletal Evidence from the 1845 Franklin Expedition (pdf file), Excavation of the remains found at McClintock's Boat Place. "In 2013, a burial feature was excavated at NgLj-3, a Franklin expedition archaeological site on the Erebus Bay coast of King William Island. The feature contained 72 human bones representing a minimum of three individuals" Published 2015.
Notes on Franklin relics (pdf), Learnmonth L. A., Arctic, 1948. This article discusses the discovery of Franklin remains found northwest of Starvation Cove.
The final days of the Franklin expedition : new skeletal evidence (pdf file), Keenleyside, Bertulli and Fricke, 1997. Examination of approximately 400 human bone fragments found in Erebus Bay, King William Island. These remains came from 11 individuals. Curiously one of these is estimated to be between 12 and 15 years old at the time of death. This reports provides definitive evidence of cannibalism amoung Franklin survivors.
The route of Sir John Franklin's third Arctic expedition : an evaluation and test of an alternative hypothesis (pdf file), Hickey, Savelle and Hobson, 1993. An examination of possible routes taken by the Erebus and Terror during the summer of 1846. Notably down McClintock Channel.
Papers From Other Sources:
Identification of the Probable Source of the Lead Poisoning Observed in Members of the Franklin Expedition (pdf file), by William Battersby, Journal of the Hakluyt Society, September 2008. This paper examines the fresh water distillation systems of the Erebus and Terror as a potential source of Lead poisoning. (Other arctic expeditions carried tinned food supplies similar to those used by Franklin's men yet these expeditions did not seem to suffer any ill effects because of this).
Oldest Canned Food In The World? New Scientist, Dr. F. H. Banfield, May 5, 1960, page 1138. Three historic tins of preserved food are opened, examined and eventually tasted. This includes a 7-pound tin of veal manufactured in 1823 for Parry's expedition. Data on lead and metal content is included.
Websites:
Erebus & Terror Files, by Peter Carney. Original research on the details of the ships themselves and other issues such as lead poisoning.
The Fate of Franklin, Russell Potter's extensive website about the Franklin Expedition. The website includes the results of recent searches. Many more interesting links can be found at this website. I have chosen not to repeat them here. Russell appeared in PBS' 2004 Nova episode Arctic Passage.
Visions of the North, Russell Potter's blog site about the lost expedition of Sir John Franklin and other arctic topics. Russell has published a number of very interesting entries on this website. A number of these entries, such as The Mystery of the 'Peglar' Papers, contain rarely seen information.
Books available online:
The Voyage of the Fox, by Sir Francis Leopold McClintock, 1860
McClintock's expedition found the boat in Erebus Bay and the Victory Point note.
Schwatka's search, by William Henry Gilder, New York, 1881
Schwatka's expedition visited Starvation Cove, searched King William Island and interviewed an Inuit man who had been on board HMS Erebus when she was found West of Adelaide peninsula.
The Search For Franklin, A narrative of the American expedition under lieutenant Schwatka. 1899
Schwatka's account of his search expedition.
Narrative of the second Arctic expedition made by Charles F. Hall, by Nourse, Washington, 1879
C. F. Hall's search for Franklin and life with the Inuit. Hall eventually reached the southeast corner of King William Island.
Lieut. John Irving, R.N., of H.M.S. "Terror," in Sir John Franklin's last expedition to the Arctic regions :a memorial sketch with letters. Edinburgh : D. Douglas, 1881. Includes letters written by Lt. Irving sent back from Greenland in 1845. Two sketches drawn by Irving are included. (Thanks to Russell Potter for finding this copy).
The carreer, last voyage and fate, of Captain Sir John Franklin, by Sherard Osborn, London 1860
Famous voyagers and explorers, by Sarah Knowles Bolton, 1893
Articles from past issues of The Beaver:
Sir John Franklin's Last Voyage, by William Gibson, June 1937. Gibson found 7 skulls located on an islet in Douglas Bay (South shore of KWI) along with fragments of oak and pine.
Footnotes to the Franklin Search, Spring 1955. Information and drawings of Halkett inflatable boats. A photograph of Dr John Rae's own Halkett boat is shown. The Inuit described an inflatable Halkett boat to Hall that may have been used by Franklin survivors.
Rae's Franklin Relics, by Robert Kerr, March 1954. A note on artifacts recovered by Dr Rae.
A Further Clue in the Franklin Mystery, by W. G. McKenzie, 1969. Land and sea search of O'Reilly Island.
Articles from Arctic:
The “Boat Place” Burial: New Skeletal Evidence from the 1845 Franklin Expedition (pdf file), Excavation of the remains found at McClintock's Boat Place. "In 2013, a burial feature was excavated at NgLj-3, a Franklin expedition archaeological site on the Erebus Bay coast of King William Island. The feature contained 72 human bones representing a minimum of three individuals" Published 2015.
Notes on Franklin relics (pdf), Learnmonth L. A., Arctic, 1948. This article discusses the discovery of Franklin remains found northwest of Starvation Cove.
The final days of the Franklin expedition : new skeletal evidence (pdf file), Keenleyside, Bertulli and Fricke, 1997. Examination of approximately 400 human bone fragments found in Erebus Bay, King William Island. These remains came from 11 individuals. Curiously one of these is estimated to be between 12 and 15 years old at the time of death. This reports provides definitive evidence of cannibalism amoung Franklin survivors.
The route of Sir John Franklin's third Arctic expedition : an evaluation and test of an alternative hypothesis (pdf file), Hickey, Savelle and Hobson, 1993. An examination of possible routes taken by the Erebus and Terror during the summer of 1846. Notably down McClintock Channel.
Papers From Other Sources:
Identification of the Probable Source of the Lead Poisoning Observed in Members of the Franklin Expedition (pdf file), by William Battersby, Journal of the Hakluyt Society, September 2008. This paper examines the fresh water distillation systems of the Erebus and Terror as a potential source of Lead poisoning. (Other arctic expeditions carried tinned food supplies similar to those used by Franklin's men yet these expeditions did not seem to suffer any ill effects because of this).
Oldest Canned Food In The World? New Scientist, Dr. F. H. Banfield, May 5, 1960, page 1138. Three historic tins of preserved food are opened, examined and eventually tasted. This includes a 7-pound tin of veal manufactured in 1823 for Parry's expedition. Data on lead and metal content is included.
Websites:
Erebus & Terror Files, by Peter Carney. Original research on the details of the ships themselves and other issues such as lead poisoning.
The Fate of Franklin, Russell Potter's extensive website about the Franklin Expedition. The website includes the results of recent searches. Many more interesting links can be found at this website. I have chosen not to repeat them here. Russell appeared in PBS' 2004 Nova episode Arctic Passage.
Visions of the North, Russell Potter's blog site about the lost expedition of Sir John Franklin and other arctic topics. Russell has published a number of very interesting entries on this website. A number of these entries, such as The Mystery of the 'Peglar' Papers, contain rarely seen information.
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