Northern Waterways Reference Collection

Author: Franklin, Sir John and Sir John Richardson

Title: Narrative of a Second Expedition to the Shores of the Polar Sea, in the Years 1825, 1826, and 1827 (Including an Account of the Progress of a Detachment to the Eastward, by John Richardson)

Year: 1828

Publisher: Philadelphia: Carey, Lea, and Carey--Chestnut Street

Pages: 377

Source: Google Books  

Description: "Franklin entered the Royal Navy at the age of 14, went on his first exploratory voyage to Australia (1801-03), and served in the battles of Trafalgar (1805) and New Orleans (1814) ... In September 1846, during his final expedition, he became trapped in the ice in Victoria Strait, off King William Island (the midpoint between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans), which culminated, in April 1848, in the deaths of Franklin and 23 explorers" (Amazon).

"[In contrast to the first expedition]... the second expedition was carefully planned years in advance. Even though the rivalry between the fur companies had ended, the exploratory party took its own provision. And with the exception of two Inuit interpreters, the party consisted exclusively of hand-picked marine and naval personnel. In consequence of these preparations, no one suffered unduly from cold or hunger. All this planning eliminated the anxiety and sympathy excited in the public by the previous expedition, but in spite of the superior preparations, Franklin's branch of the undertaking charted less terra incognita than had been explored in the summer of 1821. Instead of pushing westward as far as Icy Cape to meet up with Captain Beechey, who had sailed through the Bering Straits, Franklin's men spent much of their time cautiously sitting on-shore waiting for the wind to blow the ice-pack out to sea, thereby creating a navigable passage. Sharply cognizant of the disaster that accompanied the tardy retreat of the previous expedition, Franklin understandably ordered his men to retrace their steps before they had accomplished their goal. And if these events did not fall sufficiently short of the British ideal of heroism, the results of this uneventful survey proved the coast too shallow to allow navigation by large sailing vessels stocked with trade goods, news that did not bode well for Britain's desire to stem the active trade the Russians were conducting from Alaska" (R. Davis, Studies in Canadian Literature).