Ice ghosts : the epic hunt for the lost Franklin Expedition / Paul Watson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Watson, Paul, 1959- author.

Contributor:

Beverly Bennett Rutstein CW'50 Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

John Franklin Arctic Expedition (1845-1851).

John Franklin Arctic Expedition.

Erebus (Ship).

Terror (Ship).

Franklin, John, 1786-1847.

Franklin, John.

Shipwrecks.

Northwest Passage--Discovery and exploration--British.

Northwest Passage.

Arctic regions--Discovery and exploration--British.

Arctic regions.

Arctic Regions.

Discoveries in geography.

British.

Shipwrecks--Canada, Northern.

Arctic regions--Discovery and exploration.

Arctic regions--Discovery and exploration--British--Popular works.

Northern Canada.

Local Subjects:

Arctic regions--Discovery and exploration.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xxxii, 384 pages ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : W.W. Norton & Company, [2017]

Summary:

"A Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, author of Where War Lives, and expedition member, describes how an unlikely combination of marine science and Inuit knowledge helped solve the mystery of the lost Franklin expedition of 1845"-- NoveList.

The spellbinding story of the greatest cold case in Arctic history-- and how the rare mix of marine science and Inuit knowledge finally led to the recent discovery of the shipwrecks. Spanning nearly 200 years, this book weaves together an account of the legendary Franklin Expedition of 1845-- whose two ships, the HMS Erebus and the HMS Terror, and their crew of 129 were lost to the Arctic ice-- with the modern tale of the scientists, researchers, divers, and local Inuit behind the recent discoveries of the two ships, which made news around the world. The author, journalist Paul Watson, was on the icebreaker that led the expedition that discovered the HMS Erebus in 2014, and he broke the news of the discovery of the HMS Terror in 2016. In a masterful work of history and contemporary reporting, he tells the full story of the Franklin Expedition: Sir John Franklin and his crew setting off from England in search of the fabled Northwest Passage; the hazards they encountered and the reasons they were forced to abandon ship after getting stuck in the ice hundreds of miles from the nearest outpost of Western civilization; and the dozens of search expeditions over more than 160 years, which collectively have been called "the most extensive, expensive, perverse, and ill-starred ... manhunt in history." All that searching turned up a legendary trail of sailors' relics, a fabled note, a lifeboat with skeletons lying next to loaded rifles, and rumors of cannibalism ... but no sign of the ships until, finally, the discoveries in our own time. As Watson reveals, the epic hunt for the lost Franklin Expedition found success only when searchers combined the latest marine science with faith in Inuit lore that had been passed down orally for generations.--Adapted from jacket.

Contents:

The expedition. Franklin's last mission ; HMS "Erebus" and "Terror" ; Frozen in

The hunt. The hunt begins ; Lady Franklin's mission ; The Arctic Committee ; Ghost ships ; Starvation Cove

The discovery. An Inuk detective ; He Who Takes Long Strides ; Operation Franklin ; The hunt goes underwater ; Skull Island ; Fast ice ; "That's it!" ; Terror Bay ; An offering to the dead.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Beverly Bennett Rutstein CW'50 Fund.

ISBN:

9780393249385

0393249387

OCLC:

951070759

Publisher Number:

9780393249385