A group of researchers hailing from the University of Waterloo have conclusively verified the identities of four sailors from the tragic Franklin Expedition, resolving a longstanding debate that spanned over a century.
The discovery took place in May 1859 when British Navy explorer Francis Leopold McClintock stumbled upon a bleached skeleton on Gladman Point, approximately 75 kilometers west of today’s Nunavut hamlet, Gjoa Haven. Among the remains were various documents, including poems, letters, and a seaman’s certificate belonging to Harry Peglar, a petty officer on the ill-fated HMS Terror.
The Franklin Expedition, involving the HMS Terror and HMS Erebus, famously ended in disaster during an attempt to navigate the Northwest Passage. Trapped in ice for over two years, the crews abandoned their ships and faced extreme hardships, including resorting to cannibalism, in a futile search for civilization, resulting in the loss of all 129 crew members.
After a century of speculation regarding the identity of the remains found by McClintock, a team of anthropologists from the University of Waterloo initiated a search for living descendants of the Franklin expedition crew. Recently, they confirmed a match, identifying Henry Peglar as one of the deceased sailors recovered from Gladman Point.
Henry Peglar is now the sole confirmed sailor from the Terror, with researchers utilizing similar methods to identify several crew members from the Erebus. Notably, the bodies of William Orren, David Young, and John Bridgens were found 130 kilometers away from Peglar’s remains.
Through genetic analysis, the researchers continue to uncover the identities of the expedition’s lost members, shedding new light on this tragic chapter of Arctic exploration history. This scientific endeavor not only honors the memory of those lost but also connects modern-day descendants to their ancestors’ harrowing journey, highlighting the enduring relevance of this historic expedition.
