Ice ghosts : the epic hunt for the lost Franklin expedition /

Ice ghosts : the epic hunt for the lost Franklin expedition /

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Bibliographic Details
Author / Creator:	Watson, Paul, 1959- author.
Edition:	First edition.
Imprint:	New York : W.W. Norton & Company, [2017] ©2017
Description:	xxxii, 384 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), maps ; 25 cm
Language:	English
Subject:	Franklin, John, -- 1786-1847. Franklin, John, -- 1786-1847. Erebus (Ship) Terror (Ship) Erebus (Ship) Terror (Ship) John Franklin Arctic Expedition -- (1845-1851) Inuit -- Arctic regions. Discovery and exploration, British. Shipwrecks. Northwest Passage -- Discovery and exploration -- British. Arctic regions -- Discovery and exploration -- British. Arctic Ocean -- Northwest Passage. Arctic Regions. Canada, Northern.
Format:	Print Book
URL for this record:	http://pi.lib.uchicago.edu/1001/cat/bib/11012901

Hidden Bibliographic Details
Varying Form of Title:	Epic hunt for the lost Franklin expedition
ISBN:	9780393249385 0393249387
Notes:	Includes bibliographical references (pages 349-367) and index.
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"-- 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.

Description
Summary:	Ice Ghosts weaves together the epic story of the Lost Franklin Expedition of 1845--whose two ships and crew of 129 were lost to the Arctic ice--with the tale of the incredible discovery of the flagship's wreck in 2014. Paul Watson, who was on the icebreaker that led the discovery expedition, tells a fast-paced historical adventure story: Sir John Franklin and the crew of the HMS Erebus and Terror setting off in search of the fabled Northwest Passage, the hazards they encountered and the reasons they were forced to abandon ship hundreds of miles from the nearest outpost of civilization, and the decades of searching that exposed rumours of cannibalism and a few scattered papers and bones--until a combination of Inuit lore and the latest science yielded a discovery for the ages.
Physical Description:	xxxii, 384 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), maps ; 25 cm
Bibliography:	Includes bibliographical references (pages 349-367) and index.
ISBN:	9780393249385 0393249387