Polar Pathways: Robert E. Peary's Arctic Expeditions

1891-The Party

 

party crew kite peary arctic expedition
The party, left to right: F. Cook, M. Henson, J. Verhoeff, E. Astrup, J. Peary, R. Peary, and L. Gibson

In addition to the crew of the Kite, 16 people journeyed to the North. Nine people, hailing from the Academy of Natural Sciences, formed the West Greenland Expedition. Seven other people formed the North Greenland Expedition and served as Peary’s hand-selected party. Peary’s party included Frederick Cook, a surgeon; Langdon Gibson, an ornithologist and hunter; Eivind Astrup, an avid athlete and skier; John Verhoeff, a mineralogist and meteorologist; and Matthew Henson. Henson had accompanied Peary on a previous trip to Nicaragua and had proved an invaluable traveling companion. Finally, Peary’s wife, Josephine Diebitsch Peary, joined the expedition.

“I had limited my own party to the number of men absolutely required for the work I proposed to do… They were all young, and, in addition to possessing first-class physique and perfect health, were men of education and attainments. I believe this to be the type of man best fitted to endure... the ordeal of the arctic winter, and to effectively execute a two or three months’ dash on sledges, where intelligent willpower, youthful elasticity, and enthusiasm rise superior to the solid endurance of muscles hardened by years of work.” - Robert E. Peary, Northward over the “Great Ice”, published in 1898

"The Party at the Cairn" by Robert E. Peary 1891, Northward over the “Great Ice” Vol. I and II. Frederick a. Stokes Company: New York, 1898.

« New York   |   1891 Map   |   Equipment and Food »

Bowdoin College