Polar Pathways: Robert E. Peary's Arctic Expeditions
1891- Red Cliff House
Red Cliff House
Life in McCormick Bay
was difficult and Peary's party desperately needed a house. Given harsh northernly
winds, an uneven terrain, and icy surroundings, finding a proper
place for the house was challenging. However, Josephine Peary, demonstrating
her characteristic good-sense, eventually selected a location on the South
Shore. It was named Red Cliff House for the vibrant coloring of the nearby
red cliffs.
“The construction of my house had been the subject of much study. I wished
to attain a minimum of weight and size with a maximum of strength, warmth,
and comfort... As finally completed, the house consisted of an inner and an
outer shell, separated by an air-space, formed by the frames of the house and
varying from ten inches at the sides to over three feet in the center of the
roof… [the]
inner shell was lined throughout with heavy red Indian blankets. This made
the interior as warm and cosey in appearance as could be desired, amply comfortable,
for summer and early-fall weather. It was still, however, not in condition
to protect us from the indescribable fury of the storms of the arctic winter
night… to
render it impregnable to these, a wall was built entirely around the house,
about four feet distant from it.”
- Robert E. Peary, Northward over the Great Ice, published in 1898
"Red Cliff House" credited to Robert E. Peary, Peary-MacMillan Arctic Museum Collections
