A Walk to the Pole

Mear, Roger. New York: Crown, 1987.
  • 1985-87 ‘Footsteps of Scott’ Expedition (Southern Quest).
  • Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
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Private British expedition tracing Scott’s trip in 1985, with Roger Mear, Robert Charles Swan, and Graeme Phippen, who walked from Cape Evans to the Pole. Did they have a copy of Cherry-Garrard with them? They quote from it frequently. They spent several days at Scott’s hut at Cape Evans, though they apparently were afraid to sleep in it. Given their views of the Scott expedition that may not be surprising.

Clement Markham: Longest Service Officer, Most Prolific Editor,

Savours, Ann. in Compassing the Vaste Globe of the Earth: Studies in the History of The Hakluyt Society, 1846-1996. (London: Hakluyt Society, 1996) p. 165-88.
  • Arctic Reading: Great Britain
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p. 168, on Markham’s 1850-51 Greenland expedition: Confined to a tent by a storm, he ‘Read Pickwick aloud, ate, drank, slept and read Johnson’s life of Pope, alternately. Had a duck and sandpipers stewed in green pea soup, for dinner.’ See Markham’s MS. Journal in the Royal Geographical Society, Archives, CRM 3. This entry is from 7 July 1851.

Greenland, the Adjacent Seas, and the North-West Passage to the Pacific Ocean. Illustrated in a Voyage to Davis’s Strait during the Summer of 1817.

O’Reilly, Bernard. New-York: James Eastburn & Co., 1818.
  • Whalemen's Reading
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O'Reilly served as surgeon aboard the whale-ship Thomas, in order to gather scientific information on the northern regions. He gives much information concerning Arctic zoology, whale fishery, natural atmospheric phenomena, observations of magnetic variation, the history and habitation of Greenland, and observations concerning the possibility of a Northwest Passage." Field - "The observations of the author on the natives of Greenland, are recorded on pp. 52 and 85, of which the last two are occupied with a vocabulary of their language. Five of the plates are illustrative of the features, or habits of life of the Exquimaux." According to Abbey an article in the 'Quarterly Review' called the book 'a bare faced imposition.' Stanton & Tremaine mentions the book is said to have been plagiarized from material prepared by Sir Charles L. M. von Giescke. See Kenneth Hill: The Hill Collection of Pacific Voyages. Three Volumes (San Diego: 1974-83). p. 219, and Thomas W Field: An Essay towards an Indian Bibliography. (Detroit: Gale, 1967). p. 297.

Seamen’s Missions: Their Origin and Early Growth.

Kverndal, Roald. (Pasadena, CA: William Carey Library, 1986).
  • Arctic Reading: Great Britain
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An important aspect of the provision of reading materials to seamen throughout the world was the work of religious organizations such as the American Seamen’s Friend Society and many others to present small libraries to both naval and merchant ships. The movement began in Scotland but quickly was established in the United States. I’ve aggregated the material on mission libraries and books here under Great Britain.

Papers Relating to Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (1817-1911), Director of Kew Gardens (1865-1885)

Sullivan, C. J. Archives: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. JDH/1/7: Antarctic Expeditions 1842-1903.
  • 1839-42 British Antarctic Expedition (James Clark Ross/Terror and Erebus).
  • Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
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This bound, indexed volume contains the following documents: papers and correspondence dated c.1887-1903 relating the National Antarctic Expedition of the HMS Discovery (1901-04) including a photograph of the ship; correspondence dated c.1842-43 by J. Davies, J. Savage and C. J. Sullivan whilst on HMS Erebus and HMS Terror (1839-1843) including some poetry by Sullivan; and a lecture (original manuscript and typed transcript) given by J.D. Hooker on this expedition at the Royal Institution of South Wales, Swansea on 17 June 1846.

A Voyage of Discovery and Research in the Southern and Antarctic Regions, during the Year 1839-43.

Ross, James Clark. Two volumes. London: John Murray, 1847.
  • 1839-42 British Antarctic Expedition (James Clark Ross/Terror and Erebus).
  • Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
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The author, who discovered the north magnetic pole on an earlier expedition, here describes his Antarctic voyages, in part in search for the south magnetic pole, in the ships Erebus and Terror. 'Ross' experience, daring and good luck combined to provide the first detailed, close-up and prolonged examination of Antarctica. . . He penetrated 7 degrees further south than Cook and 4 degrees further south than Weddell. Scott, Shackleton, Amundsen and Byrd all followed in his large footsteps. . . These men were heroes.' Joseph Hooker was aboard as naturalist and John Edward Davis was responsible for many of the illustrations.

Narrative of the Discoveries on the North Coast of America; Effected by the Officers of the Hudson’s Bay Company during the Years 1836-39.

Simpson, Thomas. London: Richard Bentley, 1843.
  • Arctic Reading: Canada
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From the introductory memoir of Simpson by his brother Alexander (p. xviii), following the death of Simpson at the hands of a few Métis: if, indeed, it pleased Providence to darken the spirit which had passed undaunted through so many we can but acknowledge that the decrees of God are inscrutable to mortals, and join in these beautiful lines of Cowper:

The Life of Charles Dickens.

Forster, John. Three Volumes. Boston, Estes and Lauriat, 1871.
  • Arctic Reading: Great Britain
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p. 482, from Volume III: It is also to be noted as in the same spirit, that it was not the loud but the silent heroisms he most admired. Of Sir John Richardson, one of the few who have lived in our days entitled to the name of a hero, he [Dickens] wrote from Paris in 1856. ‘Lady Franklin sent me the whole of that Richardson memoir; and I think Richardson’s manly friendship, and love of Franklin, one of the noblest things I ever knew in my life. It makes one’s heart beat high, with a sort of sacred joy.’ (It is the feeling as strongly awakened by the earlier exploits of the same gallant man to be found at the end of Franklin’s first voyage, and never to be read without the most exalted emotion.)

Shackleton Discovery Diaries. Vol. 1 Dec. 1901-1902.

Shackleton, Ernest. SPRI Ms 1537/3/4/1 and 2.
  • 1901-04 British National Antarctic Expedition (Scott aboard Discovery).
  • Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
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p. 5, Thursday [Dec] 26th: One of the officers of the “Ringarooraa” sent me Swinburne’s “Songs before Sunrise” and two volumes of the Poems and Ballads, but I don’t think there will be much time to read these during the summer; during the long winter far away from the teeming life of the great world one may calmly criticize his rather erotic lines.

A Gipsy of the Horn.

Clements, Rex. London: Hart-Davis, 1951. First edition. (London: Heath, Cranton, 1924).
  • Maritime Reading
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An account of a young mariners first voyage, including this passage on reading during a voyage around the world:

Pacific and Indian Oceans; or the South Sea Surveying and Exploring Expedition.

Reynolds, Jeremiah N. New York: Harper, 1841.
  • 1838-42 U.S. Exploring Expedition (Wilkes).
  • Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
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This volume includes a couple of Reynold’s works commenting on the preparation for the ExEx, from which he was eventually excluded. The volume includes reprints of two works previously published by the author: Address on the subject of a surveying and exploring expedition to the Pacific Ocean and South seas -- New York, 1836, and, Exploring expedition. Correspondance between J. N. Reynolds and the Hon. Mahlon Dickerson, under the respective signatures of "Citizen" and "Friend to the navy", touching the South sea surveying and exploring expedition -- [New York, 1838?] He never went to the Antarctic but his comments in preparation have peculiar interest.