Scottish doctor and explorer John Rae is a controversial figure in the
history of the Arctic. He began his career with the Hudson's Bay Company
as a surgeon in Moose Factory, Ontario, where he learned to survey, live
off the land, and travel great distances on snowshoes. These skills
served him well when, in 1846, he was charged with completing the
geography of the northern shore of North America and set out on his
first expedition. Some years later, while exploring the Boothia
Peninsula in 1854, Rae obtained information about the rather shocking
fate of the Franklin expedition, which had been missing since 1845. Upon
his return to England, however, Rae was discredited by Charles Dickens
and shunned by the British establishment, never receiving proper
recognition for his roles in finding the Northwest Passage and
discovering the fate of Franklin and his crew.
The Arctic Journals of John Rae is the definitive collection of John
Rae's writings, from his only published work, Narrative of an
Expedition to the Shores of the Arctic Sea in 1846 and 1847, to obscure
notes and journals and reports of his controversial findings in 1854. An
accomplished explorer who had great respect for the customs and skills
of the peoples native to the Arctic, John Rae is a fascinating figure
and an important part of the history of the North.
