Biography & Autobiography Adventurers & Explorers
Sir John Franklin
Expeditions to Destiny
- Publisher
- Heritage House Publishing
- Initial publish date
- Sep 2012
- Category
- Adventurers & Explorers, Expeditions & Discoveries, Polar Regions
- Recommended Age
- 9
- Recommended Grade
- 4
-
Paperback / softback
- ISBN
- 9781927051818
- Publish Date
- Sep 2012
- List Price
- $9.95
-
eBook
- ISBN
- 9781927051832
- Publish Date
- Sep 2012
- List Price
- $9.95
Classroom Resources
Where to buy it
Description
After Royal Navy captain Sir John Franklin disappeared in the Arctic in 1846 while seeking the Northwest Passage, the search for his two ships, Erebus and Terror, and survivors of his expedition became one of the most exhaustive quests of the 19th century. Despite tantalizing clues, the ships were never found, and the fate of Franklin’s expedition passed into legend as one of the North’s great and enduring mysteries.
Anthony Dalton explores the eventful and fascinating life of this complex and intelligent man, beginning with his early sea voyages and arduous overland explorations in the Arctic. After years in Malta and Tasmania, Franklin realized his dream of returning to the Far North; it would be his last expedition. Drawing from evidence found by 19th-century Arctic explorers following in Franklin’s footsteps and investigations by 20th-century historians and archaeologists, Dalton retraces the route of the lost ships and recounts the sad tale of Franklin, his officers and men in their final agonizing months.
About the author
Anthony Dalton is an adventurer, author and public speaker. Between 1970 and 1980 he led regular expeditions across the Sahara, through the deserts of the Middle East and into the mountainous terrain of Afghanistan. In 1984 he travelled hundreds of nautical miles along the Arctic coast of north-western Alaska alone in an inflatable speedboat. In 1994 he joined twelve members of the Cree First Nation on a traditional York boat voyage on the Hayes River between Norway House and Oxford House. While canoeing the second half of the Hayes River from Oxford House to York Factory in 2000 he participated in a television documentary on great Canadian rivers for the Discovery Channel.
Dalton has written five non-fiction books and collaborated on two others. His illustrated non-fiction articles have been published in magazines and newspapers in twenty countries and nine languages. He is currently working on two television documentaries based on his books.
Anthony Dalton is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, a Fellow of the Explorers Club, a Member of the Welsh Academy and National President of the Canadian Authors Association.
Librarian Reviews
Sir John Franklin: Expeditions to Destiny
This is the extraordinary story of the man who gave his life trying to find the Northwest Passage. Franklin’s early experiences sailing, trekking and mapping Canada’s North made him determined to find the elusive Passage. He served postings in Malta and Tasmania before finally being appointed, at age 59, to lead two steamships built for extreme conditions back to the Arctic. Despite extensive preparations, the ships became marooned in ice, eventually disappearing. For nine years expeditions were sent from England, but were unable to find any evidence. Eventually a Hudson’s Bay Company explorer found the remains. While assumed the men had died from starvation or freezing, it was found that most of the canned foods contained botulism. Sadly, Franklin died never realizing how close the ships were to achieving his life’s dream.Source: The Association of Book Publishers of BC. BC Books for BC Schools. 2013-2014.
