British Columbia, Arctic, Pacific Northwest and Western Canada

History" part of the Report, "our expedition succeeded in obtaining a large series of the rare and beautifulbird – more, in fact, than there were before in all the museums of the world put together" (p. 123).In the second part of the letter Greely talks about the report of his own expedition - a notoriousLady Franklin Bay Expedition (1881-84) which was undertaken, as well as Lieut. Ray’s, during the FirstInternational Polar Year (1882-83). Due to severe weather conditions and cold winters the US Navyvessels failed to supply the expedition with food for two years, which led to death of the most of itsmembers. Only 7 people including Greely survived, "the rest had succumbed to starvation, hypothermia,and drowning, and one man, Private Henry, had been shot on Greely's order for repeated theft of foodrations The returning survivors were venerated as heroes, though the heroism was tainted bysensational accusations of cannibalism during the remaining days of low food" (Wikipedia). Greely’saccount of the expedition, which he talks about the letter, was published later the same year (Greely, A.Three Years of Arctic Service... New York, 1886. 2 vols.)."The first station forArctic research in Barrow wasestablished for two years ofobservation during the FirstInternational polar Year in1881-1883. In transmitting hisreport to General Hazen at theclose of the mission,Lieutenant (Signal Corps) P.H.Ray (1885) respectfullysuggested that in futureexpedition it should bedesirable to give the leadertime in advance to becomeacquainted with his crew andtheir project. In addition tovaluable geophysical records,17Ray prepared a penetrating description of the ways and culture of the Eskimo people whom he sawbefore their habits had been affected by white contact. He made a winter journey of reconnaissance halfway to the head of Meade River. Sergeant Murdoch prepared the first comprehensive report on the birdsof the Arctic coast. Both reports remain interesting reading for their information and literary quality"(Irving, L. Progress of research in Zoology through the Naval Arctic Research Laboratory// Proceedings ofthe U.S. Naval Arctic Research Laboratory. Dedication Symposium. Vol. 22, No. 3, Sep., 1969. P. 327)."The U.S. Army Signal Corps, on one of 15 expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic during the FirstInternational Polar Year in 1881, began the long research tradition at Barrow when they encamped atwhat is now the location of the Cape Smythe Whaling and Trading Company in Browerville. Led by Lt. P. H.Ray and documented extensively by Sgt. John Murdoch, the expedition spent two years investigating thenorthernmost point of U.S. Territory. Ray led geographic explorations. Murdoch conducted ethnologicalstudies, which resulted in a publication (Murdoch, 1892) that is still a standard reference guide. Theenlisted men tried to dig a hole to find the bottom of the permafrost. This excavation continued until theArmy decamped and resulted in one of the largest ice cellars in Barrow, which is still in use. Laterinvestigators discovered that the permafrost is more than a thousand feet thick at Barrow" (History ofResearch Based in Barrow Region// The Future of an Arctic Resource: Recommendations from the BarrowArea Research Support Workshop. 1999. P. 3).Arctic Bibliography 14292. Henze IV, 554.$1250USD24