The Woman Who Mapped Labrador: The Life And Expedition Diary Of Mina Hubbard

by Roberta Buchanan, Bryan Greene, Anne Hart

In 1905 Mina Benson Hubbard became the first white woman to cross Labrador, completing the expedition that had led to her husband's death. The Woman Who Mapped Labrador makes available for the first time the unguarded and personal diary that was the basis for her famous book, A Woman's Way Through Unknown Labrador. Three specialists have combined their expertise to enhance the richness of this original source. Roberta Buchanan's annotation of Hubbard's expedition diary makes it accessible to contemporary readers. Anne Hart's biography illuminates an Edwardian woman's transformation from teacher, nurse, and devoted wife to courageous explorer and social activist. Bryan Greene's discussion of Hubbard's navigational, cartographic, and topographical techniques shows her to have been a serious explorer. His nineteen newly drawn maps make it possible to follow her journey in detail. In her diary Hubbard's full enthusiasm for the Labrador wilderness shines through her descriptions of the great caribou migration, the Montagnais/Naskapi Indians (Innu), and life at a Hudson's Bay post. She also reveals in frank detail the difficulties of asserting her authority as a female expedition leader and her satisfaction at beating out her male rival, Dillon Wallace.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, History

544 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2005

Reviews

[Michael Krall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I seldom rate books this highly. This book is exceptionally readable. It is well written, organized, and documented. I have been intrigued by the story of the Hubbards, Wallace and their guides for years and have read all three original accounts as well as a couple of other books on the topic including Great Heart, which I also recommend. I learned many new things about Mina Benson Hubbard Ellis, and have even more appreciation for this remarkable woman. This book is a great piece of scholarship. Thank you!

[Meghan Copeland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard to read at times but fascinating. Don't let the slow parts convince you to stop.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

I put off reading this book for quite some time because of the length of it. The book is written by University scholars and therefore reads like a textbook and not a story.
With this in mind, and treating it like a text for a course, I found the book very interesting. It is well documented and explained. It is easy to get bogged down in the footnotes, so I began to just read the text.
The story itself is fascinating and it boggles my mind that this has not been made into a National Film Board documentary. It should be, as the story is remarkable.
It's a great look into women's studies, Canadian history, and Canadian geography. As long as you treat it like an academic text, and perhaps take breaks while reading it (disperse it with other books), I would recommend reading it.