Franklin's Lost Ship: The Historic Discovery of HMS Erebus

by John Geiger, Alanna Mitchell, Leona Aglukkaq

The greatest mystery in all of exploration is the fate of the 1845–1848 British Arctic Expedition commanded by Sir John Franklin. All 129 crewmen died, and the two ships seemingly vanished without a trace. The expedition's destruction was a mass disaster spread over two years. With the vessels beset and abandoned, the crew confronted a horrific ordeal. They suffered from lead poisoning, were stricken with scurvy and, ultimately, resorted to cannibalism in their final days. The mysterious fate of the ships, HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, has captured the public's imagination for seventeen decades.

Now, one of Franklin's lost ships has been found. During the summer of 2014, the Victoria Strait Expedition, the largest effort to find the ships since the 1850s, was led by Parks Canada in partnership with the Arctic Research Foundation, The Royal Canadian Geographical Society, and other public and private partners. The expedition used world-leading technology in underwater exploration and succeeded in a major find—the discovery of Erebus. News of the discovery made headlines around the world.

In this fully illustrated account, readers will learn about the exciting expedition, challenging search and the ship's discovery. Featuring the first images of the Erebus, this stunning book weaves together a story of historical mystery and modern adventure.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Canada, Maritime

224 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 25, 2015

Reviews

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had hoped for more detail on the Franklin voyage itself, but I realize that’s not possible because of limited records. A lot of detail about the many subsequent voyages over the years to find Franklin and crew. That was very interesting. I somewhat enjoyed the details about the ships and people who were the ones who eventually found Erebus, but it was almost too much detail.
Love the photographs of the region and of the dives and artifacts.

[Peter de la Cour · Rating 5 out of 5]

Erebus found

Enjoyable read, a good explanation for those new to the Franklin story and the search for HMS Terror and HMS Erebus. My only criticism is the patriotic propaganda which I would normally associate with their North American neighbours.

[Amanda Borys · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a National Geographic book, so the amazing pictures are part of what makes this book so enjoyable. But in a addition, the written portion, which alternates between the story of what people think happened to the Franklin expedition and the hunt to find the Erebus, was well done also.

[Preston Caddell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to read more about Franklin's tragic expedition to find the Northwest Passage after watching The Terror. This book is a good introduction, but it's not a deep dive into the history and events of the expedition. It's split evenly between the events leading up to the re-discovery of the sunken Erebus in 2005 and a brief summary of the original events. There are a lot of images which help in understanding the harsh environment that both the explorers and the modern scientists encounter. It's fine for an introduction but there is more meat on the bone if you want to read about the full story.

[Sophia · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting and informative read, if you can get over the incessant and agonizing Stephen Harper worship. Seriously, the guy must have personally sponsored the writing of this book, they kept bringing him up and even compared him to Franklin.

There was also a mildly annoying tendency to repeat information, things like the sponsors of the expedition or the names and roles of the people involved, but that's just a minor gripe of mine, not a huge deal.

[Josee · Rating 2 out of 5]

A book about the Arctic where climate change isn't mentioned once and one of the sponsors is Shell. Hmmm. Clearly propaganda for drilling rights.

I give stars for the history, Inuit content and cool pictures.

[Merrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

a little early to tell the tale of both ships but i wait for vol 2 when they discuss the finding of the Terror right where the Init's said it would be.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

i found it very interesting and i learned a lot about the Arctic .

[Marissa Kings · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fascinating account of the search for and discovery of a ship that has been historically much-sought: Franklin's flagship HMS Erebus. I loved reading about how the search team relied on Inuit oral histories to eventually locate the wreck, and I can't wait to learn what they find out about the ship and expedition in the coming field seasons. I would have given this 5 stars, but the casual Steven Harper-worship was a bit much for me.

[Bob Shepherd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I quite liked this well documented story. Actually there were two stories equally good; the story of Erebus and the fate of the Franklin ship, and the story of the search not quite 200 years later. Most appealing to me was the huge importance of the contributions of the Inuit oral stories passed along through generations.