Sir John Ross
Ross, Sir John
Sir John Ross, naval officer and explorer (b at Balsarroch, Scot 24 June 1777; d London, Eng 30 Aug 1856). Entering naval service at the age of 9, and wounded during the Napoleonic Wars, Ross had been at sea for 30 years when in 1817 he was ordered by the Admiralty to command an expedition to explore Baffin Bay. From 1829 to 1833 he commanded a second expedition in the Lancaster Sd-Somerset I region. For 4 winters his ship, Victory, was ice-bound off the coast of Boothia Pen (and in 1831 his nephew and second-in-command, James Clark ROSS, located the North Magnetic Pole on the peninsula's W coast). Released by the ice in 1833, the ship returned to England, where Ross was knighted. In 1850 he commanded Felix in an unsuccessful search for the lost expedition of Sir John FRANKLIN.
See also FRANKLIN SEARCH.
Narrative of a Second Voyage by John Ross
The title page of Sir John Ross' account of his journey, entitled Narrative of a Second Voyage in Search of North-West Passage, and of a Residence in the Arctic Regions During the Years 1829, 1830, 1831, 1832, 1833 published in 1835 (courtesy Library and Archives Canada/nlc1487).
Ross, Sir John
Ross created detailed images of the Inuit he met. Here two Inuit men, Ikmalick and Apelagliu, give directions to Ross and his men (courtesy Library and Archives Canada/nlc707).
Author KENNETH S. COATES
Links to Other Sites
Exploration of the Northwest Passage
An overview of European expeditions to Canada’s northern Arctic region from the 16th to the early 20th centuries. Brief bios, illustrations, maps, and other reference material. An Industry Canada website.
Boothia Peninsula
This University of Guelph website offers a geological description and detailed map of the Boothia Peninusula in Canada’s Arctic region.
John Ross: The Discovery Of The Magnetic Pole
Profiles of John Ross, early explorer of the Canadian Arctic and James Clark Ross, who discovered the location of the North Magnetic Pole. Includes images of related artifacts. From Library and Archives Canada.
Major Northwest Passage Exeditions and Explorers
This site offers brief accounts of various European expeditions to North America in search of the Northwest Passage. From the website "Of Maps and Men: In Pursuit of a Northwest Passage," Princeton University.
Frozen Ocean
A superb online exhibit about the search for the Northwest Passage. Historic maps and images from books show how the Inuit assisted foreign led expeditions into the Canadian Arctic and how European explorers gradually accepted Inuit techniques of travel and survival. Contemporary maps show the lasting achievement of the expeditions: the mapping of the Canadian Arctic. From the Toronto Public Library.
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