Relics of Sir John Franklin

Recovered by Captain Francis Leopold M'Clintock in 1859

from the collection of Russell A. Potter

In October of 1859, newspapers around the world reported on the discovery of the last written record of the Franklin expedition, in addition to numerous relics, discovered by Captain M'Clintock and his Lieutenant, Hobson on the desolate shores of King William Island. The Illustrated London News, Harper's Weekly, and many other papers had images of these discoveries engraved for their viewers. The images on these page are but a selection of the hundreds of such views published at the time.

1. Opening the cairn at Victory Point (larger version of image above)(ILN)

2. Relics found at Cape Felix(ILN)

3. Relics found at the "Boat Place"(ILN)

4. A large collection of relics found near Victory Point (ILN)

5. The discovery of two skeletons in a boat at the "Boat Place" (Harper's Weekly)

NOTE: All texts, images, and views expressed on this site are the responsibility of Russell A. Potter, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Rhode Island College. All images on this site are reproduced from my own collections, or by permission of the image owners or copyright holders, if any. Comments to: rpklc@etal.uri.edu