From the New York Times, Nov. 15, 1862.

 

The Arctic Shows of Charles Francis Hall, 1862-1863

 

Russell A. Potter

 

Charles Francis Hall was perhaps the most intrepid searcher for evidence of the fate of the Franklin expedition.  On two expeditions, covering a period of more than seven years, Hall traveled about the Arctic, interviewing Inuit witnesses with the help of Tookoolito ("Hannah") and Ebierbing ("Joe"), his guides and translators.

Yet to raise money to fund his expeditions, Hall was sometimes driven to test the lines between exploration and exploitation.  This was never more the case than in the period from December 1862 into early 1863, when Hall, with "Hannah" and "Joe" and their child in tow, embarked upon a lecture tour to raise money for his second expedition.  Just prior to this lecture tour, Hall had "loaned" Hannah and Joe to P.T. Barnum's American Museum in New York (from which appearance the advertisement above derives).  He also sent them to Boston to be displayed at the Aquarial Gardens.

As the new year 1863 commenced, Hall began a lecture tour of the northeast; his very first stop, as fate would have it, was in Providence, Rhode Island.
 
 

From the Providence Daily Journal, January 5, 1863.
 
 

This advertisement ran just prior to Hall's lecture appearance. It's worth noting that, in addition to Hall's evening lecture, an afternoon appearance for an audience of school-children -- which evidently featured Ebierbing and Tookoolito -- was offered.
 
 
 

From the Providence Daily Journal, January 6, 1863.
 

This review appeared on January 6, 1863 the morning after Hall's lecture, which was evidently well-received. Hall's idealization of Inuit culture (at least of those on the coast), is quite evident. While the reviewer does not say so explicitly, he seems a bit disappointed by the charts and diagrams -- he remarks that it was "not so graphically related," which suggests that he would have liked to have some lantern slides or perhaps a panorama to amplify the dramatic story.