A painter in the Bering Sea: Henry Wood Elliott and the northern fur seal
ABSTRACT Henry Wood Elliott (1846–1930), a U.S. Treasury official assigned to monitor the harvest of northern fur seals on the Pribilof Islands in the 1870s, became a self-taught expert on, and defender of, the species. His careful documentation of the seals’ breeding behaviour, and of their commerc...
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2013
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0032247413000703 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0032247413000703 |
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crcambridgeupr:10.1017/s0032247413000703 2024-03-03T08:43:16+00:00 A painter in the Bering Sea: Henry Wood Elliott and the northern fur seal Peck, Robert McCracken 2013 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0032247413000703 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0032247413000703 en eng Cambridge University Press (CUP) https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms Polar Record volume 50, issue 3, page 311-318 ISSN 0032-2474 1475-3057 General Earth and Planetary Sciences Ecology Geography, Planning and Development journal-article 2013 crcambridgeupr https://doi.org/10.1017/s0032247413000703 2024-02-08T08:33:49Z ABSTRACT Henry Wood Elliott (1846–1930), a U.S. Treasury official assigned to monitor the harvest of northern fur seals on the Pribilof Islands in the 1870s, became a self-taught expert on, and defender of, the species. His careful documentation of the seals’ breeding behaviour, and of their commercial harvest, complemented by hundreds of detailed and evocative watercolours, provides a unique record of this once abundant species and the lucrative industry that revolved around it. Elliott's outspoken lobbying on behalf of the seals’ protection is often credited with saving the species from extinction. His paintings of the seals, the seal harvest, and life on the Pribilof Islands in the second half of the nineteenth century constitute an unmatched historical record of this remote region. Elliott was able to witness two full breeding seasons (and harvesting) of the fur seals during his initial stay on the Pribilofs from April 1872 to October 1873. He returned to the islands to conduct a follow-up census of the seals, on behalf of the U.S. Government, in the summer of 1874. He traveled there unofficially and at his own expense in 1876. His fourth trip to the Pribilofs was in the spring of 1890 (again on behalf of the U.S. Department of the Treasury), in response to news of a dramatic decline of the seal populations. In April, 1891, because of his public revelation of mismanagement of the fur seal harvest, Elliott was fired by the Treasury. He continued his tireless lobbying on behalf of the fur seals as a private citizen for the rest of his life. He visited the Pribilofs for the last time on behalf of the House Committee on Expenditures in the Department of Commerce and Labor in the summer of 1913. Born in Cleveland Ohio on November 13, 1846, Elliott died in Seattle Washington on May 25, 1930. Article in Journal/Newspaper Bering Sea Polar Record Northern fur seal Cambridge University Press Bering Sea Elliott ENVELOPE(102.867,102.867,-65.867,-65.867) Polar Record 50 3 311 318 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Cambridge University Press |
op_collection_id |
crcambridgeupr |
language |
English |
topic |
General Earth and Planetary Sciences Ecology Geography, Planning and Development |
spellingShingle |
General Earth and Planetary Sciences Ecology Geography, Planning and Development Peck, Robert McCracken A painter in the Bering Sea: Henry Wood Elliott and the northern fur seal |
topic_facet |
General Earth and Planetary Sciences Ecology Geography, Planning and Development |
description |
ABSTRACT Henry Wood Elliott (1846–1930), a U.S. Treasury official assigned to monitor the harvest of northern fur seals on the Pribilof Islands in the 1870s, became a self-taught expert on, and defender of, the species. His careful documentation of the seals’ breeding behaviour, and of their commercial harvest, complemented by hundreds of detailed and evocative watercolours, provides a unique record of this once abundant species and the lucrative industry that revolved around it. Elliott's outspoken lobbying on behalf of the seals’ protection is often credited with saving the species from extinction. His paintings of the seals, the seal harvest, and life on the Pribilof Islands in the second half of the nineteenth century constitute an unmatched historical record of this remote region. Elliott was able to witness two full breeding seasons (and harvesting) of the fur seals during his initial stay on the Pribilofs from April 1872 to October 1873. He returned to the islands to conduct a follow-up census of the seals, on behalf of the U.S. Government, in the summer of 1874. He traveled there unofficially and at his own expense in 1876. His fourth trip to the Pribilofs was in the spring of 1890 (again on behalf of the U.S. Department of the Treasury), in response to news of a dramatic decline of the seal populations. In April, 1891, because of his public revelation of mismanagement of the fur seal harvest, Elliott was fired by the Treasury. He continued his tireless lobbying on behalf of the fur seals as a private citizen for the rest of his life. He visited the Pribilofs for the last time on behalf of the House Committee on Expenditures in the Department of Commerce and Labor in the summer of 1913. Born in Cleveland Ohio on November 13, 1846, Elliott died in Seattle Washington on May 25, 1930. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Peck, Robert McCracken |
author_facet |
Peck, Robert McCracken |
author_sort |
Peck, Robert McCracken |
title |
A painter in the Bering Sea: Henry Wood Elliott and the northern fur seal |
title_short |
A painter in the Bering Sea: Henry Wood Elliott and the northern fur seal |
title_full |
A painter in the Bering Sea: Henry Wood Elliott and the northern fur seal |
title_fullStr |
A painter in the Bering Sea: Henry Wood Elliott and the northern fur seal |
title_full_unstemmed |
A painter in the Bering Sea: Henry Wood Elliott and the northern fur seal |
title_sort |
painter in the bering sea: henry wood elliott and the northern fur seal |
publisher |
Cambridge University Press (CUP) |
publishDate |
2013 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0032247413000703 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0032247413000703 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(102.867,102.867,-65.867,-65.867) |
geographic |
Bering Sea Elliott |
geographic_facet |
Bering Sea Elliott |
genre |
Bering Sea Polar Record Northern fur seal |
genre_facet |
Bering Sea Polar Record Northern fur seal |
op_source |
Polar Record volume 50, issue 3, page 311-318 ISSN 0032-2474 1475-3057 |
op_rights |
https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/s0032247413000703 |
container_title |
Polar Record |
container_volume |
50 |
container_issue |
3 |
container_start_page |
311 |
op_container_end_page |
318 |
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1792498690367160320 |