The diary of Assistant Surgeon Henry Piers, HMS Investigator , 1850–54

Summary From the 16th to the mid 19th century, many voyages were made from England to discover a North West Passage between the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. The Investigator was one of some 40 vessels that searched for the lost North West Passage expedition of 1845–48 under the command of Sir Jo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of The Royal Naval Medical Service
Main Author: Savours, Ann M.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: BMJ 1990
Subjects:
General Medicine
Arctic
Pacific
Greenwich
Mercy Bay
Banks Island
North West Passage
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/jrnms-76-33
https://syndication.highwire.org/content/doi/10.1136/jrnms-76-33
Description
Summary:Summary From the 16th to the mid 19th century, many voyages were made from England to discover a North West Passage between the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. The Investigator was one of some 40 vessels that searched for the lost North West Passage expedition of 1845–48 under the command of Sir John Franklin in HM Ships Erebus and Terror , which became beset among what are now known as the Canadian Arctic Islands. The “Investigators” found no trace of Franklin, but were the first to traverse the North West Passage, although their ship had to be abandoned in Mercy Bay on Banks Island after two winters there. The diary of Assistant Surgeon Henry Piers, from the manuscript collection of the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, is here examined. Reference is also made to the narrative and report published by the senior surgeon of the Investigator , Dr Alexander Armstrong.

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