A short narrative of the second voyage of the Prince Albert...

Click on the numbers above to view a selection of pages from the book.

William Kennedy. A short narrative of the second voyage of the Prince Albert in search of Sir John Franklin. London, 1853.

William Kennedy was the only Canadian to lead an expedition in search of Sir John Franklin. He was a born at Cumberland House on Hudson Bay, the son of a Chief Factor of the Hudson’s Bay Company, and a Cree woman. Kennedy met Franklin when he spent the winter of 1819-20 at Cumberland House before undertaking his first overland expedition. Kennedy was only five at the time, but retained clear memories of the famous explorer. His expedition (1851-52) was sponsored by Lady Franklin, who had great faith in Kennedy’s knowledge of the Arctic.

Adopting the dress and travel methods of the Inuit, Kennedy and his men trekked over two thousand miles during the months their ship was locked in the ice. Kennedy discovered the Bellot Strait between Boothia Peninsula and Somerset Island (previously thought to be joined), thus establishing the northern-most tip of the North American continent. They returned to England without the loss of a single man.