Of Henson, expedition member Donald Macmillan once noted, "With years of experience equal to that of Peary himself, he was indispensable." Henson proved an invaluable team member, building sledges and training others on their handling. The team's final attempt to reach the North Pole began in 1908. Around this time, Henson fathered a son, Anauakaq, with an Inuit woman, but back at home in 1906, he married Lucy Ross. Melted ice blocking the sea path thwarted the mission’s completion, forcing them to turn back. However, they made more progress during their 1905 trip: Backed by President Theodore Roosevelt and armed with a then state-of-the-art vessel that had the ability to cut through ice, the team was able to sail within 175 miles of the North Pole. Their 1902 attempt proved tragic, with six Eskimo team members perishing due to a lack of food and supplies. Over the next several years, Peary and Henson would make multiple attempts to reach the North Pole. However, by 1897 Henson's frequent absences were taking their toll on his marriage, and he and Eva divorced. Despite this perilous trip, the explorers returned to Greenland in 18, to collect three large meteorites they had found during their earlier quests, ultimately selling them to the American Museum of Natural History and using the proceeds to help fund their future expeditions. ![]() The two-year journey almost ended in tragedy, with Peary's team on the brink of starvation members of the team managed to survive by eating all but one of their sled dogs. Their next trip to Greenland came in 1893, this time with a goal of charting the entire ice cap. While there, Henson embraced the local Eskimo culture, learning the language and the natives' Arctic survival skills over the course of the next year. But shortly thereafter, Henson joined Peary again, for an expedition to Greenland. Career as an ExplorerĪfter returning from Nicaragua, Peary found Henson work in Philadelphia, and in April 1891 Henson married Eva Flint. Impressed by Henson's seafaring credentials, Peary hired him as his valet for an upcoming expedition to Nicaragua. It was there that, in 1887, he met Robert Edwin Peary, an explorer and officer in the U.S. In 1884 Captain Childs died, and Henson eventually made his way back to Washington, D.C., where he found work as a clerk in a hat shop. During his time aboard the Katie Hines, he also saw much of the world, traveling to Asia, Africa and Europe. Its skipper, Captain Childs, took Henson under his wing and saw to his education, which included instruction in the finer points of seamanship. After working briefly in a restaurant, he walked all the way to Baltimore, Maryland, and found work as a cabin boy on the ship Katie Hines. His father died there a few years later, leaving Henson and his siblings in the care of other family members.Īt the age of 11, Henson left home to find his own way. When Henson was 4 years old, his father moved the family to Washington, D.C., in search of work opportunities. ![]() The son of two freeborn Black sharecroppers, Henson lost his mother at an early age. Matthew Alexander Henson was born on August 8, 1866, in Charles County, Maryland. For more than two decades, they explored the Arctic, and on April 6, 1909, Peary, Henson and the rest of their team made history, becoming the first people to reach the North Pole - or at least they claimed to have. Famed African American explorer Matthew Henson was hired by explorer Robert Edwin as his valet for expeditions.
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