Title: Richardson, Sir John. Travel records, 1809, 1820-1821, 1847-1849

ID: 01/02/02/POST-1650 MS 0051

Extent: 3.0 Volumes

Sir John Richardson (1787-1865) was a Scottish physician, naturalist, and arctic explorer. Richardson matriculated at Edinburgh University in 1803, soon taking leave to pursue surgical positions at the Dumfries and Galloway Infirmary (1804), aboard frigates Nymphe (1807), Hibernia, Hercules, Blossom, and Cruiser, and in the state of Georgia during the War of 1812. He returned to Edinburgh in 1815 and was awarded a doctor of medicine in 1816. Richardon married three times, having seven children with his second wife, Mary Booth (1807-1845).

Richardson first encountered Sir John Franklin in 1819, joining him on an expedition from England in search of the north-west passage as a surgeon-naturalist, which lasted until 1822. Richardson accompanied Franklin once more (1825-1827) before the disappearance of Franklin's expedition in 1847. Richardson led the search for Franklin and his crew between 1847-1849, but was unsuccessful in their recovery. He died in 1865 and is buried in Grasmere, England.

Sir John Franklin (1786-1847) was an English naval officer and arctic explorer. Franklin joined the Polyphemus in 1800, which participated in the battle of Copenhagen. In 1818, Franklin embarked on his first Arctic expedition under Commander David Buchan. He was made a commander of the Royal Navy in 1821 and was promoted to post captain in 1822. Franklin published two narratives of his travels in 1823 and 1828, which gained him considerable popularity.

In 1845, the Admiralty granted Franklin the commission to explore a 300-mile stretch of the north-west passage between Barrow Strait and mainland North America. The ships, Erebus and Terror, were last seen in Baffin Bay on July 26, 1845. Between 1847 and 1859, approximately 30 voyages were made in search of Franklin's expedition in 1847, one of which led by Sir John Richardson. Franklin and his crew were not recovered.

Sources

Johnson, Robert E., and Margaret H. Johnson. "Richardson, Sir John (1787–1865)." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. September 23, 2004. https://doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/23568

Riffenburgh, B. A. "Franklin, Sir John (1786–1847)." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 23 Sep. 2004. https://doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/10090.

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Administrative Information

Scope and Contents:

This collection contains three volumes of manuscripts that document the expeditions of Sir John Richardson (1787-1865) on the ships Blossom (1809); Prince of Wales, Eddystone, and Wear (1820-1822); and Prince of Wales and Westminster (1847-1849).

Volume 1 [formerly Post-1650 MS 0053] is a manuscript log kept by Richardson on a voyage to North America during his third naval appointment as a surgeon in 1809. The pages are numbered in pencil by a later hand. Pages 94-126 are blank except for scattered notes in pencil; pages 51-52 and 127-134 are missing. The volume is bound in vellum.

Volume 2 [formerly Post-1650 MS 0052] is a manuscript journal kept by Richardson as a surgeon-naturalist on an expedition in search of the north-west passage under the command of Sir John Franklin from 1820-1822. The volume covers August 21, 1820, to December 19, 1821. Pages 234-235 and 251-262 are missing; three leaves are laid in, one each between pages 333-334, 357-358, and 375-376. An adaptation of Richardson's journal was published by Harper & Brothers in 1851 as Arctic Ordeal: The Journal of John Richardson, Surgeon-Naturalist with Franklin, 1820-1822. This volume has a sheepskin spine and was conserved by Richard C. Baker in December 2003.

Volume 3 [formerly Post-1650 MS 0051 (only volume)] is a collection of manuscripts that document the rescue voyage commanded by Richardson in search of Sir John Franklin's Arctic expedition, which disappeared in 1847. Included are letters concerning the ship specifications and scientific equipment used, as well as from leadership in the Hudson Bay Company, and records for provisions, supplies, and personnel. Numerous items are loose and laid in.

These materials were combined into one collection in February 2024 due to their shared provenance.

See Administrative/Biographical History for more information.