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Matthew Henson, right, at the White House in 1954 with his wife, and President
Dwight Eisenhower. Photograph: Bettmann Archive
Matthew Henson, right, at the White House in 1954 with his wife, and President
Dwight Eisenhower. Photograph: Bettmann Archive
Great explorers you’ve probably never heard ofHeritage



MATTHEW HENSON: THE PIONEERING AFRICAN-AMERICAN ARCTIC ADVENTURER

This multi-skilled explorer may well have been first to the North Pole – in
1909. What’s not in doubt is his resourcefulness and love of the Inuit


Marcel Theroux
Sun 24 May 2020 11.00 BST
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Passport details
Matthew Alexander Henson, perhaps the first person to the North Pole. Born
Charles County, Maryland, US, 8 August 1866.

Claim to fame
Matthew Henson, the descendant of slaves, has a plausible claim to being the
first explorer to reach the North Pole. He grew up in Washington DC and
Baltimore, was orphaned and left school at 12 to be a cabin boy. When he was 22,
a chance encounter with naval engineer Robert Peary resulted in a lifelong
working relationship, including 18 years of Arctic exploration. On 6 April 1909,
Henson, Peary and four Inuit drove their dogsleds to the North Pole – or as near
as makes no difference. Peary took the credit for being first, but a newspaper
article on their return quoted Henson as saying he’d been part of a leading
group that had overshot the pole by several miles: “We went back then and I
could see my footprints were the first at the spot.”



Supporting documentation
Henson’s engaging 1912 memoir, A Negro Explorer at the North Pole, reads like a
Boy’s Own Adventure. Henson’s dog-handling skills, fluent Inuit and all-round
resourcefulness were key to the expedition’s success. “I have a steady job
carpentering, also interpreting, barbering, tailoring, dog-training,” he writes.
The warmth of his response to the Inuit is striking: “I have come to love these
people … They are my friends and regard me as theirs.” The memoir’s final page
includes the names of 218 Inuit from Smith Sound, on Canada’s Ellesmere Island.
Among them are Akatingwah, Henson’s Inuit lover, and Ahnaukaq, their son.


Matthew Henson in his Arctic gear in 1909. Photograph: Getty Images


Distinguishing marks
Henson lived a long life. Photographs show him on board ship and as a genial old
codger, but the most arresting image was taken after that dash to the pole: he
peers out of his fur parka, quietly challenging assumptions of what an Arctic
explorer might look like to some.

Last sighted
Henson lived the rest of his life in relative obscurity, working as a clerk for
US Customs, and died in 1955. He married twice, and had no children apart from
Ahnaukaq Henson, who, in 1987, at the age of 80, achieved his lifetime ambition
of visiting the land of his father’s birth.

Intrepidness rating
Obstacles he faced included ice floes, snowstorms, frostbite and racism: 9.

Topics
 * Heritage
 * Great explorers you’ve probably never heard of

 * Arctic holidays
 * Canada holidays
 * North and Central America holidays
 * features

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