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| April 6, 1909 | |||||
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 After 18 years of Arctic experience, skill & accumulated knowledge, Henson & Peary made a successful expedition to reach the Pole by employing teams of men, supplies, trail breaking Inuit sledge drivers and the best dogs hand picked for their strength and endurance. One man died and others almost drown yet they reached the North Pole. Only today can we appreciate how difficult and truly dangerous this journey was. After the 1909 expedition no one went back to the Pole until an airplane flew over it in 1926. The Henson & Peary 1909 North Pole expedition is still a legendary achievement of strategy, extraordinary skill and great determination. Their round trip to the Pole and back to land with dogsleds has never been duplicated! * Peary Arctic Club Expedition team member Matthew Alexander Henson, Navy Commander Robert Edwin Peary, and four Inuits reached the North Pole in 1909. They had prepared for many years by making expeditions to gain the experience required for the dangerous, 826 nautical mile (round trip) journey over the frozen Arctic Ocean. Henson & Peary traveled in the Arctic 100 years ago; before there were airplanes, Global Positioning Satellites or Gore-Tex parkas. They journeyed across the northern tip of Greenland, determining where it ended while looking for a route to the Pole. They retrieved meteorites, one of which weighed over 70,000 pounds, now displayed at the Museum of Natural History. They searched for land masses which might lead to the North Pole, found none and proved that the Pole is over a deep but frozen ocean. They lowered measuring instruments through holes in the ice to record the oceans depth where no scientist had gone before. They brought back animal specimens, photographs and written accounts of the native Inuit's ways of survival in such an extreme climate. Matthew Henson worked with the Natural History Museum in New York to create accurate exhibits depicting the people and animals of the North. The public was fascinated to learn about the Arctic from them. They wrote books & scientific papers, gave public lectures, but best of all they explored and they discovered the most remote place on Earth. However, what should have been a glorious public reception was turned into a bitter nightmare of controversy when hoaxer, con artist, and later Federal Prisoner # 23118, Dr. Frederick Cook, claimed he reached the Pole a year earlier. The public was divided and polarized by Dr. Cook for almost a year until Cook's lies became his downfall and total disgrace. Permanent damage had been done to the honor of the 1909 expedition team. The public of 1910 had no place for this African-American hero; so Henson was never given the recognition he earned through the 18 years and 7 highly dangerous, difficult Arctic journeys he endured. Henson's life achievements reflect his noble character, making him a perennial role model to young persons. Everyone who wrote about Matt used enthusiastic phrases. They describe a gentleman of remarkable poise and emotional stability; always cheerful, never bitter, a courageous hero whose determination and inner strength allowed him to live without fear but with compassion and humility. While Matt accomplished much, he received few rewards in his lifetime. He is honored today by a monument at Arlington National Cemetery, a US Postal stamp, books and a US Naval Ship bearing his name. Matt's Inuit descendants have been united with their American relatives. Delroy Lindo has portrayed Matt in a TNT original movie for cable and Denzel Washington is committed to portraying Matthew Henson in a major motion picture to be directed by Amistad producer Debbie Allen. *It is too dangerous - all dog sledge or snowmobile teams attempting it have been air-rescued at the Pole. Except for one team of true dog handling experts who made everyone else look like bozos! |
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