The Lost Franklin Expedition
Two British ships seeking the Northwest Passage vanished in 1845. Inuit accounts helped searchers find them nearly 170 years later.
What was reported
In 1845 Sir John Franklin sailed from England with 129 men on HMS Erebus and HMS Terror to find the Northwest Passage through the Arctic. The ships became trapped in ice near King William Island, and none of the men came home. Dozens of search expeditions followed.
Notes, graves and belongings were found over the years, and Inuit oral histories described the ships and what became of the men. Guided partly by those accounts, Parks Canada found Erebus in 2014 and Terror in 2016, both remarkably well preserved.
Explanations offered
The men seem to have died from cold, hunger and disease, perhaps worsened by lead poisoning, though that idea is debated. Divers are still recovering objects from the wrecks, which may hold more records. It's one of the great stories of polar exploration.
- When
- Lost from 1845
- Where
- King William Island, Nunavut, Canada
- Witnesses
- Inuit witnesses, and generations of searchers
- Status
- Partly explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.