BRIGUS, N.L. — VALERIE MORGAN
The newest biography of Captain Bob Bartlett has gotten the attention of a Russian publishing company, affirming his role in Arctic exploration still has importance to this day.
Brigus-born Bartlett embarked on some of the most famous and dangerous Arctic expeditions to collect data and learn about this extremely harsh part of the world. The hardships he faced to acquire that data have gone down in history. From shipwrecks to trekking hundreds of miles in treacherous polar conditions, his will to survive and heroic actions are well documented and celebrated.
But in Maura Hanrahan’s latest biography, "Unchained Man: The Life and Legacy of Captain Robert Abram Bartlett'', she reveals there is much more to the man behind the seemingly fearless explorer.
“In all my books I like to tell stories that aren’t really known,” she tells SaltWire, “so with Captain Bob Bartlett I did (extensive) research and I told the story about the women who really influenced and shaped him, like this grandmother, his mother and sisters. Another story I wanted to tell was the role the Inuit (played in his life) during his time in Greenland and Alaska. Bartlett realized the debt he owed to them,” she states. “And his personality (is revealed in this biography). I think he was quite introverted.”
Documents and letters uncovered by the author suggest Bartlett was more comfortable with just one or two people around him.
“He disliked large gatherings and turned down dinners being held in his honour. He didn’t like New York society even though that’s where he lived.”
The book is also filled with exciting tales of adventure, Hanrahan adds. A chapter recounts the winter Bartlett spent in Russia. This part of his life, and his work as an explorer of the Arctic, got the attention of Paulsen Publishing House in Russia. It “specializes in publishing non-fiction and popular-science literature on the Arctic and the Antarctic” according to their website.
Boulder Books, the publisher of "Unchained Man", recently announced the Russian language rights to the biography have been sold to Paulsen. That means in the near future, Hanrahan’s work and this fresh look at the life of Bob Bartlett, will be translated and published in Russia.
Paulsen has published hundreds of titles that focus on the scientific research in polar regions, as well as the life of indigenous peoples, so the life and work of Bartlett was a perfect fit for their specialty.
Hanrahan is thrilled her work will reach this new, international audience, especially since writing this biography has been decades in the making. She researched for about 13 years off and on, but says she first became fascinated with the explorer as a child. During a family visit to Brigus, her father introduced her to an old friend of Captain Bartlett’s, and since then she has been hooked on the history that surrounds him.
“We know him as this hero but I think he deserves to go beyond the heroic and deserves to be looked at as a human being — flaws and all — like everyone else.”
Visit boulderbooks.ca to purchase a copy.
About Captain Bob
Bob Bartlett was born into a Brigus seafaring family in 1875, and he was no exception. He spent most of his life exploring the Arctic and lead over 40 expeditions there, a record that has not been matched to this day.
Bartlett was the first person to sail north of 88 N and was part of the Peary expedition to reach the North Pole in 1908-1909.
He captained the Karlak on its ill-fated research trip into the Arctic in 1913. The ship became stuck in ice for months and eventually sank. Bartlett had instructed the remaining crew to move the supplies to igloos so they had enough to live on for months. Bartlett and another crew member travelled hundreds of miles by dog sled to Alaska to get word to Ottawa of the stranded crewmembers. They were later rescued, almost eight months after the ship sank.
He was awarded many honours in his lifetime, including the Hubbard Medal by the National Geographic Society for distinction in exploration, discovery, and research for his role in the Peary expedition. He was also the recipient of a commemorative medal by the United States Congress.
He received an Honorary Fellowship and the Daly Medal from the American Geographical Society, and the Canadian Coast Guard vessel CCGS Bartlett is named for him.
Bartlett died in New York City in 1946.
