Description:

Greely Adolphus

Short letter inscribed and signed by Arctic explorer A.W. Greely as “A.W. Greely” at bottom of 1pp TLS on watermarked “Board of Education, Administration Building, Trenton, N.J.” letterhead dated February 24, 1923 and signed by original sender S. D. Green. In very good condition, with expected paper folds, overall toning, and minor scattered wear to edges and corners. Page measures 8.5” x 11”.

 

Sharpless Dodson Green, a public school administrator from Trenton, New Jersey, wrote Adolphus Washington Greely (1844-1935), the leader of the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition, in February 1923. Green frequently contacted notables of the day for autographs. Four days later, 79-year-old Greely warmly replied to Green’s letter: “My dear Mr. Green: If your interest in any of my writings would be increased by my autograph, I shall have pleasure in acceding to your request, Yours, A.W. Greely”.

 

A.W. Greely was already a twenty-year veteran of the U.S. Army when he was appointed leader of the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition in 1881. The expedition, sponsored in part by the U.S. government, consisted of a twenty-five-member crew aboard the U.S.S. Proteus. The mission was to collect scientific data and chart previously unknown regions in northwestern Greenland. The group achieved a new “farthest north” record, yet the human cost was high. Of the original crew, only six men survived when rescued three years later. Supply chains were interrupted because of unexpected weather conditions, and many crew died of starvation and hypothermia. At least one crew member was shot for theft amidst rumors of cannibalism.

 

A.W. Greely wrote four monographs over a forty-year period, including "Three Years in the Arctic Service", published in 1886, which documented the notorious Lady Franklin Bay Expedition. Greely agreed to autograph letter correspondent Green’s copy of one of his books.

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