New Hunterian display highlights centenary of rescue from Antarctica
Alexander Stevens and the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition
Until 25 June 2017
Hunterian Museum
Admission free
10 January 2017 marks the centenary of the rescue of the Ross Sea Party, part of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition 1914 – 17.
The seven survivors of that party had been stranded on the frozen continent since May 1915. One of those rescued was Alexander Stevens, a graduate of the University of Glasgow who had been working in the Department of Geography when he volunteered to join the expedition.
To commemorate the centenary of the rescue, The Hunterian at the University of Glasgow, has unveiled a new display showcasing Stevens’ Polar Medal, awarded to him by King George V in 1918. This is the first time the medal has ever been on public display.
As well as the new display, Hunterian Curatorial Assistant, Jesper Ericsson, will give a special Hunterian Insight Talk about the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition on the anniversary of the rescue - Tuesday 10 January 2017. The talk is titled ‘One Hundred Years to the Day: Rescue from Antarctica’ and will take place at 1.20pm in the Hunterian Museum beside the Polar Medal display.
Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition 1914 – 17
Conceived by the famous explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton, the aim of the expedition was the sledge across Antarctica for the very first time. The expedition was made up of two parties: the Weddell Sea Party led by Shackleton, who would undertake the crossing, and a support group, the Ross Sea Party.
Weddell Sea Party
The Weddell Sea Party never managed to set foot on Antarctica. Sailing on Endurance via South America and South Georgia, heavy pack ice trapped the ship and eventually crushed it. Shackleton and his men were forced to take to lifeboats salvaged from Endurance and embarked on an epic journey of survival against the odds back to civilisation.
Ross Sea Party
The Ross Sea Party sailed via Australia to the opposite coast of Antarctica to Shackleton. Their mission was to sledge inland and set up a chain of supply depots so that the men of the Weddell Sea Party undertaking the crossing didn’t run out of food and other necessities on the last part of their journey. As well as laying depots, they were also tasked with scientific work. The Ross Sea Party arrived in Antarctica in January 1915. The work was physically exhausting and the atrocious conditions unforgiving. In May 1915, their support ship, Aurora, was swept away in a violent storm. Its rudder damaged, the Aurora drifted out to sea and its crew somehow managed to nurse it to New Zealand. But the ten men of the Ross Sea Party were left stranded. They carried on with their work, totally unaware of the disaster that had befallen their comrades in the Weddell Sea Party. Finally, on 10 January 1917, the Aurora returned and rescued seven survivors. One had died; two were missing, presumed dead.
Alexander Stevens
Born in Kilmarnock on 11 January 1886, Alexander Stevens was enlisted by Shackleton when the famous explorer visited the University of Glasgow in August 1914 in a last-ditch attempt to find new volunteers for his latest venture. Recruited as a Biologist, Stevens was promoted to Chief Scientist whilst the Ross Sea Party was readying Aurora in Australia. However, upon arrival in Antarctica, Stevens quickly fell ill, his thin frame and weak health proving wholly inadequate for the monumental physical exertions of hauling supplies. The dogs that had been brought for the sledges were difficult to control and unsuited for the task. The majority of the sledging was therefore done by the men themselves. Because of his frailties, Stevens became increasingly unable to cope alongside his comrades on the ice shelf. Between November 1915 and the middle of January 1916, he undertook scientific work in complete isolation at Captain Robert Falcon Scott’s former hut at Cape Evans, whilst the others hauled supplies. By July 1916, the remaining six survivors of the party had joined Stevens at the hut. After the rescue on 10 January 1917, Stevens returned to the UK and joined the Army. He saw active service with the Royal Engineers on the Western Front in the final months of the war. After the Armistice, Stevens returned to the University of Glasgow and taught Geography. He became the University’s first Professor of Geography in 1947 and retired in 1953 after a long and distinguished academic career. Alexander Stevens died on 20 December 1965, half a century after his ordeal on Antarctica.
Polar Medal
The Polar Medal was instituted in 1904. It continues to be awarded in recognition of achievement, including research and length of service, in the Arctic and Antarctic regions. For his participation in the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, Alexander Stevens was presented with the medal on display by King George V in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace in February 1918. Upon his retirement from the University of Glasgow in 1953, he gifted it to The Hunterian.
For further information contact:
Jesper Ericsson, Curatorial Assistant, The Hunterian
Email: jesper.ericsson@glasgow.ac.uk
Telephone: 0141 330 4289
Images can be found on our press image section
More information about Alexander Stevens is available on The Hunterian and University of Glasgow websites:
Polar Medal display
Alexander Stevens and the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition
Alexander Stevens and the Ross Sea Party
Alexander Stevens Biography
Alexander Stevens WW1
First published: 19 December 2016