Charles Francis Hall and His Mysterious Arctic Death

Mar 11, 2024

Explore the adventurous life of Charles Francis Hall, from Arctic expeditions to mysterious deaths. Discover suspicions of foul play, arsenic poisoning, and conflicting reports surrounding his untimely demise. Uncover the controversy and intrigue of Hall's tragic expedition and the harrowing rescue from icy conditions. Delve into connections with indigenous interpreters, mutineer shootings, and the Navy's attribution of his death to natural causes. Reflect on Hall's drive to reach the North Pole and the unsettling incident on his second Arctic expedition.

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Introduction

00:00 • 2min

The Intriguing Life of Charles Francis Hall

01:40 • 9min

The Polaris Expedition and Charles Hall's Ambition

10:45 • 8min

Tragic Expedition of Charles Hall and the Harrowing Rescue from the Ice Flow

18:48 • 5min

Mysterious Death of Charles Francis Hall

23:45 • 5min

Death and Deception in the Arctic

28:59 • 7min

The Mysterious Arctic Death of Charles Francis Hall

36:28 • 7min

Charles Francis Hall was inspired by expeditions like Sir John Franklin’s push to find the Northwest Passage, but he repeated the pattern of doom when he made a try for the North Pole – though he was the only one from his expedition to die.

Research:

Besselss, Emil, and William Barr. “Polaris: The Chief Scientist's Recollections of the American North Pole Expedition, 1871-73.” University of Calgary Press. 2016.
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Charles Francis Hall". Encyclopedia Britannica, 1 Jan. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Francis-Hall
Dodge, Ernest S. and C.C. Loomis. “HALL, CHARLES FRANCIS.” Dictionary of Canadian Biography. http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/hall_charles_francis_10E.html
Harper, Ken. “Murder at Repulse Bay Part 1.” Nunatsiaq News. Sept. 7, 2007. https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/Murder_at_Repulse_Bay_Part_1/
Harper, Ken. “Murder at Repulse Bay Part 2.” Nunatsiaq News. September 14, 2007. https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/Murder_at_Repulse_Bay_Part_2/
Loomis, Chauncey C. “Weird and tragic shores; the story of Charles Francis Hall, explorer.” New York. Knopf. 1971. Accessed online: https://archive.org/details/weirdtragicshore0000loom/page/388/mode/2up
MOSELEY, H. Besselss' Account of the “Polaris” Expedition1 . Nature 24, 194–197 (1881). https://doi.org/10.1038/024194a0
Niekrasz, Emily. “Wait. Did That Really Happen? Potential Poison on the Polaris.” Smithsonian Institution Archives. August 13, 2020. https://siarchives.si.edu/blog/wait-did-really-happen-potential-poison-polaris
Page, Jake. “Arctic Arsenic.” Smithsonian. Feb. 1, 2001. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/arctic-arsenic-71724451/
Phillips, Braden. “This Arctic murder mystery remains unsolved after 150 years.” National Geographic. Nov. 22, 2022. https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/history-and-civilisation/2022/11/this-arctic-murder-mystery-remains-unsolved-after-150-years
“The Story of the Ice.” The New York Herald. Sept. 21, 1873. https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030313/1873-09-21/ed-1/seq-5/

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