ROSS, Rear-Admiral Sir James Clark (1800-1862)

Identity Statement

Reference code(s)	: GB 0402 JCR
Held at	: Royal Geographical Society   Click here to find out how to view this collection at http://www.rgs.org/OurWork/Collections/Collections.htm ›
Full title	: ROSS, Rear-Admiral Sir James Clark (1800-1862)
Date(s)	: 1819-1842
Level of description	: Collection level
Extent	: 1 box, 5 files
Name of creator(s)	: Ross | Sir | James Clark | 1800-1862 | Knight | polar navigator

Context

Administrative/Biographical history:

Born 1800; entered the Royal Navy, 1812; served first on the BRISEIS under his uncle John whom he followed to the ACTAEON, DRIVER, and, in 1818, to the ISABELLA, in which the Rosses made their first Arctic voyage in 1818, searching for the north-west passage from Baffin Bay to the Bering Strait; appointed to undertake similar scientific work in the BECLA under William Edward Parry, 1819-1820; Arctic expedition, again under Parry in the RURY, 1821-1823; joined Parry's third voyage in the FURY, 1824-1825; second in command in the HECLA expedition on which Parry tried to reach the north pole over the ice, 1827; joined John Ross in the VICTORY to search for the north-west passage, 1829-1833; conducted the first systematic magnetic survey of the British Isles, 1835-1838; Antarctic, making geographical and magnetic observations, 1839-1843; expedition to search for Franklin, returning 1849; died, 1862.

Content

Scope and content/abstract:

Papers of Sir James Clark Ross, 1819-1875, including log as sub-lieutenant on HMS HECLA, on W E Parry's first expedition on search of the North-West Passage, 1819-1920; letter, letter-draft and memorandum, 1838, containing proposals for an expedition in search of the North-West Passage; letter from Ross on the HMS EREBUS to the Royal Geographical Society reporting on his Antarctic voyage, 1842; and copy, made by Allen Young in 1875, of a message left by Ross at Cape Coulman, 7 Jun 1849.

Access & Use

Language/scripts of material:
English

System of arrangement:

As outlined in the Scope and Content.

Conditions governing access:

Accessible via The Foyle Reading Room. Free of charge for Fellows, Members and those with valid academic identification. All other users pay a charge and must bring identification in order to register on arrival.

Conditions governing reproduction:

Photocopying at the discretion of the Archivist and subject to completion of 'application for copies' form. No publication or reproduction without the permission of the RGS-IBG Archivist.

Finding aids:

Card index available in the Foyle Reading Room.

Archival Information

Archival history:

The copy of the message had been left by Allen Young in Cape Coulman and was later remioved from there and donated to the RGS.

Immediate source of acquisition:

Allied Materials

Related material:

The collection also contains a list of material held by Miss Esther Ross concerning James Clark Ross.

Publication note:

Description Notes

Archivist's note:
Prepared by Archives Volunteer using existing finding aids. Revised by Sarah Drewery.
Sources: Oxford DNB.

Rules or conventions:
ISAD(G) ed. 2, name authority NRA.

Date(s) of descriptions:
26^th April, 2001. Jul 2008.