The Northwest Passage — the fabled sea route linking the Atlantic and Pacific through the Arctic archipelago of Canada — fascinated explorers for centuries. Its discovery and mapping was not the achievement of one person, but of a series of pioneers across several centuries, each adding pieces to the puzzle.
Here’s a breakdown of the key pioneers:
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Early Attempts (16th Century)
• John Cabot (1497, England/Italy) – Sailed west for England; may have reached Labrador. Inspired the idea of a northern route to Asia.
• Martin Frobisher (1576–78, England) – Made three voyages to the Canadian Arctic, reaching what is now called Frobisher Bay.
• John Davis (1585–87, England) – Explored Davis Strait, between Greenland and Baffin Island.
• Henry Hudson (1610–11, England/Dutch) – Discovered Hudson Bay, believing it might be the route to Asia. His crew mutinied, and he was cast adrift.
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17th–18th Century Pioneers
• William Baffin (1616, England) – Explored Baffin Bay and suggested no passage existed further north. His findings were later vindicated.
• James Knight (1719, England) – Sought the passage via Hudson Bay; expedition vanished without trace.
• Samuel Hearne (1770–72, England/Hudson’s Bay Company) – First European overland journey to the Arctic Ocean, proved no navigable passage through Hudson Bay.
• James Cook (1776–79, Britain) – Explored from the Pacific side; pushed far into the Bering Strait but ice blocked the way.
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19th Century Breakthroughs
• Sir John Franklin (1845, Britain) – Led a major expedition with Erebus and Terror. Both ships became icebound, and the crews perished. Their fate gripped the world and spurred massive searches.
• Sir John Rae (1854, Scotland) – Traveling overland for Hudson’s Bay Company, Rae gathered Inuit testimony about Franklin’s fate and proved a navigable channel existed — though ice made it impractical.
• Sir Robert McClure (1850–54, Britain) – While searching for Franklin, became the first to traverse the Northwest Passage (partly by ship, partly overland by sledge). He proved the passage connected ocean to ocean, but it was not navigable in one voyage.
• Sir Francis Leopold McClintock (1857–59, Britain) – Found records and remains of Franklin’s lost expedition, confirming details of the tragedy.
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Final Success
• Roald Amundsen (1903–1906, Norway) – First to successfully navigate the Northwest Passage by ship.
• Used the small ship Gjøa.
• Wintered with the Netsilik Inuit, learning Arctic survival skills.
• Completed the passage after three years, proving it could be done (though not commercially viable).
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✅ Summary of Pioneers
• 16th–17th centuries: Early English navigators (Cabot, Frobisher, Davis, Hudson, Baffin) opened up Arctic waters.
• 18th century: Explorers like Hearne and Cook showed limits of the passage.
• 19th century: Franklin’s doomed expedition, followed by Rae, McClure, and McClintock, revealed the geography.
• 20th century: Roald Amundsen achieved the first full navigation, making him the true pioneer of the Northwest Passage’s completion.
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NORTHWEST
PASSAGEFirst European to Search for a Passage:
John Cabot
(1496-98)First to Prove Existence of Passage:
Robert McClure
(1854)First to Navigate by Ship:
Roald Amundsen
(1905)First Transit by Dogsled:
Knud Rasmussen
(1912)First West-East Transit:
RCMPV St. Roch
(1940-42)
1. TYPICAL NORTHWEST PASSAGE ROUTE (Black Line)
This route, often undertaken with the assistance of an icebreaker, stops at various Nunavut locations such as Pond Inlet, Resolute and Cambridge Bay.
2. ROALD AMUNDSEN: First Navigation by Ship (black line)
1905: In mid August, Amundsen sailed from Gjøahaven (today: Gjoa Haven, Nunavut) in the vessel Gjøa. On August 26 they encountered a ship bearing down on them from the west, and with that they were through the passage. From Amundsen's diary:
The North West Passage was done. My boyhood dream - at that moment it was accomplished. A strange feeling welled up in my throat; I was somewhat over-strained and worn - it was weakness in me - but I felt tears in my eyes. 'Vessel in sight' ... Vessel in sight.
3. ST. ROCH: First West-East Crossing (Green line)
1940-1942: The St. Roch was given the task of demonstrating Canadiansovereignty in the Arctic. It was ordered to sail from Vancouver to Halifax by way of the Northwest Passage.
The St. Roch left Vancouver in June 1940 and on October 11, 1942, it docked at Halifax - the first ship to travel from the Pacific to the Atlantic via the Northwest Passage. The journey had taken almost 28 months.
4. ST. ROCH: Northern Deep-Water Route (East-West) (Yellow line)
1944: The St. Roch was the first ship to travel the Northwest Passage through the northern, deep-water route and the first to sail the Passage in both directions.
5. FRANKLIN EXPEDITION: Attempt (Red line)
1845-48: Although Sir John Franklin was on the right track, his ships, the "Terror" and the "Erebus", became frozen in the ice near King William Island. The ships disappeared and all 129 men were lost. MORE...
6. SIR WILLIAM EDWARD PARRY: Attempt (Purple line)
1819-20: Parry led a number of expeditions in search of the Northwest Passage, and he was almost successful. One of his expeditions qualified for the £5,000 prize offered by the Board of Longitude to the first vessel to cross the 110th meridian in high northern latitudes.
7. ROBERT McCLURE: Proved Route Existed (Orange line)
1850-54: While his ship was trapped in the ice, McClure set off by sledge and discovered a passage between Banks Island and Victoria Island. Coming west to east, this linked up with Parry's previous postion coming east to west. McClure and his crew were awarded the £10,000 prize for finding the Passage.