Fort Conger is a former settlement, military

fortification A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

, and scientific research post in the

Qikiqtaaluk Region The Qikiqtaaluk Region, Qikiqtani Region (Inuktitut syllabics: ᕿᑭᖅᑖᓗᒃ ) or the Baffin Region is the easternmost, northernmost, and southernmost administrative region of Nunavut, Canada. Qikiqtaaluk is the traditional Inuktitut nam ...

Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...

, Canada. It was established in 1881 as an

Arctic exploration Arctic exploration is the physical exploration of the Arctic region of the Earth. It refers to the historical period during which mankind has explored the region north of the Arctic Circle. Historical records suggest that humankind have explored ...

camp, notable as the site of the first major northern polar region scientific expedition, the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition, led by Adolphus Greely as part of the United States government's contribution to the First International Polar Year. It was later occupied by Robert Peary during some of his Arctic expeditions. Fort Conger is located on the northern shore of Lady Franklin Bay in Grinnell Land, northeastern

Ellesmere Island Ellesmere Island (; ) is Canada's northernmost and List of Canadian islands by area, third largest island, and the List of islands by area, tenth largest in the world. It comprises an area of , slightly smaller than Great Britain, and the total ...

within

Quttinirpaaq National Park Quttinirpaaq National Park is located on the northeastern corner of Ellesmere Island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. It is the second most northerly park on Earth after Northeast Greenland National Park. In Inuktitut, Quttinirpaaq m ...

. Bellot Island lies across from Fort Conger within Discovery Harbour. Though lacking in timber, the area is characterized by grasses and sedges. The surroundings are rugged and boast high cliffs around the harbour. Now uninhabited, it is one of only a handful of previously staffed stations in the Queen Elizabeth Islands. In 1991, some of the structures at Fort Conger were designated as Classified Federal Heritage Buildings.

History

Before Fort Conger was established, its Discovery Harbour was used as a wintering site by the crew of , led by George Nares, during the

British Arctic Expedition The British Arctic Expedition of 1875–1876, led by Sir George Nares, was sent by the Admiralty (United Kingdom), British Admiralty to attempt to reach the North Pole via Smith Sound on the west coast of Greenland. Although the expedition fail ...

of 1875. Though Nares left behind provisions at Fort Conger, most of those supplies were unfound when Fort Conger was established as a research base in 1881 during the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition, led by U.S. Army First Lieutenant Adolphus Greely. The fort was named by Greely after U.S. Senator Omar D. Conger, who had supported the expedition. Twenty-five men, including officers, enlisted, and

Inuit Inuit (singular: Inuk) are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Russia, including Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwe ...

, lived and conducted research at Fort Conger over the next two years. (Greely would rise to the rank of major general in the Army and received the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

for his lifetime achievements in 1935.) Grave of Robert Peary - rear base - Arlington National Cemetery - 2011

During his 1899 expedition to reach the geographic North Pole, Robert Peary reached Fort Conger, only to have several toes snap off at the first joint because of

frostbite Frostbite is a skin injury that occurs when someone is exposed to extremely low temperatures, causing the freezing of the skin or other tissues, commonly affecting the fingers, toes, nose, ears, cheeks and chin areas. Most often, frostbite occ ...

. Bedridden for weeks while recuperating, Peary wrote on a wall, '' Inveniam viam aut faciam'' ("I shall find a way or make one."), the words

Hannibal Hannibal (; ; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Punic people, Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Ancient Carthage, Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Punic War. Hannibal's fat ...

had allegedly said before crossing the Alps. Later they became an inscription on the monument over Peary's grave at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

. Two additional Peary expedition parties returned to Fort Conger in 1905 and 1908. Other explorers used Fort Conger as a base from 1915 through 1935. In 1937, the MacGregor Arctic Expedition attempted to reoccupy Fort Conger.

Construction

The original fort was built as a three-room building, long, wide, and high. Lean-tos on either side of the building housed supplies. The double-wall construction of the main building consisted of long, wooden boards, covered with tar paper. This type of construction was found to be unsuitable for the Arctic as it was difficult to keep the building warm. Peary found Fort Conger to be "grotesque in its utter unfitness and unsuitableness for polar winter quarters" and eventually tore down the original building. Re-using the wood, he built several smaller, adjoining buildings, some of which still stand and are classified as Federal Heritage Buildings.

Research

As a scientific station, Fort Conger has been the site of many research projects from the early "Pendulum Observations", to "Research on the microbes attacking the historic woods at Fort Conger and the Peary huts on Ellesmere Island" conducted by the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

. Unexpected large quantities of

arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol As and atomic number 33. It is a metalloid and one of the pnictogens, and therefore shares many properties with its group 15 neighbors phosphorus and antimony. Arsenic is not ...

have been discovered at Fort Conger in recent years, its presence most likely attributable to it being delivered there for sample preservation. In 2013, a comprehensive 17-page report on the history of Fort Conger was published in the journal, ''Arctic''.

In popular culture

In the 1974 Disney film '' The Island at the Top of the World'', Fort Conger is featured as a stopover station for airborne arctic explorers in the year 1907.

References

External links