Patrick Keohane (2 June 1879 – 31 August 1950) was an Irish member of

Robert Falcon Scott Captain Robert Falcon Scott (6 June 1868 – ) was a British Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery Expedition, ''Discovery'' expedition of 1901–04 and the Terra Nova Expedition ...

's Antarctic expedition of 1910–1913, the ''Terra Nova'' expedition.

Biography

Patrick Keohane was born in

Courtmacsherry Courtmacsherry (), often referred to by locals as Courtmac, is a seaside village in County Cork, on the southwest coast of Ireland. It is southwest of Cork city. The nearest town is Clonakilty, to the west (16 km by road). The village co ...

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

, Ireland, in 1879. He joined the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

and rose to the rank of petty officer. Served with Teddy Evans on . At age 30, he was selected by Teddy Evans to join the ''Terra Nova'' expedition to

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

. He joined the from . On the expedition's main southern journey, he led a pony to the foot of the Beardmore glacier, and then became part of the 12-man manhauling party which began the push towards the pole. He was a member of the first supporting group, along with

Edward L. Atkinson Edward Leicester Atkinson, (23 November 1881 – 20 February 1929) was a Royal Navy surgeon and Antarctic explorer who was a member of the scientific staff of Robert Falcon Scott, Captain Scott's Terra Nova Expedition, ''Terra Nova'' Expediti ...

, Charles S. Wright and

Apsley Cherry-Garrard Apsley George Benet Cherry-Garrard (2 January 1886 – 18 May 1959) was an English explorer of Antarctica. He was a member of the Terra Nova Expedition, ''Terra Nova'' expedition and is acclaimed for his 1922 account of this expedition, ''T ...

, to be sent back at 85° 15’ South on 22 December 1911. On their journey back to

Cape Evans Cape Evans () is a rocky cape on the west side of Ross Island, Antarctica, forming the north side of the entrance to Erebus Bay. History The cape was discovered by the British National Antarctic Expedition, 1901–04, under Robert Falcon Scot ...

, Keohane fell down crevasses to the full length of his harness eight times in 25 minutes. According to Cherry-Garrard, Keohane "looked a bit dazed" after that ordeal. They successfully reached

Hut Point Hut Point Peninsula () is a long, narrow peninsula from wide and long, projecting south-west from the slopes of Mount Erebus on Ross Island, Antarctica. McMurdo Station (US) and Scott Base (NZ) are Antarctic research stations located on the Hut ...

on 26 January 1912. On 27 March 1912, Keohane, along with Atkinson, attempted to find Scott and his polar party and bring them back to Cape Evans from the One Ton supply depot. Starting at Hut Point, the party only made it to a point south of Corner Camp. There they left a week's provisions and returned to Cape Evans on 1 April. On 29 October, after spending the winter on the continent, Keohane was among a party that went to search for Scott's group. On 12 November, they found the frozen bodies of Scott,

Edward Adrian Wilson Edward Adrian Wilson (23 July 1872 – 29 March 1912) was an English polar explorer, ornithologist, natural historian, physician and artist. Early life Born in Cheltenham on 23 July 1872, Wilson was the second son and fifth child of ...

, and

Henry Robertson Bowers Henry Robertson Bowers (29 July 1883 – ) was one of Robert Falcon Scott's polar party on the ill-fated Terra Nova expedition of 1910–1913, all of whom died during their return from the South Pole. Early life Bowers was born on 29 July 1 ...

eleven miles south of the One Ton supply depot. The party sailed on the ''Terra Nova'' from Cape Evans for the last time on 22 January 1913. The ship arrived in

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

on 14 June. After his return, Keohane joined the

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a Maritime Security Regimes, maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with cust ...

service. He served as the district officer of coastguards for the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

. He later rejoined the Royal Navy and served in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Keohane died in

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

in 1950, at the age of 71.

Legacy

Keohane was portrayed by Larry Burns in the 1948 film '' Scott of the Antarctic'', and by Tom Gerrard in the 1985 television serial ''

The Last Place on Earth ''The Last Place on Earth'' is a 1985 Central Television seven-part serial, written by Trevor Griffiths based on the book ''Scott and Amundsen'' by Roland Huntford. The book is an exploration of the expeditions of Captain Robert F. Scott (pl ...

''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keohane, Patrick 1879 births 1950 deaths Irish explorers of Antarctica Military personnel from County Cork Irish sailors in the Royal Navy Terra Nova expedition Royal Navy personnel of World War I 20th-century Irish explorers