Matthew Henson was a remarkable explorer and possibly the first person to stand at the North Pole. He embodied the traits and characteristics that define the world's most successful adventurers. With his wide-ranging knowledge and passion for learning he developed a vast skill set that led to the success of many expeditions. Because he was Black he did not receive the recognition he was due until well after he died. His legacy lives on in the countless people who have been inspired by his life.
Born 3 years after the Emancipation Proclamation
Henson was born to sharecropper parents in Nanjemoy, Maryland in 1866. Following attacks by the KKK, Henson's parents moved the family to Georgetown in 1867. Following the deaths of both of his parents and uncle, Henson eventually made his way to Baltimore.
Henson was inspired by Frederick Douglass as a preteen
When he was 10 years old, Henson attended a ceremony honoring the life and legacy of Abraham Lincoln. The esteemed orator, social reformer, writer, and statesman Frederick Douglass addressed the gathering and urged members of the Black community to pursue education and professional opportunities to battle racial prejudice. Henson took these words to heart and put them into action.
A young life at sea helped launch his career as an Arctic explorer
Following the deaths of both parents and his uncle, twelve year old Henson made his way to the port of Baltimore where he secured the position of cabin boy onboard the three masted merchant ship Katie Hines. For six years Henson traveled the globe including stops in China, Japan, Russia, and Africa. During this period of time Henson employed his trademark curiosity and industrious intellect. While honing his rapidly advancing skills as a sailor and craftsman, Henson also learned to read and write under the tutelage of Katie Hines' Captain Childs.
A serendipitous department store encounter alters the course of exploration history
Following his time at sea, Henson took a salesclerk position at Washington DC's B. H. Stinemetz and Sons clothing store. It was at this store that he met Commander Robert Peary whom Henson would accompany on seven Arctic expeditions over 18 years.
Peary was impressed by Henson's energy, sailing experience, inquiring mind, and keen interest in exploration. Peary hired him on the spot to join a voyage and surveying expedition to Nicaragua. Henson continued to impress throughout the expedition to the point that Peary made him his "first man" on all future expeditions.
Henson's vast skill set blossoms during first Arctic expedition
In 1891 Henson accompanied Peary on an expedition to determine whether Greenland was an island or a Canadian peninsula. During the successful expedition Henson became closely acquainted with west Greenland Inuit. He was the only expedition member to learn the Inuit language and master the skills of dog training, sled driving, and dogsled construction. These skills paved the way for him to become solely responsible for sled construction and maintenance on future Arctic expeditions. Aside from his massive talent and value to expedition teams, Henson's warm heart and winning personality also gained in reputation, as the Inuit took to calling him "Matthew the kind one".
Peary's "first man" becomes (likely) the first man to set foot at the North Pole
In keeping with his entire career, Henson was indispensable on he and Peary's final Arctic expedition in 1908-9. He, Peary, and four Inuit were the only team members remaining on the Arctic Icecap during the final dash to the pole. According to journal entries, the team initially overshot the North Pole, and when they backtracked to their ultimate goal they found that Henson had already left boot prints at 90 degrees north latitude. Although their success would come under scrutiny in the years and decades that followed, both the National Geographic Society and the Naval Affairs Subcommittee of the US House of Representatives credit the party as the first humans to reach the geographic North Pole.
Henson received paltry recognition for his amazing accomplishments and contributions
Peary returned home from the North Pole to a hero's welcome. He enjoyed fame and fortune for the rest of his life. Henson, though celebrated in the Black community, received next to no recognition at all by comparison, despite Peary's pre-expedition dictum that, "Henson must go all the way. I can't make it without him."
Two engaging books chronicle Henson's remarkable life
Henson published his memoir A Negro Explorer at the North Pole in 1912. He focuses primarily on he and Peary's final expedition. His tone is anything but self aggrandizing, yet it's impossible to read without astonishment at his superhuman efforts to help secure success for the expedition team.
He later collaborated with Bradley Robinson who published the Henson biography Dark Companion in 1947. As the titles denote, Henson's accomplishments, unlike those of other explorers such as Peary, Shackleton, and Amundsen, were viewed through a racialized lens.
Henson the customs house clerk receives commendations
Following his expedition career, Henson spent nearly 30 years on staff at the US Customs House in New York. Though his contributions were largely overlooked by the government and public, Henson was admitted to the Explorers Club in 1937, and in 1948 was made an honorary member. Congress awarded him a duplicate of the Peary Polar Expedition Medal in 1948, and presidents Truman and Eisenhower both honored him before his death in 1955.
Henson and his wife were reinterred at Arlington
Henson passed away at 88 years old in the Bronx. His wife Lucy passed away 13 years later and was laid to rest beside him at Woodlawn Cemetery in New York. In 1988 their remains were moved for interment at Arlington National Cemetery.
For all these reasons and many more, we honor Henson and his legacy with the Matthew Henson Scholarship
The odds were stacked against Henson. When an opportunity to embark on a polar expedition career arose, he seized it and became a pivotal force in the history of exploration.
Over a century later, outdoor industry leadership opportunities remain sparse for people that look like him. On an individual level that may be due to difficult physical access to the outdoors, access to a mentor, to equipment, or a gut feeling of being unwelcome in a setting where you don't feel represented. The fact remains that access to the outdoors and leadership positions within the industry is uneven to say the least.
In recognition of this lack of diversity in the outdoors and in honor of Henson's life and legacy, PolarExplorers initiated the Matthew Henson Scholarship.
This two-year scholarship is awarded annually to a person of color seeking to break into or further their position in the outdoor industry. Scholars attend consecutive years of the Polar Shakedown Training in Ely, MN. Participation is fully subsidized and nearly all gear is provided (we can provide help acquiring any outstanding essential gear list items).
The first training is spent learning cold weather expedition and leadership skills. THe second training is spent mentoring the incoming Henson Scholar and assistant guiding the Shakedown alongside PolarExplorers guides.
Qualified pplicants should: be passionate about wilderness travel and outdoor leadership, aspire to be a leader in the outdoors, be excited to increase their cold weather camping skill set, and have some prior backcountry experience.
Click here for more information and to apply.
