Harriman Alaska Expedition
Encyclopedia
E. H. Harriman
Edward Henry Harriman was an American railroad executive.-Early years:Harriman was born in Hempstead, New York, the son of Orlando Harriman, an Episcopal clergyman, and Cornelia Neilson...
arranged for a maritime expedition to Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
. Harriman brought with him an elite community of scientists, artists, photographers, and naturalists
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
to explore and document the Alaskan coast. The voyage, called the Harriman Alaska Expedition, spent two months traveling from Seattle, along the coast of Alaska, to Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
, and back again.
The Genesis of the Voyage
Edward Harriman was one of the most powerful men in America. He owned several railroads, with a dream of owning all of them. He had taken a number of near-bankrupt railroads and restored them to profitability.However, by early 1899, he was exhausted. His doctor told him that he needed a long vacation. Never a man to do anything small, Harriman decided to go to Alaska to hunt Kodiak bears. But rather than go alone, he conceived of the idea of taking with him a scientific community to explore and document the coast of Alaska.
He contacted Clinton Hart Merriam
Clinton Hart Merriam
Clinton Hart Merriam was an American zoologist, ornithologist, entomologist and ethnographer.Known as "Hart" to his friends, Dr. Clinton Hart Merriam was born in New York City in 1855. His father, Clinton Levi Merriam, was a U.S. congressman. He studied biology and anatomy at Yale University and...
, the head of the Division of Economic Ornithology and Mammalogy at the United States Department of Agriculture, and one of the founders of the National Geographic Society
National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society , headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical...
. Harriman told Merriam that he would cover the expenses of scientists, artists, and other experts who would join the voyage. He asked Merriam to choose the scientific party.
Historians question why Harriman wanted to go to Alaska. Some think he was considering developing Alaskan resources. Some think he was considering building a railroad to the Alaskan territory. Some people at the time openly wondered if he was going to buy Alaska, or build a railroad bridge from Alaska to Siberia—a railroad around the world. Nothing seemed impossible for Edward H. Harriman (Chowder, 2003).
Merriam held a flurry of meetings and sent out dozens of telegrams. He organized a broad range of experts—arctic experts, botanists, biologists and zoologists, geologists and geographers, artists, photographers, ornithologists, and writers.
Harriman ordered the refitting of a steamship known as the George W. Elder. The remodeled ship featured lecture rooms, a library with over 500 volumes on Alaska, a stable for animals, taxidermy studios, and luxury rooms for the team. Some on the expedition referred to the ship as the George W. Roller, for its tendency to roll in the waves, causing seasickness among many of the passengers.
Participants
The members of the interdisciplinary team represented the best scientists, artists, and photographers of their time.Arctic Experts
- William BrewerWilliam Henry BrewerWilliam Henry Brewer was an American botanist. He worked on the first California Geological Survey and was the first Chair of Agriculture at Yale University's Sheffield Scientific School....
, Naturalist - John MuirJohn MuirJohn Muir was a Scottish-born American naturalist, author, and early advocate of preservation of wilderness in the United States. His letters, essays, and books telling of his adventures in nature, especially in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, have been read by millions...
, Naturalist - William DallW. H. DallWilliam Healey Dall was an American naturalist, a prominent malacologist, and one of the earliest scientific explorers of interior Alaska...
, Paleontologist, Geographer
Botanists
- Frederick CovilleFrederick Vernon CovilleFrederick Vernon Coville was an American botanist who careered in the United States Department of Agriculture , where he became Chief Botanist, and was the first director of the United States National Arboretum...
, Botanist - Thomas Kearney, Botanist
- De Alton Saunders, Botanist
- William TreleaseWilliam TreleaseWilliam Trelease was an American botanist, entomologist, explorer, writer and educator. This botanist is denoted by the author abbreviation Trel. when citing a botanical name....
, Botanist - Bernhard Fernow, Forester
Biologists and Zoologists
- Wesley Coe, Biologist
- Daniel ElliotDaniel Giraud ElliotDaniel Giraud Elliot was an American zoologist.Elliot was one of the founders of the American Museum of Natural History in New York and the American Ornithologists' Union. He was also curator of zoology at the Field Museum in Chicago.Elliot used his wealth to publish a series of sumptuous...
, Zoologist - Clinton Hart MerriamClinton Hart MerriamClinton Hart Merriam was an American zoologist, ornithologist, entomologist and ethnographer.Known as "Hart" to his friends, Dr. Clinton Hart Merriam was born in New York City in 1855. His father, Clinton Levi Merriam, was a U.S. congressman. He studied biology and anatomy at Yale University and...
, Zoologist - William Emerson RitterWilliam Emerson RitterWilliam Emerson Ritter, Ph.D. was an American biologist. Ritter initiated and shaped the Marine Biological Association of San Diego and the American Society for the Dissemination of Science...
, Biologist - Trevor Kincaid, Entomologist
- A. K. Fisher, Ornithologist
- Charles KeelerCharles KeelerCharles Augustus Keeler was an American author, poet, naturalist and advocate for the arts, particularly architecture.Keeler was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and moved with his family to Berkeley in 1887...
, Ornithologist - Robert Ridgway, Ornithologist
- William H. Averell
- Leon J. Cole, Ornithologist
Geologists and Geographers
- W. B. Devereux, Mining engineer
- Benjamin EmersonBenjamin Kendall EmersonBenjamin Kendall Emerson was an American geologist and author.-Biography:Emerson graduated from Amherst College in 1865. He went on to study in Germany at the University of Berlin, and received his doctorate from the University of Göttingen in 1870...
, Geologist - Henry GannettHenry GannettHenry Gannett, M.E.; LL.D. was an American geographer who is described as the "Father of the Quadrangle" which is the basis for topographical maps in the United States.-Life:...
, Geographer - Grove Karl GilbertGrove Karl GilbertGrove Karl Gilbert , known by the abbreviated name G. K. Gilbert in academic literature, was an American geologist....
, Geologist - Charles Palache, Geologist
Artists and Photographers
- Edward CurtisEdward S. CurtisEdward Sheriff Curtis was a photographer of the American West and of Native American peoples.-Early life:...
, Photographer - Frederick DellenbaughFrederick Samuel DellenbaughFrederick Samuel Dellenbaugh was an American explorer.-Biography:He was born in McConnelsville, Ohio and was educated in the United States and in Europe...
, Artist - Louis Agassiz FuertesLouis Agassiz FuertesLouis Agassiz Fuertes was an American ornithologist, illustrator and artist.-Biography:Fuertes was the son of Estevan and Mary Stone Perry Fuertes....
, Bird Artist - R. Swain GiffordRobert Swain GiffordRobert Swain Gifford was an American landscape painter. He was influenced by the Barbizon school.Much of his work focuses on the landscapes of New England, where he was born. He, along with Victorian contemporaries from the White Mountain and Hudson River Schools, helped immortalize the majestic...
, Artist - D. J. Inverarity, Photographer (Curtis’ assistant)
Writers
- George Bird GrinnellGeorge Bird GrinnellGeorge Bird Grinnell was an American anthropologist, historian, naturalist, and writer. Grinnell was born in Brooklyn, New York, and graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in 1870 and a Ph.D. in 1880. Originally specializing in zoology, he became a prominent early conservationist and student...
, Expert on Native American Culture (Editor, Forest and StreamForest and StreamForest and Stream was a magazine featuring hunting, fishing, and other outdoor activities. Founded in 1873, it was the ninth oldest magazine in the United States....
) - John BurroughsJohn BurroughsJohn Burroughs was an American naturalist and essayist important in the evolution of the U.S. conservation movement. According to biographers at the American Memory project at the Library of Congress,...
, Author
Harriman also brought a medical team, a chaplain, hunters and packers, guides, and taxidermists. He brought his own family and his servants. Together, with the crew of the Elder, the total number of people on the ship was 126 (Burroughs, 1901).
The Voyage
By the end of May, the ship’s guests and passengers had all arrived in Seattle. Newspapers around the world ran front-page stories about the trip. On May 31, 1899, the Elder launched from Seattle. Cheering crowds saw them off (Chowder, 2003).Their first stop was the Victoria Museum on Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...
. They then traveled farther north to Lowe Inlet, where they stopped to explore and document the wildlife.
On June 4, they stopped in Metlakatla
Metlakatla, Alaska
Metlakatla is a census-designated place on Annette Island in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 1,375.- History :...
, the European-style settlement that was created by Scottish missionary William Duncan
William Duncan (missionary)
William Duncan was an English-born Anglican missionary who founded the Tsimshian communities of Metlakatla, British Columbia, in Canada, and Metlakatla, Alaska, in the United States...
for the Alaskan indigenous people. The scientists visited with Duncan
William Duncan (missionary)
William Duncan was an English-born Anglican missionary who founded the Tsimshian communities of Metlakatla, British Columbia, in Canada, and Metlakatla, Alaska, in the United States...
in his home.
In the next two weeks the Elder stopped at several spots on Alaskan soil, including Skagway
Skagway, Alaska
Skagway is a first-class borough in Alaska, on the Alaska Panhandle. It was formerly a city first incorporated in 1900 that was re-incorporated as a borough on June 25, 2007. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city was 862...
and Sitka. They saw the results, both positive and negative, of the Klondike Gold Rush
Klondike Gold Rush
The Klondike Gold Rush, also called the Yukon Gold Rush, the Alaska Gold Rush and the Last Great Gold Rush, was an attempt by an estimated 100,000 people to travel to the Klondike region the Yukon in north-western Canada between 1897 and 1899 in the hope of successfully prospecting for gold...
. They continued to catalog plants, animals, and marine creatures, as well as geological and glacial formations. Harriman had brought a graphophonic recording machine
Graphophone
The Graphophone was the name and trademark of an improved version of the phonograph invented at the Volta Laboratory established by Alexander Graham Bell in Washington, D.C....
, and used it to record a native Tlingit song.
By June 25, they had reached the pristine Prince William Sound. They discovered an undocumented fiord in the northwest corner of the Sound. They named it “Harriman Fiord.”
While the scientists had some control over where they stopped to explore, Harriman retained the final judgment. He was anxious to hunt a bear, and he decided to head toward Kodiak Island
Kodiak Island
Kodiak Island is a large island on the south coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, separated from the Alaska mainland by the Shelikof Strait. The largest island in the Kodiak Archipelago, Kodiak Island is the second largest island in the United States and the 80th largest island in the world, with an...
when he heard that there were bears there.
On July 7, they reached Popof Island
Popof Island
Popof Island is an island in the Shumagin Islands south of mainland Alaska. The largest community in the area, Sand Point, is located on the northwest coast. Popof Island is 10 miles long, 5 miles wide and the peak elevation is 1,550 feet . It is located at...
in the Shumagins
Shumagin Islands
The Shumagin Islands are a group of 20 islands in the Aleutians East Borough south of the mainland of Alaska, USA, at54°54'–55°20' North 159°15'–160°45' West. The largest islands are Unga Island, Popof Island, Korovin Island, and Nagai Island. Other islands include Andronica, Big Koniuji, Little...
. Four of the scientists, William Ritter
William Emerson Ritter
William Emerson Ritter, Ph.D. was an American biologist. Ritter initiated and shaped the Marine Biological Association of San Diego and the American Society for the Dissemination of Science...
, De Alton Saunders, Charles Palache, and Trevor Kincaid (accompanied by Luther Kelly, one of the expedition’s guides), decided to stay and camp on Popof Island while the rest of the scientists continued on to Siberia. This allowed the campers to make much more detailed notes about the area, rather than quick notes on frequent stops along the way.
Edward Harriman’s wife wanted to put her feet on Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
n soil, so the Elder continued northward. By July 11, the ship had put into Plover
Providence Bay, Siberia
Emma Harbor, Plover Bay, and Ureliki redirect hereProvidence Bay is a fjord in the southern coast of the Chukchi Peninsula of northeastern Siberia. It was a popular rendezvous, wintering spot, and provisioning spot for whalers and traders in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries...
Bay in Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
.
Harriman, by this time, was impatient and ready to get back to work. The Elder steamed southward, picking up the party on Popof Island. On July 26, the Elder made one last stop, at an abandoned Tlingit village at Cape Fox. On July 30, the ship pulled into the harbor in Seattle.
Expedition Publications
Harriman paid for the creation of several sizable volumes of the discoveries of the expedition. When Harriman died in 1909, his wife devoted enough money to continue the publications. C. Hart MerriamClinton Hart Merriam
Clinton Hart Merriam was an American zoologist, ornithologist, entomologist and ethnographer.Known as "Hart" to his friends, Dr. Clinton Hart Merriam was born in New York City in 1855. His father, Clinton Levi Merriam, was a U.S. congressman. He studied biology and anatomy at Yale University and...
served as the editor, and spent twelve years working on the publications (Goetzmann & Sloan, 1982).
John Burroughs
John Burroughs
John Burroughs was an American naturalist and essayist important in the evolution of the U.S. conservation movement. According to biographers at the American Memory project at the Library of Congress,...
, a best-selling nature author, was the official scribe of the expedition. He wrote much of Volume I, an overview of the trip. Volumes VI and VII, which were to be written by Merriam and feature mammals, never appeared. Perhaps Merriam simply couldn’t find the time with his other duties. Subsequent volumes were written by other expedition scientists or authors hired by Merriam to finish the work. While they often mentioned the beauty and grandeur of the Alaskan coast, the publications were mostly highly technical and written for other scientists.
The first volume was published in 1901, and they continued to be published in the next few years. The Smithsonian republished the entire series in 1910, and the volumes are now available as free downloads.
-
- Vol I: Narrative, Glaciers, Natives
- Vol II: History, Geography, Resources
- Vol III: Glaciers and Glaciation
- Vol IV: Geology and Paleontology
- Vol V: Cryptogamic Botany
- Vol VIII: Insects, Part 1
- Vol IX: Insects, Part 2
- Vol X: Crustaceans
- Vol XI: Nemerteans, Bryozoans
- Vol XII: Enchytraeids, Tubicolous Annelids
- Vol XIII: Land and Fresh Water Mollusks
- Vol XIV: Monograph of the Shallow-water Starfishes of the North Pacific Coast from the Arctic Ocean to California, Part 1. Text and Part 2. Plates
Legacy
AccomplishmentsThe expedition claimed to have discovered some 600 species that were new to science, including 38 new fossil species. They charted the geographic distribution of many species. They discovered an unmapped fiord and named several glaciers. Gilbert’s
Grove Karl Gilbert
Grove Karl Gilbert , known by the abbreviated name G. K. Gilbert in academic literature, was an American geologist....
work on glaciers represented new thinking in the field (Goetzmann & Sloan, 1982).
Another legacy of the trip was the career of Edward Curtis
Edward S. Curtis
Edward Sheriff Curtis was a photographer of the American West and of Native American peoples.-Early life:...
. On the trip, he developed a close friendship with George Grinnell
George Bird Grinnell
George Bird Grinnell was an American anthropologist, historian, naturalist, and writer. Grinnell was born in Brooklyn, New York, and graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in 1870 and a Ph.D. in 1880. Originally specializing in zoology, he became a prominent early conservationist and student...
, who was an expert on Native American culture. After the expedition, Grinnell invited Curtis with him on a trip to the Blackfeet
Blackfeet
The Piegan Blackfeet are a tribe of Native Americans of the Algonquian language family based in Montana, having lived in this area since around 6,500 BC. Many members of the tribe live as part of the Blackfeet Nation in northwestern Montana, with population centered in Browning...
Reservation in Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
. Curtis, moved by what was commonly believed to be a dying way of life, spent much of his career documenting Native American culture (Goetzmann & Sloan, 1982).
At first, John Muir
John Muir
John Muir was a Scottish-born American naturalist, author, and early advocate of preservation of wilderness in the United States. His letters, essays, and books telling of his adventures in nature, especially in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, have been read by millions...
found Harriman distasteful and his hunting barbaric. But, over the course of the trip and afterward, the two became friends. Years later, Muir recruited Harriman to help with governmental lobbying on National Park legislation (Chowder, 2003). It was Muir who gave the eulogy at Harriman’s funeral in 1909.
The Intersection of 19th and 20th Century Science
In many ways, the expedition was an intersection of 19th-century science and 20th-century science. It often represented the best of the new century’s science, but it also showed how scientists thought in the previous century.
They foreshadowed practices of 20th-century science by being a truly interdisciplinary team. The wealth of disciplines represented on the voyage enabled them to work together to solve many pieces of the puzzle. They also discussed the potential loss of the wilderness and the indigenous peoples. They saw the remnants of the Yukon gold rush, and how self-serving treasure hunters were plundering the countryside and the dignity and viability of the indigenous cultures.
But in many ways, they were still firmly rooted in 19th-century science. In the 19th century, the common way to write scientific articles was to create endlessly long descriptions of the physical characteristics of a plants or animals. Most of the publications from the expedition followed this protocol. This approach to biology withered away in the early 20th century.
Another example of 19th-century thinking was their perspective on indigenous cultures. Their ethnocentric view regarded the indigenous people as savages. While the scientists remarked in horror that the indigenous cultures were disappearing, they simultaneously felt that adopting modern European-style technology, dress, and customs would somehow be a helpful step for them.
The intersection of 19th- and 20th-century science was even evident among different opinions of those on the expedition. Upon seeing the indigenous peoples involved in salmon fishing operations and canning factories, those on the Elder felt different things. Some saw the cannery operations as forced labor, akin to slavery. Other expedition members saw the cannery operations as efficient and effective.
Cape Fox Artifacts
On July 26, 1899, the expedition landed in Cape Fox, at an abandoned Tlingit village. The village had been deserted for about five years, but many piece of Tlingit artwork and totem poles were still there. Some members of the expedition (in protest of other members) removed some of the artifacts from the village. While this has been described by some as “looting,” it must be considered in the context of the times. Members of the expedition believed that the indigenous cultures of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
would soon be extinguished by the encroaching of modern civilization. Their desire was to save to museums what they believed would be the last remnants of the Tlingit artwork and culture. The expedition saw the artifacts as inanimate objects from a deserted village. To the Tlingit, who were living nearby, the artifacts were a sacred part of their identity.
The Cape Fox artifacts were indeed preserved in museums. In 2001, a group of scientists retraced the steps of the 1899 Harriman Expedition. The 2001 scientists and crew, including the great-great-granddaughter of Edward Harriman, returned a number of artifacts to the descendants of the original Cape Fox Tlingit residents (Litwin, 2005).
External links
- Short chronology
- University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections – Harriman Alaska Expedition of 1899 254 photographs from 1899 of Edward Harriman's scientific expedition to Alaska, including images of Alaskan Native Americans and their villages, scenic views of the coastline, glaciers and Alaskan towns.