Lowther Island lies within the Canadian Arctic Archipelago

Canadian Arctic Archipelago

The Canadian Arctic Archipelago, also known as the Arctic Archipelago, is a Canadian archipelago north of the Canadian mainland in the Arctic...

 in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of northern Canada

Northern Canada

Northern Canada, colloquially the North, is the vast northernmost region of Canada variously defined by geography and politics. Politically, the term refers to the three territories of Canada: Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut...

's territory of Nunavut

Nunavut

Nunavut is the largest and newest federal territory of Canada; it was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, though the actual boundaries had been established in 1993...

. It is one of the mid-channel islands in the western sector of Barrow Strait

Barrow Strait

Barrow Strait is a shipping waterway in Northern Canada's territory of Nunavut. Forming part of the Parry Channel, the strait separates several large islands including Cornwallis Island and Devon Island to the north, from Prince of Wales Island, Somerset Island, and Prince Leopold Island to the...

. Bathurst Island

Bathurst Island

A member of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Bathurst Island is one of the Queen Elizabeth Islands in Nunavut Territory, Canada. The area of the island is estimated at , making it the 54th largest island in the world and Canada's 13th largest island. It is uninhabited.The island is low-lying with...

 and Cornwallis Island are to the north, while Prince of Wales Island is to the south. The island is clustered within a group of uninhabited islands. It is 15.5 mi (24.9 km) northeast of Young Island, separated by the Kettle Passage, a shipping route, and 13 mi (20.9 km) southeast of Garrett Island

Garrett Island

Garrett Island is an island of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, in the territory of Nunavut. It lies in the Barrow Strait, between Bathurst Island and Lowther Island ....

, separated by Hayes Channel.

Lowther Island is 17 mi (27.4 km) long, 2 mile wide, and 145 km² (56 sq mi). It is rimmed by raised beaches, the highest being at 106.5 m (349.4 ft). above sea level. Gourdeau Point is on the island's south side, and Lowther Shoal is to the south/southeast.

History

The first Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an to sight the island was William Edward Parry

William Edward Parry

Sir William Edward Parry was an English rear-admiral and Arctic explorer, who in 1827 attempted one of the earliest expeditions to the North Pole...

 in 1819. It is named after a relative of Hugh Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale

Hugh Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale

Hugh Cecil Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale, KG, GCVO was an English nobleman.-Biography:The second son of the 3rd Earl of Lonsdale, he succeeded his brother, the 4th Earl, in 1882. Lord Lonsdale was an avid sportsman and bon vivant and was known by some as "England's greatest sporting gentleman"...

 (who visited Lowther Island himself), that worked for the Hudson's Bay Company

Hudson's Bay Company

The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...

.

In August 1852, ÉMile-Frédéric de Bray, searching for Sir John Franklin

John Franklin

Rear-Admiral Sir John Franklin KCH FRGS RN was a British Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. Franklin also served as governor of Tasmania for several years. In his last expedition, he disappeared while attempting to chart and navigate a section of the Northwest Passage in the Canadian Arctic...

, spent a week at Lowther Island and close-by Griffith Island

Griffith Island (Nunavut)

Griffith Island lies within the Canadian Arctic Archipelago in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of northern Canada's territory of Nunavut. It is one of the mid-channel islands in the western sector of Barrow Strait....

. The island was also visited by Francis Leopold McClintock

Francis Leopold McClintock

Admiral Sir Francis Leopold McClintock or Francis Leopold M'Clintock KCB, FRS was an Irish explorer in the British Royal Navy who is known for his discoveries in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago.-Biography:...

 as part of Capt. Henry Kellett

Henry Kellett

Vice Admiral Sir Henry Kellett KCB was a British naval officer and explorer.-Naval career:Kellett joined the Royal Navy in 1822...

's 1852 to 1854 expedition.