Among items on display is the very rarely seen second journal of Henry Robertson (Birdie) Bowers who accompanied Scott to the Pole and died alongside him on the return journey. This fragile volume has been repaired especially for the exhibition and the full text will be published for the first time, along with Bowers’ letters home, in a limited edition in mid-December.
Keeper of Collections, Heather Lane said, “What has really struck me is how powerful much of the writing is. The manuscripts provide such a vivid record of the daily life of the expedition. I hope that people who come along will gain a very clear picture of the range of scientific and mapping work which Scott’s men were able to achieve, quite apart from the journey to the Pole.”
Other previously unseen items include also a miniature sledge made by Edward Evans, the sketchbook of Edward Wilson (Chief of the Scientific Staff) – including his drawings of Amundsen’s tent, and a newspaper, produced by members of the trapped northern party who had – rather improbably – taken a typewriter along with them. The hand-produced newspaper, which contains humorous articles, poems and sketches, is evocatively blackened by the soot from their blubber stove – the trapped men’s main means of survival as they sat out the worst of the winter before travelling the 230 miles on foot back to Cape Evans.
Perhaps one of the most valuable exhibits on display is the journal of Captain Scott, on loan from the British Library by permission of the Scott family. It is reunited for the first time with his heart-breaking final letters to his widow.
The title of the exhibition comes directly from Captain Scott’s message to the public written at the end of his journal, just prior to his death. Dated March 29, 1912, it reads: “Had we lived, I should have had a tale to tell of the hardihood, endurance, and courage of my companions which would have stirred the heart of every Englishman. These rough notes and our dead bodies must tell the tale, but surely, surely, a great rich country like ours will see that those who are dependent on us are properly provided for.”
Although much of the display focuses on the written words of the Terra Nova crew, there will also be some fascinating and unusual exhibits on display alongside the letters, manuscripts, illustrated newspapers, posters and pamphlets.
They include some of the Christmas decorations made by members of the 33-strong shore party, as well as medals, sledge flags and matchboxes belonging to crew members. Some of Wilson’s watercolours will also be on display as well as a penguin-shaped menu made for those spending Midwinter Day at Cape Evans.
Expedition members featured in the exhibition include: Captain Scott, Dr Wilson, Lieutenant Bowers, Captain Oates, Petty Officer Edgar Evans, Apsley Cherry-Garrard (author of the Worst Journey in the World), Lieutenant Edward Evans (second in command of the expedition), Victor Campbell (leader of the Northern Party), Thomas Griffith Taylor (Geologist), Charles Wright (Physicist), William Lashly (Chief Stoker), Thomas Williamson (Petty Officer), Patrick Keohane (Petty Officer), Frank Browning (Petty Officer).
These rough notes: Captain Scott’s last expedition runs until 5 May 2012. Scott's Journals are available at the Polar Museum and can be read online.
A list of the scheduled events marking the Scott 100 Centenary taking place across the world to commemorate the 1910-13 Antarctic expeditions.
Image: Lawrence Oates with ponies; photo by Herbert G. Ponting. Private collection photograph from Ponting's negative prints
Pages: 1 · 2
More Articles
- National Archives Records Lay Foundation for Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI
- Nichola D. Gutgold - The Most Private Roosevelt Makes a Significant Public Contribution: Ethel Carow Roosevelt Derby
- Oppenheimer: July 28 UC Berkeley Panel Discussion Focuses On The Man Behind The Movie
- "Henry Ford Innovation Nation", a Favorite Television Show
- Julia Sneden Wrote: Going Forth On the Fourth After Strict Blackout Conditions and Requisitioned Gunpowder Had Been the Law
- Jo Freeman Reviews: Gendered Citizenship: The Original Conflict Over the Equal Rights Amendment, 1920 – 1963
- Jo Freeman Writes: It’s About Time
- Jo Freeman Reviews: Lady Bird Johnson: Hiding in Plain Sight
- Women in Congress: Biographical Profiles of Former Female Members of Congress
- Updated With Key Takaways: Watch on YouTube House Select Committee Hearings at House on January 6th: "So many citizens are downplaying on what happened that day"