• Title
  Ernest Shackleton. Strictly Private. Proposed Trans-Antarctic Expedition, ca. 1913
• Creator
  Ernest Henry Shackleton, Sir, 1874-1922
• Call number
  MLMSS 9807/Box 1X
  
• Level of description
  fonds
• Date
  
  1913
• Type of material
  Textual Records
• Reference code
  1000791
• Physical Description
  0.16 metres of textual material (1 volume in outsize box) - 1 typescript, 11 pages, with manuscript annotations - 29 x 22 cm
  
• ADMINISTRATIVE/ BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
  
  Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton (1874-1922) was a polar explorer who led three British expeditions to the Antarctic, and one of the principal figures of the period known as the ‘Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration’. In 1914, Shackleton embarked on his third, and most famous, expedition to the Antarctic with the ship 'Endurance', planning to cross the Antarctica continent via the South Pole. He was accompanied by Australian photographer Frank Hurley. However, early in 1915 disaster struck when the 'Endurance' became trapped in the ice, and ten months later sank. The crew were forced to camp on the ice, and then set off in three life boats, eventually reaching Elephant Island on 15 April 1916. Shackleton, together with five crew members, subsequently went to find help. In a small boat, the six men spent 16 days crossing 1,300 km of ocean to reach South Georgia and then trekked across the island to a whaling station. The remaining men from the 'Endurance' were rescued in August 1916. This expedition remains one of the most dramatic and perilous in Antarctic history.
• Collection history
  This manuscript document has very strong provenance, having been acquired by the vendor directly from the Estate of American writer William Gibson, in 2009. Gibson was writing a piece on Shackleton and possibly acquired the document as part of his research. Gibson never finished the piece, and the rest of Gibson’s archive is held at Harvard University (including 16 folders devoted to Shackleton).
• Scope and Content
  Typescript document, with manuscript annotations and signed by Ernest Shackleton. The document outlines the “Objects of the Expedition” ; “Method of Conducting the Expedition”, including the Personnel involved ; “Programme of the Expedition” ; “Cost of the Expedition” £50,000 ; and the “Return to the Man who Puts up the Money”.
  This is a very preliminary proposal for the Expedition, intended for limited distribution, probably to potential donors and backers in an effort to secure funding.
• Language
  English
• Access Conditions
  
  Access via appointment
• Copying Conditions
  Out of copyright:
  Please acknowledge:: Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales
• Name
  Shackleton, Ernest Henry, Sir, 1874-1922
  
• Subject
  Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (1914-1917)
  Antarctica--Discovery and exploration--British.
  Explorers--Antarctica.
  
• Open Rosetta viewer
  IE8866687

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