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Ghosts of Cape Sabine: The Harrowing True Story of the Greely Expedition Hardcover – February 7, 2000

by Leonard F. Guttridge (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 46 ratings
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The ill-fated 1881 effort to establish an American fort in the Arctic is chronicled in full detail, covering the terrible saga of starvation, mutiny, suicide, shipwreck, execution, and cannibalism that devoured nineteen of the original twenty-five explorers. 40,000 first printing.
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  1. Print length
    354 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Putnam Adult
  4. Publication date
    February 7, 2000
  5. Reading age
    18 years and up
  6. Dimensions
    5.75 x 1.25 x 7.75 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    0399145893
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0399145896
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In May 1884, huddled in a tent on the northwest coast of Greenland, Private Roderick R. Schneider looked around at his companions and wrote in his journal: "It is horrible to see eighteen men dying by inches." One month later, Schneider was dead, a victim of starvation. Schneider was one of 24 men sent to establish a scientific base in Lady Franklin Bay in 1881. A combination of poor planning, bad weather, weak leadership, and a lack of support from the government that had sent them north caused all but six men to perish. Historian Leonard F. Guttridge tells the story of the ill-fated Greely expedition in Ghosts of Cape Sabine.

The expedition got off to a rocky start, underprovisioned and manned with soldiers who had never been to the Arctic. Still, once established at Lady Franklin Bay, the team performed its scientific studies and even made a foray north, breaking the British record. Personality conflicts between Lieutenant Adolphus Greely and several of his men were intensified by the fact that the ships supposed to resupply and, after two years, relieve them, never came. Dangerously low on food and supplies, the party was forced to attempt to retreat on its own. After weeks of travel, much of it spent drifting on the ice pack in Kane Basin, the party arrived at Cape Sabine and made camp. As the weeks passed and the food ran out, the men subsisted on leather from their boots, miniscule shrimp, bits of moss scraped from the rocks, and--as the days grew longer and the party grew smaller--the bodies of their fallen comrades. "In the wan light of an unsetting sun during those early Arctic summer weeks, one or more of the desperate men at Cape Sabine had been up on the ridge of the dead, busy with scalpel or hunting knife."

Guttridge utilized journals, reports, and personal correspondence to create an almost day-to-day account of the expedition, and he excels at bringing to life those desperate months waiting for rescue ships that came too late for most of the Greely expedition. Juicy details and a mastery of the subject make Ghosts of Cape Sabine read like a suspenseful novel. --Sunny Delaney

From Publishers Weekly

Mutiny, shipwreck, a new farthest north, bureaucratic ineptitude, cannibalism. A story that features all these elements promises more than enough excitement, but Guttridge (Icebound, etc.) doesn't corral all the pieces of his story into a coherent narrative until the end, when the stark and tragic facts take on their own momentum. The Greely Expedition set out in 1881 to conduct scientific observations at Lady Franklin Bay, a remote spot on Ellesmere Island in the Canadian Arctic. Under the command of U.S. Army Lieut. Adolphus Greely, the expedition was part of a multinational research effort in which several countries were making scientific observations. But funds were hard to obtain for the expedition and, more importantly, for the relief parties that were sent out the following year to cache supplies in the event the Greely party had to retreat southward. The events themselves are gripping, and Guttridge shows how Greely's men steadily lost faith in their commander. Greely's most dependable sergeant wrote in his journal: "Why does the United States government persist in sending a fool in command of an Arctic expedition?" But Guttridge delves too deeply into the details of bureaucratic infighting and provisioning and fails to successfully evoke the rigors and beauties of the Arctic climate. He relies heavily on the words that the officers and men wrote in their journals, which give readers a sense of the inexorable breakdown of discipline and morale in the face of poor leadership, but don't offer any lingering sense of the men who wrote them or of the conditions to which they ultimately succumbed.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Putnam Adult (February 7, 2000)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 354 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0399145893
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0399145896
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 18 years and up
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.55 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.75 x 1.25 x 7.75 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 46 ratings

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Leonard F. Guttridge

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
46 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

mwreview
5.0 out of 5 stars "How we gloated over the harvest, gazed upon the box of Durham tobacco and wished it was meat"---Private Henry
Reviewed in the United States on November 16, 2011
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"Ghosts of Cape Sabine" is one of those books this reader was sad to finish because it is such an exciting story with so much incredible intrigue that another 300 pages would be welcomed. The story of Adolphus Greely's Arctic expedition was mentioned in Leonard Guttridge's "Icebound: The Jeannette Expedition's Quest for the North Pole." The Jeanette was deemed missing by the time Greely set out on the Proteus in 1881. As much as this reader enjoyed "Icebound," "Ghosts of Cape Sabine," written by the same author, is better.

In fact, there is a lot in common between the Jeanette expedition and the Greely expedition. Both were dripping in controversy and intrigue from the top down and inside and outside. With the Greely expedition, though, these illicit affairs are magnified. Captain Henry Howgate championed a scientific research team (with sights on the North Pole) at Lady Franklin Bay led by his friend Greely; but, as Property and Disbursing Officer for the Signals Corps, Howgate embezzled as much as $700,000 and became a wanted man. De Long had a few troublesome members of his crew on the Jeanette, but some members of Greely's crew were almost mutinous. Second in Command Kislingbury was such a thorn in Greely's side that he fired him from the expedition but, because the Proteus, which had brought them to their research camp, had already left, they were stuck with him. The ship's doctor Octave Pavy would end up being arrested. The ship's engineer was a habitual drunkard who stole lamp fuel. There was also a murder of a crew member.

More trouble for Greely's team came from outside the expedition. Supply ships were supposed to bring Greely relief in 1882 and take them back home in 1883. Neither arrived nor, it can be argued, fulfilled their duty in leaving stores for the Greely party escaping on foot. What's more, the lack of cooperation and interest by Secretary of War Lincoln (son of the president) had a hand in the tragedy that unfolded. Then there was a cover-up after the survivors were found. This story has it all and is well-researched and well-written by Guttridge who is, at times, critical of Greely and the whole make-up of the expedition and those assigned to make the decisions. "Ghosts of Cape Sabine" is highly recommended to readers interested in stories of exploration, adventure, political intrigue, and Arctic survival. The hardcover version is 356 pages which includes notes and index and a middle section with black and white glossy photos.
4 people found this helpful
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Susan R. Matthews
5.0 out of 5 stars Hurrah! for a book on the Lady Jane Franklin Bay expedition
Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2000
Verified Purchase
If you're interested in the adventure literature of polar exploration you may already have noted that though intriguing references to the Lady Jane Franklin Bay expedition keep cropping up, nothing seems to be available in the literature to explain what it was -- how it came about -- what happened, and how the story survived to be told. Existing references were out of print or otherwise unavailable . . . until now!
The Ghosts of Cape Sabine tells the complete story of the Greely expedition to Lady Jane Franklin Bay. The ghastly mismanagement of the relief and rescue expeditions must be read to be believed, but it is all true. Guttridge's research uses previously unconsulted archival information to present a deeply affecting picture of the emotions and aspirations of the men of the expedition. Of particular interest to me was his exploration of the ways in which Greely's own perhaps over-careful instructions for relief and reprovisioning can be said to have contributed to the disaster that befell the expedition.
Under conditions of appalling stress and privation Greely's leadership was tested more severely than it had been even under fire, and it can be said that it was found wanting to an extent. Not every man can be a Shackleton. And still he brought every man in his command alive to Cape Sabine, and could have brought them all back home again -- if only, if only.
Guttridge is a fair and sympathetic historian who declines to either idolize or demonize, treating the personalities involved with compassion and respect. This book is an invaluable contribution to the literature of polar exploration. He writes well and with persuasive conviction, and does an altogether too effective job of communicating the horrors of Cape Sabine without stooping to sensationalism.
My thanks to Leonard Guttridge for making this story available one again -- and now I have to go look up his story about the Jeanette!
42 people found this helpful
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Dr. William M. Bone
5.0 out of 5 stars The Ghosts of Cape Sabine - Major League Screw-up
Reviewed in the United States on April 7, 2003
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I loved the book. If you enjoy adventure, history and reading about explorers and expeditions into extreme climates and dangerous places then this is a good book for you.
I have read many books dealing with both Arctic and Antarctic expeditions as well as exploration, mountain climbing and military history.
This is the story of an Army Signal Corp expedition and a series of screw-ups which left them stranded in the unforgiving climate of the Arctic. The extremes that these men were subjected to and the pressures brought to bear on them are mind boggling. We wonder what we would do under similar circumstances.
I came away thinking that there were really no "good guys" in this book, but lots of "bad guys" and just people who couldn't/wouldn't get along. Some had personality quirks that only magnified their plight and made things worse for everyone. No heroes in this account, only survivors. A good read.
13 people found this helpful
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Frank J. Konopka
5.0 out of 5 stars A tale of heroism and foolishness
Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2000
Verified Purchase
The story contained in this book is a good example of why governments should have stayed out of the exploring business in the Arctic regions. The inadequate research, underfunding, and the willy-nilly selection of leaders and expedition members practically doomed the Greely excursion to Lady Franklin Bay before it began. Once under way, the objections and obstructions put forth by Secretary of War Robert Todd Lincoln definitely contributed to the tragedy that ensued. There is no doubt that the members of the expedition acted very heroically in many instances, including the commander himself, but there are also many times when foolish things happened, and those things had tragic consequences later. Reading this book is a good cautionary tale: plan ahead for as many contingencies as possible, have proper funding, and make sure that instructions are sufficiently clear and flexible enough to take into account changing situations.
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Top reviews from other countries

Olivier Martin
5.0 out of 5 stars Great story! Should be made into a movie!
Reviewed in France on September 21, 2015
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Just unbelievable how much Greely's party had to suffer, and how much blunders were made by the relief expeditions!
Great reading!
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Marc Ranger
5.0 out of 5 stars Be warned; very disturbing material, read at your own risk
Reviewed in Canada on June 16, 2010
Verified Purchase
In my view, the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition is the worst polar venture ever attemped. You have to have a very strong heart to read it all. When in the last part of the book, you just wish God the misery those men lived will be over shortly. You find yourself hurrying the relief ships to arrive.

What those poor men experienced was intolerable, and the author puts it cleanly on paper.

So, yes, Shackelton's Endurace voyage, Mawson's forced solo march without food in Antarctica and the Robert Falcon Scott tragedy were horrible, but no so horrible in my mind to what A.W. Greely and his men went through.

Weak heart, stay away from the book.
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RMCT
4.0 out of 5 stars Holy Moly
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 16, 2012
Verified Purchase
This is the most extraordinary story. Not only an expedition that went so wrong, the book gives a clear flavour of the way things were done towards the end of the nineteenth century. Although they managed to achieve the furthest north ever attained at that time, this is really a story of mis-management. This relates to the leader of the expedition, Adolphus Greely, and of the authorities and their relief efforts.

The leadership ended up with near mutiny, but more significantly, the death of most of the expedition members and of cannibalism too. Great story, well written and well researched.
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Kenneth Ward
5.0 out of 5 stars FASCINATING!
Reviewed in Canada on September 8, 2019
Verified Purchase
This was one of the best non-fiction books I have recently read. Mesmerizing...The author is a superb narrator...Well documented with irrefutable evidence that this escapade was probably one of the worst disasters in history that the American government ever sponsored. Highly recommended for anyone that is interested in Arctic misadventures!
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McK
3.0 out of 5 stars Writing style lets down what is a horrific story and chain of events
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 30, 2013
Verified Purchase
This is the story of the Greely expedition who set out to establish a camp in the Arctic to establish a geographical observation post. Led by a rather unlikeable Greely they survived two years without relief and set records for reaching the most northern point in the Arctic.

The book explores the political and logistical mishaps of the relief expeditions and paints in quite horrific terms what the group of men did to survive.

However my concern is with the way the book is written, I think the author has relied far too heavily on the use of direct quotes from the diaries of those involved. This is a personal preference but I find this style a little lazy and makes for uneven reading.

Overall a fascinating story but reads like an extended A'Level history essay.
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