North Pole Legacy: Black, White & Eskimo [Unabridged] [Hardcover]

S. Allen Counter (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1991

Upon hearing rumors that the men who discovered the North Pole had fathered sons while on their expedition, S. Allen Counter arranged to visit the remote villages where Robert Peary, the credited discoverer, and Matthew Henson, the black man whose contributions to the expedition are widely ignored, stayed during their travels. This book recounts the astonishing story of Counter’s trips to Greenland and the relationships he develops with the Eskimo ancestors of the two men. At the same time, new evidence about Peary’s journey to the Pole is examined, and it comes to light that Henson, was the true hero.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In 1986 the author, a neuroscience professor at Harvard, went to northern Greenland to conduct a study of ear disease in Eskimos as well as to interview them about early American explorations in that area. And he had yet another goal: black himself, Counter had long admired black explorer Matthew Henson, who accompanied Robert Peary to the Pole. Familiar with rumors that each had fathered children in Greenland, the author traced "dark-skinned" Eskimos to two remote settlements, where he found Anaukaq Henson and Kali Peary, octogenarians who had never met their American relatives. Counter, who subsequently arranged a three-month trip to the U.S. for both men, here offers a charming account of their meetings with kinfolk in Massachusetts, New York and Maine, visits to their fathers' gravesites--Henson's in Brooklyn, N.Y., Peary's in Arlington, Va.--and tours of national monuments. The book, an intriguing postscript to polar exploration, also examines the Peary-Henson collaboration and supports the claim that they indeed reached the Pole. Photos.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Counter, a Harvard professor, recounts how he located the half-Eskimo octogenarian sons of polar explorers Matthew Henson and Robert Peary and, after many difficulties, helped them to achieve their lifetime dream of visiting the United States to meet their American relatives and view their fathers' graves. Counter also tells how he succeeded in getting official recognition for fellow African American Henson's indispensable role in Peary's Arctic explorations. This is a fascinating, well-told story. Though the Peary saga has been recounted often, the human interest component added here will give the book an appeal beyond the usual polar adventure readership. This is recommended for public and academic libraries.
- Jonathan F. Husband, Framing ham State Coll. Lib., Mass.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 236 pages
• Publisher: Univ of Massachusetts Pr (June 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0870238426
• ISBN-13: 978-0870238420
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,696,495 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #69 in Books > History > Americas > Greenland

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing Story, November 5, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: North Pole Legacy: Black, White, and Eskimo (Paperback)

I just heard this book's author on the radio, and was so impressed by him. He's a Harvard professor who got interested in the story of Matthew Henson, a black man who explored the Arctic and discovered the North Pole along with Robert Peary. The professor, Dr. Counter, has gone to the Arctic several times now, and has befriended the sons and grandsons of both Henson and Peary. Before Dr. Counter, nobody in the US even knew that these explorers had fathered children up there. And Dr. Counter has done a lot to get Henson recognition here in the States, where institutionalized racism has minimized his role in history.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars well documented, November 28, 2006

By 

arzewski (pittsburgh, pa United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: North Pole Legacy: Black, White & Eskimo (Hardcover)

found this in my local library, and it was a great read. For a neuroscientist to be the writer, he is also a good writer. One passage describes as Peary's wife, coming to the artic from New York City on a relief ship, must have seen an Inuit woman with a Inuit child of white skin complexion, and "must have understood. A stoic woman", as the book describes, decided in not saying anything. Very very detailed, it filled the dots in many areas. Would have liked a critical analysis of the 1912 Henson book "A Polar Explorer" in light of the culture during the time it was written, and how it would have been re-written today, since the book publication could only be possible after Peary's review. And would have also mentioned more about the meteorites found and hauled in the 1890's. But still, the amount of detail and effort in stringing it all together is majestic.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best of the Peary/Henson Books, January 9, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: North Pole Legacy: Black, White, and Eskimo (Paperback)

I've read a good number of books by and about Peary, Henson, Rasmussen, Freuchen, Ehrlich, and others, and this is the best of the lot. It's a fascinating story that recounts the Peary/Henson trek to the N Pole and bundles it with such topics as Eskimo culture, race relations a century ago, and race relations today. Throughout it all, Dr. Counter writes with great sensitivity and objectivity about controversial topics. That he was able to discover the modern relations of Matthew Henson and bring them to the states for reunion and recognition is remarkable. If you are at all interested in history, the N Pole expeditions, or artic living, you'll really enjoy this book.