{"id":1922919,"date":"2026-05-07T15:45:26","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T12:45:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1922919"},"modified":"2026-05-07T15:45:26","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T12:45:26","slug":"dna-study-identifies-4-more-sailors-from-doomed-franklin-expedition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1922919","title":{"rendered":"DNA Study Identifies 4 More Sailors From Doomed Franklin Expedition"},"content":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/gizmodo.com\/app\/uploads\/2026\/05\/franklin-expedition-hms-erebus-terror-engraving-1200×675.jpg”]<\/p>\n

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Around 180 years ago, a British expedition to the Arctic met a grisly end. Only recently have scientific investigations been able to identify the long-dead seamen. Now, thanks to DNA donations from distant relatives, researchers have identified four more sailors from the failed mission.<\/p>\n

Researchers have identified four more members of the 1845 expedition, including an enigmatic sailor whose identity confused scientists for more than a century. Three of the sailors served aboard HMS Erebus<\/em>, one of the expedition\u2019s two ships, while the fourth\u2014Harry Peglar, captain of the foretop\u2014served aboard HMS Terror<\/em>. The team, including anthropologist Douglas Stenton of the University of Waterloo in Canada, published its results in two papers in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports and Polar Record.<\/p>\n

A failed mission<\/h2>\n

Under the command of Sir John Franklin, 134 officers and crew on two ships\u2014HMS Erebus<\/em> and HMS Terror<\/em>\u2014set out for the Arctic on May 19, 1845, according to Parks Canada. The goal of the mission was to chart unnavigated sections of the Northwest Passage near the Arctic. During the first leg of the voyage, five crew members left the expedition, presumably due to health or disciplinary issues.<\/p>\n

Then the journey went south\u2014figuratively speaking. In September of 1846, the ships became ice-locked off King William Island. Franklin died in 1847. By 1848, the remaining crew of 105 men decided to abandon ship and walk across the sea ice to mainland Canada. None survived.<\/p>\n

\"Artist's
Sailors abandoned the HMS Terror and Erebus, but were forced to resort to cannibalism after a failed effort to find help. @ Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, Yellowknife via Getty<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cIt must have been horrible,\u201d Stenton told Scientific American. \u201cIt was probably \u201330 [degrees] Celsius [\u201322 degrees Fahrenheit], and these men were not healthy after three years in the Arctic.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finding a wreck<\/h2>\n

Several years later, Franklin\u2019s wife, Jane, and British officials deployed search missions between 1848 and 1854. But it was only in 2014 and 2016 that the wreck sites of Erebus<\/em> and Terror<\/em>, respectively, were discovered with the help of better technology and Inuit testimony from people with firsthand knowledge of the doomed Franklin expedition. In 2019, Parks Canada released footage showing the interiors of the ill-fated ships.<\/p>\n

But search parties and archaeological missions have found crew remains since 1859. Over the years, scientists have uncovered hundreds of skeletal remains presumed to belong to lost crew. But only more recent technological advances have allowed researchers to investigate them in greater detail, according to both papers.<\/p>\n

\"Franklin
Map showing location of Erebus Bay, King William Island, Nunavut. Inset: locations of Erebus Bay archaeological sites discussed in the text. (Maps Data: Google) \u00a9 Airbus via Stenton et al., 2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Stenton and his colleagues have been at the forefront of these DNA-based studies. In 2021, the team identified John Gregory, an engineer aboard Erebus<\/em>. Subsequent tests comparing remains with DNA samples from living relatives landed on the grisly conclusion that Captain Fitzjames\u2014the man who wrote the report declaring Franklin\u2019s death\u2014became food for his crew.<\/p>\n

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Archaeologists Identify Franklin Expedition Captain Who Became Food for His Crew<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n

Four more names<\/h2>\n

The newly identified sailors on Erebus<\/em>, who died at Erebus Bay, are William Orren, an able seaman, David Young, a first-class boy, and John Bridgens, a subordinate officers\u2019 steward. The fourth, the \u201conly sailor from HMS Terror<\/em> to be definitively identified by DNA analysis,\u201d is Harry Peglar, Stenton said in a university statement<\/span>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was interesting to conclusively identify this sailor because the body was found with almost the only written documents from the expedition ever found,\u201d added Robert Park, a co-author on both studies and an anthropologist at the University of Waterloo. Peglar\u2019s identity had been a subject of debate among scholars, as the body carried Peglar\u2019s documents but wore clothing that didn\u2019t match his rank.<\/p>\n

For the analysis, the team compared the mitochondrial and Y-chromosome DNA from the archaeological samples and descendant DNA. In doing so, the team also uncovered some unexpected connections. For instance, Rich Preston, a journalist with the BBC, is related to John Bridgens. Incidentally, Preston used to work on a BBC show about genealogy; as he said in the statement, \u201cIt was such a huge surprise to hear from the team that my DNA was a match with one of the sailors on the doomed Franklin expedition\u2026to discover that there\u2019s such an interesting tale in my own family\u2019s past feels very exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Franklin
Two dimensional forensic facial reconstruction drawing of David Young, a first-class boy seaman aboard HMS Erebus<\/i>. \u00a9 Diana Trepkov\/Stenton et al., 2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

More work to do<\/h2>\n

The latest findings bring the total number of identified sailors to six. That\u2019s admittedly a small number compared to the 100-plus deaths associated with the expedition. So, as always, the team is on the lookout for more samples. If you are or know someone who might be descended from the Franklin expedition crew, they\u2019d love to get your DNA (for science, of course).<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the living descendants, these findings provide previously unavailable details regarding the circumstances and locations of their relatives\u2019 deaths, as well as the identities of some of the shipmates who died with them,\u201d Stenton said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

\n

Around 180 years ago, a British expedition to the Arctic met a grisly end. Only recently have scientific investigations been able to identify the long-dead seamen. Now, thanks to DNA donations from distant relatives, researchers have identified four more sailors from the failed mission.<\/p>\n

Researchers have identified four more members of the 1845 expedition, including an enigmatic sailor whose identity confused scientists for more than a century. Three of the sailors served aboard HMS Erebus<\/em>, one of the expedition\u2019s two ships, while the fourth\u2014Harry Peglar, captain of the foretop\u2014served aboard HMS Terror<\/em>. The team, including anthropologist Douglas Stenton of the University of Waterloo in Canada, published its results in two papers in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports and Polar Record.<\/p>\n

A failed mission<\/h2>\n

Under the command of Sir John Franklin, 134 officers and crew on two ships\u2014HMS Erebus<\/em> and HMS Terror<\/em>\u2014set out for the Arctic on May 19, 1845, according to Parks Canada. The goal of the mission was to chart unnavigated sections of the Northwest Passage near the Arctic. During the first leg of the voyage, five crew members left the expedition, presumably due to health or disciplinary issues.<\/p>\n

Then the journey went south\u2014figuratively speaking. In September of 1846, the ships became ice-locked off King William Island. Franklin died in 1847. By 1848, the remaining crew of 105 men decided to abandon ship and walk across the sea ice to mainland Canada. None survived.<\/p>\n

\"Artist's
Sailors abandoned the HMS Terror and Erebus, but were forced to resort to cannibalism after a failed effort to find help. @ Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, Yellowknife via Getty<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cIt must have been horrible,\u201d Stenton told Scientific American. \u201cIt was probably \u201330 [degrees] Celsius [\u201322 degrees Fahrenheit], and these men were not healthy after three years in the Arctic.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finding a wreck<\/h2>\n

Several years later, Franklin\u2019s wife, Jane, and British officials deployed search missions between 1848 and 1854. But it was only in 2014 and 2016 that the wreck sites of Erebus<\/em> and Terror<\/em>, respectively, were discovered with the help of better technology and Inuit testimony from people with firsthand knowledge of the doomed Franklin expedition. In 2019, Parks Canada released footage showing the interiors of the ill-fated ships.<\/p>\n

But search parties and archaeological missions have found crew remains since 1859. Over the years, scientists have uncovered hundreds of skeletal remains presumed to belong to lost crew. But only more recent technological advances have allowed researchers to investigate them in greater detail, according to both papers.<\/p>\n

\"Franklin
Map showing location of Erebus Bay, King William Island, Nunavut. Inset: locations of Erebus Bay archaeological sites discussed in the text. (Maps Data: Google) \u00a9 Airbus via Stenton et al., 2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Stenton and his colleagues have been at the forefront of these DNA-based studies. In 2021, the team identified John Gregory, an engineer aboard Erebus<\/em>. Subsequent tests comparing remains with DNA samples from living relatives landed on the grisly conclusion that Captain Fitzjames\u2014the man who wrote the report declaring Franklin\u2019s death\u2014became food for his crew.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

Archaeologists Identify Franklin Expedition Captain Who Became Food for His Crew<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n

Four more names<\/h2>\n

The newly identified sailors on Erebus<\/em>, who died at Erebus Bay, are William Orren, an able seaman, David Young, a first-class boy, and John Bridgens, a subordinate officers\u2019 steward. The fourth, the \u201conly sailor from HMS Terror<\/em> to be definitively identified by DNA analysis,\u201d is Harry Peglar, Stenton said in a university statement<\/span>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was interesting to conclusively identify this sailor because the body was found with almost the only written documents from the expedition ever found,\u201d added Robert Park, a co-author on both studies and an anthropologist at the University of Waterloo. Peglar\u2019s identity had been a subject of debate among scholars, as the body carried Peglar\u2019s documents but wore clothing that didn\u2019t match his rank.<\/p>\n

For the analysis, the team compared the mitochondrial and Y-chromosome DNA from the archaeological samples and descendant DNA. In doing so, the team also uncovered some unexpected connections. For instance, Rich Preston, a journalist with the BBC, is related to John Bridgens. Incidentally, Preston used to work on a BBC show about genealogy; as he said in the statement, \u201cIt was such a huge surprise to hear from the team that my DNA was a match with one of the sailors on the doomed Franklin expedition\u2026to discover that there\u2019s such an interesting tale in my own family\u2019s past feels very exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Franklin
Two dimensional forensic facial reconstruction drawing of David Young, a first-class boy seaman aboard HMS Erebus<\/i>. \u00a9 Diana Trepkov\/Stenton et al., 2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

More work to do<\/h2>\n

The latest findings bring the total number of identified sailors to six. That\u2019s admittedly a small number compared to the 100-plus deaths associated with the expedition. So, as always, the team is on the lookout for more samples. If you are or know someone who might be descended from the Franklin expedition crew, they\u2019d love to get your DNA (for science, of course).<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the living descendants, these findings provide previously unavailable details regarding the circumstances and locations of their relatives\u2019 deaths, as well as the identities of some of the shipmates who died with them,\u201d Stenton said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/gizmodo.com\/app\/uploads\/2026\/05\/franklin-expedition-hms-erebus-terror-engraving-1200×675.jpg”] Around 180 years ago, a British expedition to the Arctic met a grisly end. Only recently have scientific investigations been able to identify the long-dead seamen. Now, thanks to DNA donations from distant relatives, researchers have identified four more sailors from the failed mission. Researchers have identified four more members of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,53],"class_list":["post-1922919","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-gizmodo-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1922919","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1922919"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1922919\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1922919"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1922919"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1922919"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}