Robert McClure

Sir Robert John Le Mesurier McClure (or M'Clure) (28 January 1807 – 17 October 1873) was an Irish explorer of the Arctic. In 1854, he was the first to transit the Northwest Passage (by boat and sledge), as well as the first to circumnavigate the Americas.

He was born at Wexford, in Ireland, the posthumous son of one of Abercrombie's captains, and spent his childhood under the care of his godfather, General Le Mesurier, governor of Alderney, by whom he was educated for the army. The McClures are of Highland Scots ancestry, being a sept of Clan MacLeod of Harris. He entered the navy, however, in 1824, and twelve years later gained his first experience of Arctic exploration as mate of HMS Terror in the expedition (1836–1837) commanded by Captain (afterwards Sir) George Back.

On his return he obtained his commission as lieutenant, and from 1838 to 1839 served on the Canadian lakes, being subsequently attached to the North American and West Indian naval stations, where he remained till 1846. Two years later he joined the Franklin search expedition (1848–1849) under James Clark Ross as first lieutenant of Enterprise.

After he returned from the first Franklin search expedition, a new search expedition was launched in 1850, with Richard Collinson commanding the Enterprise and McClure, as his subordinate, given the command of Investigator. The two ships set out from England, sailed south on the Atlantic, navigated through the Strait of Magellan to the Pacific Ocean with the assistance of steam-sloop HMS Gorgon, where they became separated and had no further contact for the rest of their respective journeys.

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