Newspaper Reports, 1905-06
The Washington Post,
Nov. 24, 1905
Arctic Explorers Escaped
Having Been Living with Eskimos Since Ice Crushed Their Ship
Dundee, Scotland, Nov 23 - George Cleveland of Massachusetts, returned to Dundee today from a whaling expedition in Davis Strait bringing news from Eskimo sources that Capt. [Ronald] Amundzen's arctic expedition ship Gjoa had been crushed in the ice at Boothia Felix ...
Manitoba Morning Free Press (Winnipeg, Manitoba),
Dec. 23, 1905
Seven Years in the Arctic.
With the return of the whaler Active to Dundee, George Cleveland, a native of Massachusetts, returned to civilization after being out of touch with it for seven years. Cleveland was in charge of a whale fishing station on the northern limits of Hudson bay, but the vessel on which he relied for provisions was burned, and he was left absolutely destitute. In dire straits he joined a tribe of Eskimos, with whom he stayed for three years. During that time he never saw a white man, never spoke English, never tasted tea, coffee, biscuits, or similar food, and existed entirely on flesh, which in winter time was raw and often rancid. Along with two natives he was adrift on an ice floe in Hudson bay for five days without water or food. At one period Cleveland went out of his mind and when he recovered he found the doctor of the tribe invoking the aid of strange gods. During the seven years he never had boots on his feet, and when he arrived in Dundee he could not walk in them.
The Evening News (Ada, Oklahoma),
Oct. 15, 1906
[Also printed in The Perry Daily Chief (Perry, Iowa) as "Was Marooned in Arctic Regions"]
FORGOT ENGLISH TONGUE
Abandoned in Cold North and Forced to Spend Years Among the Esquimaux Before Being Rescued by a Scotch Whaler.
New London.- The loss of the whaling schooner Era, which went ashore off St. Pierre a few days ago, recalls a curious suit at law which will be threshed out in the Massachusetts courts soon. This is the suit of George C. Cleveland, of Vineyard Haven, Martha's Vineyard, against Thomas Luce & Son, of New Bedford. The point at issue is whether a vessel's owners can with impunity leave a member of the crew in the Arctic regions and fail to call for him.
In 1899 the Era, with George Cleveland as second mate, sailed for a cruise in Hudson Bay. According to Cleveland he went out on the boat with the understanding that he was to establish a whaling station up there and with a companion was to remain over a year in the second season.
When the Era reacher her destination his companion's courage failed and he sailed home with the boat, leaving Cleveland alone. According to the story of the second mate, he would still be up there in the ice if he had waited for Thomas Luce & Son to send after him.
As it was, he stayed until last spring waiting for a chance to get back to civilization and during that time forgot even his native tongue. Now he proposes to make the former owners of the Era, who he says marooned him up there, pay him $10,000 for his hardships.
According to Cleveland's story he was abandoned 1,500 miles from the nearest white settlement at Wager river, near the north end of Hudson Bay. He built himself a cabin 12 by 24 feet and during the first year or more he did not mind the experience, although his provisions ran short and he frequently had to live on one meal a day.
When the first spring came he did considerable trading with the natives in whalebone. At the end of the second summer the Era had not appeared to take him back home and he began to get discouraged and long for a sight of New England. He weathered the second winter and when spring appeared he looked every day for some sign of the Era.
Then as the summer passed and winter began to settle down again, to use Cleveland's words, 'it was a case of either get among the Esqumaux or starve and I made for the Iwilliets tribe.'
They received him cordially and virtually made him one of their number. In speaking of this experience to his friends here Cleveland said:
'The tribe consisted of about 300 persons and, like others of the race, was nomadic, seeking places where the game was most plentiful. During the summer we went to the coast after walrus and seal, which we usually found in fair numbers.
'At that season when moss and heather were abundant we could cook our food; but in winter cooking was out of the question and the flesh, which was often in a rancid state, had to be eaten raw.
He had a thrilling experience on an ice floe for five days without provisions and he and some Esquimaux companions had a narrow escape from being carried out to sea.
They made an attempt to get back to the mainland, but were unsuccessful. Then a blizzard came up and for five days they drifted helplessly about. On the fifth day they had almost abandoned hope when the ice floe grounded at Beach Point and they had just strength enough to crawl back to the tribe.
He had spent four years with the Esquimaux when one day a Scotch whaling boat picked him up. When he went aboard he couldn't speak a word of English and it took him a month to learn to talk again.
[drawing, with caption: "Day After Day He Waited for the Ship's Return."]