The Daring Rescue
NYT Column on Plans for Wrangel Island Rescue
Harold Noice set sail on the Donaldson on August 3, 1923 for the rescue of the Wrangel Island crew. He brought with him a crew consisting of a captain, two mates, two engineers, and a cook. A column in the New York Times from August 5, 1923 wrote, “Aboard the Donaldson was one man who had signed a contract to remain two years on the island…In this way Noice hopes to establish possession of the island,” [1]. What is not mentioned is that Noice was also bringing two unmarried eskimo men as well for the same purpose. The column mentions only Crawford in regards to the Wrangel Island crew and describes his mission to claim the island for Britain at the behest of Stefansson. Whether Noice’s and Stefansson’s interests truly align is not considered in this column, however it seems to reveal a moment in which they began to split.
Noice and the Donaldson arrived on Wrangel Island on August 30, 1923, nearly a month after they had left. The trip was difficult, with harsh, icy conditions preventing them from reaching their destination sooner. Upon their arrival, instead of finding the complete Wrangel Island crew, they found only Ada Blackjack, sole survivor of the mission. When asked about the rest of the crew she responded, “There is nobody here but me. I am all alone,” [2].
"There is nobody here but me. I am all alone."
Ada Blackjack
telegram sent from Harold Noice to A.J. Taylor and Stefansson after rescuing Ada Blackjack
The next day Noice sent the telegram (pictured to the right) to Stefansson. In it he described what Ada had presumably shared with him: that Knight was dead and the others had left long before that happened and were presumably dead as well. Noice tells Stefansson to inform the families as he “think[s] best” [3]. He also describes the conditions on Wrangel Island, stating that game seems “excellent” and he briefly mentions the party, including the eskimo men, who are equipped for a two year stay on Wrangel Island. He assigns blame for the failure of the expedition to a lack of experience and poor equipment. This final sentence of the telegram seemingly points the finger at Stefansson, who picked the crew and could not get a relief ship out to the Wrangel Crew initially. This ship was supposed to deliver more supplies, which may have proved life-saving to the young men who perished. Instead, Stefansson sent a measly rescue ship after a long wait, which ultimately was too late to serve its purpose for anyone other than Ada.
"failure of last expedition due tocombination poor equipment and inexperience"
Harold Noice
Citations:
[1] The New York Times, Sunday, August 5, 1923. “Plans Rescue From Soviet,” Page 9.
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1923/08/05/issue.html
[2] Ada, the Inuk Woman Who Survived a Desolate Arctic Island.
https://owlcation.com/humanities/Ada-Blackjack-the-Inuit-Woman-Who-Survived-a-Desolate-Arctic-Island
[3] Copy of a telegram from Harold Noice to Alfred Taylor, 31 August 1923. “Harold Noice Papers.”