An African-American man played an integral role in the first exploratory trip to the North Pole, though the importance of his contributions has not been adequately exposed, Harvard Medical School professor S. Allen Counter said yesterday in the African-American Studies Center.
Matthew Henson, one of the first men to reach the North Pole, was overshadowed by his white counterpart, Lt. Robert Perry, because of the existing prejudices of the time in America, Counter said.
Peary, Henson and four Inuit Eskimos were the first people to ever reach the North Pole back in 1909, Counter said. However, Peary was quick to receive praise for the accomplishment, while Henson was often overlooked.
The black community celebrated Henson and his accomplishments at the time, but it was not until 30 years after his arrival at the North Pole that he was honored by the Explorers Club, a major explorers organization.
Counter was quick to offer praise to Peary, who he called a man ahead of his time.
‘Peary is an early example of an affirmative action case,’ Counter said. ‘He made an affirmative effort to include black men in work in 1889. Even at that time, he was inclusive, and demonstrated an affirmative effort based on what [Henson and the Eskimos] could contribute.’
Counter said Henson’s story shows that people of any race can do great things.
‘I want to shed light about the contributions of a distinguished American who happened to be an African American,’ Counter said. ‘I think that the most important thing to take is, when given the opportunity, people of all backgrounds can make contributions to our society.’
As a child, Counter said he heard Henson’s story from his grandmother. He learned Henson’s complete story years later, while studying in Stockholm, Sweden, after venturing to Greenland to find out more about the darker-looking members of the Inuit tribes and see if their presence was somehow connected to Matthew Henson.
Counter said he has worked hard throughout his career to expose Henson’s accomplishments and expose his little-known story.
Explorers from countries all over the world were trying to reach the North Pole in the late 19th century, which many believed would hold military significance and a new trade route, Counter said. Robert Peary wanted to claim the North Pole for America, and left for his first expedition in 1891 with Henson, who had been a cabin boy for a New England Quaker and was brought on the voyage because of his knowledge and skill at sea.
Counter was quick to point out that Henson is just as responsible as Peary for getting Americans to the North Pole and said it is about time that Henson receive acclaim for his mark as a great American.
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