UNFROZEN IN TIME
Vintage store owner discovers North Pole expedition photos
The photo album doesn’t look like much from the outside. A plain black cover with lettering that says, simply, “Photographs.” But inside is a treasure trove of historical photos dating back to 1899 and tied to an expedition that sought to be the first to reach the North Pole.
Sue Snow, who owns Deja Vudu Vintage in New Milford, bought the album this fall at a tag sale. It was just one of the unique items being sold that day, along with a large moose head and two large bear skulls, one of which now sits in Snow’s store.
The pieces had originally belonged to a man who died, Snow explained.
It didn’t take long for Snow to realize that the album may hold more than just old photos of an arctic adventure. After purchasing the album, she recognized one of the names under a photo, “Peary.” Further research told her it was likely referring to Robert E. Peary, an American explorer and U.S. Navy officer famous for his arctic expeditions. Peary also led a trip that claimed to be the first to reach the North Pole in 1909.
While the accuracy of Peary’s claim has been debated over the years, his revered status as a groundbreaking American explorer remains intact.
Snow began to dig a little more. A note at the back of the album explained that these photos belonged to a relief trip that departed in 1899 from Sydney, headed for Greenland.
“I waited until after I had purchased it
to really look through it,” she said. “I didn't really understand exactly what I had until after the fact.”
Historically speaking, it’s one of her biggest finds to date.
“This was definitely one of the coolest things I found in a long time,” she said.
For something so small, the album appears to hold a great deal of history. Snow is careful when she flips through the pages, gently cradling the covers between her palms to keep the seams from splitting further.
The 122-year-old black-andwhite photos show a melange of breathtaking views of a ship and ice caps, of the explorers and curled up sled dogs, of Inuits and campsites.
In one, a walrus is being reeled onto the boat, its massive body and tough, creased skin forever suspended in midair. In other photos, young men smile stiffly on the boat or pose outside lodgings. Some have descriptions of their subjects in a neat, barely legible cursive hand. Portraits of Inuit children and families fill some pages, while landscapes and blurred, moving bodies fill others.
While Snow thinks the entire album is fascinating, she specifically loves the portrait of Peary and of the Inuits, and the pictures that show great detail of the ships.
“It's pretty mind boggling,” she said. “And all just to reach a place that they wanted to reach.”
The album’s photographer is unknown, but a woman’s name is listed as the person taking a photo of the ship while it is still docked in Sydney “before taking on coal” on July 21, 1899. The ship was ultimately headed for Greenland, the note says.
Sailing for Greenland
While Snow thinks that the ship’s name, written in the letter at the back of the album, could say “Iliana,” it likely says “Diana,” a known steamer that launched a relief expedition in search of Peary in 1899.
A New York Times article from July 15, 1899, states the ship Diana sailed for Sydney on that date at 11 a.m., with a crew of 18 men and enough supplies for two years. A handful of professors from Princeton University were also on
board to conduct scientific studies during the trip. Diana’s first stop would be Greenland.
At the time, Peary was exploring Greenland as part of his quest to reach the North Pole.
“The prime object of the expedition is to deposit against all contingencies an ample supply of food, and to inform Peary of the fact, so that in case disaster drives him back he may find subsistence at Inglefield Gulf,” the article reads.
“Nothing has been heard from Peary since his departure from Sydney, Cape Breton, July 7, 1898, with the exception of two letters received by the Arctic Club — one dated Cape York, July 26, 1898, and the other Etah, Aug. 13, 1898.”
There’s another clue to the album’s identity, as well.
Snow noticed a Black man in one of the photos with the name “Henson” scrawled underneath.
She guesses the photo depicts none other than Matt Henson, Peary’s companion and fellow arctic explorer. Henson, an African American, went on many arctic expeditions with Peary, and is said to have been the first of their party to actually reach the North Pole during the famed journey. And there he is, standing alone against a vast landscape in the album Snow holds in her store.
Snow has done a lot of her own research about Peary and his expeditions since buying the album. When she’s not prepping her shop for the holiday season, she’s been learning about the polar expeditions.
“It’s sort of like going down a rabbit hole,” she said.
To date, she hasn’t seen any of her photos reprinted or reproduced online.
Full steam ahead
As the puzzle pieces start to fall into place, one big mystery remains: How did this book end up in New Milford?
Snow, who opened her vintage store in the late fall of 2020 but has “dabbled” in antiquing her whole life, still has no idea why the album was part of the tag sale, or what the man’s connection may have been. When she realized that the photos belonged to a Peary relief expedition, she reached out to the family who sold her the album to inquire about its history, but they didn’t have any answers.
Connecticut is known for its antiquing, and even has its own Antiques Trail throughout the state. Almost every town in Connecticut has at least one shop, the Connecticut Post reported.
“Connecticut is really known for antiques,” Snow said. “It truly is just chock full.”
Historical and sometimes precious items are found by people across the globe more often than one might expect. A chess piece that turned out to be from medieval times. Works from artists Pablo Picasso or Caravaggio hidden in kitchens or attics. A Navajo Ute blanket and old baseball cards. The list goes on.
A few years ago, 12,000-yearold artifacts were found at an Avon construction site.
There’s even an entire television show, Antiques Roadshow, dedicated to the incredible things people find tucked away in dark corners.
Soon, Snow will be sending the album to an auction house in Manhattan that specializes in old manuscripts, photos, and art. From there, the album will likely go to auction in the spring of 2022.
This album’s worth is not yet known, and the auction will determine its price.
“It's still a big question mark,” Snow said. “I would not know how to put a value on it.”
The auction house should also be able to provide further historical context to Snow’s find.
“I’m curious to find out what they think of it once they physically have it,” she said. “I hope that this kind of fills in some of the puzzle pieces as far as the history, because I could not find very many references to the ship.”