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{{Short description|Museum ship}}
{{Short description|First ship to cross the Northwest Passage}}
{{About|the first ship to cross the Northwest Passage||Gjoa (disambiguation)}}
{{About|the first ship to cross the Northwest Passage||Gjoa (disambiguation)}}
{{Italic title}}
{{Italic title}}
[[File:Gjoea.jpg|thumb|upright|''Gjøa'' at the [[Norsk Sjøfartsmuseum|Norwegian Maritime Museum]] in [[Oslo]]]]
[[File:Gjoea.jpg|thumb|upright|''Gjøa'' at the [[Norsk Sjøfartsmuseum|Norwegian Maritime Museum]] in [[Oslo]]]]
'''''Gjøa''''' was the first vessel to transit the [[Northwest Passage]]. With a crew of six, [[Roald Amundsen]] traversed the passage in a three-year journey, finishing in 1906.<ref name = polarskute>[http://www.snl.no/Gj%C3%B8a/norsk_polarskute ''Gjøa – norsk polarskute'' (Store norske leksikon)]</ref>
'''''Gjøa''''' {{IPA-no|jøː.ɑ|}} is a museum ship and was the first vessel to transit the [[Northwest Passage]]. With a crew of six, [[Roald Amundsen]] traversed the passage in a three-year journey, finishing in 1906.<ref name = polarskute>[http://www.snl.no/Gj%C3%B8a/norsk_polarskute ''Gjøa – norsk polarskute'' (Store norske leksikon)]</ref>


== History ==
== History ==
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=== Construction ===
=== Construction ===
The {{convert|70|by|20|ft|abbr=on}} square-sterned [[sloop]] of 45 [[net register tonnage]] ({{Convert|4500|cuft|disp=or|abbr=on}}) was built by Knut Johannesson Skaale in [[Rosendal, Norway|Rosendal]], [[Norway]] in 1872, the same year Amundsen was born.<ref name = polarskute/> She was named ''Gjøa'' after her then owner's wife. (''Gjøa'' is a modern form of the [[Norse language|Norse]] name ''Gyða'', in turn a nickname for ''Guðfríðr'', a compound of ''guð'' 'god' and ''fríðr'' 'beautiful'.) For the next 28 years the vessel served as a [[herring]] fishing boat.
The {{cvt|70|by|20|ft}} square-sterned [[sloop]] of 47 [[net register tonnage]] ({{Cvt|4700|cuft}}) was built by Knut Johannesson Skaale in [[Rosendal, Norway|Rosendal]], [[Norway]] in 1872, the same year Amundsen was born.<ref name = polarskute/> She was named ''Gjøa'' after her then owner's wife. For the next 28 years the vessel served as a [[herring]] fishing boat.


=== Purchase by Amundsen ===
=== Purchase by Amundsen ===
On March 28, 1901, Amundsen bought her from Asbjørn Sexe of [[Ullensvang]], Norway, for his forthcoming expedition to the [[Arctic Ocean]]. ''Gjøa'' was much smaller than vessels used by other [[List of Arctic expeditions|Arctic expeditions]], but Amundsen intended to live off the limited resources of the land and sea through which he was to travel, and reasoned that the land could sustain only a tiny crew (this had been a cause of the catastrophic failure of [[John Franklin]]'s [[Franklin's lost expedition|expedition]] fifty years previously). Her shallow draught would help her traverse the shoals of the [[Arctic]] straits. Perhaps most importantly, the ageing ship was all that Amundsen (who was financing his expedition largely by spending his inheritance) could afford.
On March 28, 1901, Amundsen bought her from Asbjørn Sexe of [[Ullensvang]], Norway, for his forthcoming expedition to the [[Arctic Ocean]]. ''Gjøa'' was much smaller than vessels used by other [[List of Arctic expeditions|Arctic expeditions]], but Amundsen intended to live off the limited resources of the land and sea through which he was to travel, and reasoned that the land could sustain only a tiny crew (this had been a cause of the catastrophic failure of [[John Franklin]]'s [[Franklin's lost expedition|expedition]] fifty years previously). Her shallow draught would help her traverse the shoals of the [[Arctic]] straits. Perhaps most importantly, the ageing ship was all that Amundsen (who was financing his expedition largely by spending his inheritance) could afford.


Amundsen had little experience of Arctic sailing, and so decided to undertake a training expedition before braving the Arctic ice. He engaged Hans Christian Johannsen, her previous owner, and a small crew, and sailed from [[Tromsø]] in April 1901. The next five months were spent [[Seal hunting|sealing]] on the pack ice of the [[Barents Sea]]. Following their return to Tromsø in September, Amundsen set about remedying the deficiencies in ''Gjøa'' that the trip had exposed. He had a 13-[[horsepower]] marine [[Kerosene|paraffin]] motor driving a single screw installed. She had hitherto been propelled only by [[sail]] and had proved to be sluggish. Much of the winter was spent upgrading her ice sheathing; Amundsen knew she would spend several winters iced-in.
Amundsen had little experience of Arctic sailing, and so decided to undertake a training expedition before braving the Arctic ice. He engaged Hans Christian Johannsen, her previous owner, and a small crew, and sailed from [[Tromsø]] in April 1901. The next five months were spent [[Seal hunting|sealing]] on the pack ice of the [[Barents Sea]]. Following their return to Tromsø in September, Amundsen set about remedying the deficiencies in ''Gjøa'' that the trip had exposed. He had a little 13-[[horsepower]] marine [[Kerosene|paraffin]] motor, connected with a winch, for navigation in light winds and to facilitate handlings.<ref>{{cite book|author=Roald Amundsen|date=1907|language=no|location=Kristiana|page=7|publisher=Aschehoug|title=Nordvestpassagen : Beretning om Gjøa-ekspedisjonen 1903-1907}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Roald Amundsen|date=1908|location=London|publisher=Archibald Constable|title=The North West Passage: Being the Record of a Voyage of Exploration of the Ship Gjøa 1903-1907 Volume 1}}</ref> Much of the winter was spent upgrading her ice sheathing, as Amundsen knew she would spend several winters iced-in.


=== Journey through the Northwest Passage ===
=== Journey through the Northwest Passage ===
In the spring of 1902, her refit complete, Amundsen sailed her to [[Oslo|Christiania]] (now Oslo), the capital of Norway. At this time Norway was still in a union with [[Sweden]], and Amundsen hoped the nationalistic spirit which was sweeping the country would attract sponsors willing to underwrite the expedition's growing costs. After much wrangling, and a donation from [[Oscar II of Sweden|King Oscar]], he succeeded. By the time Amundsen returned, Norway had gained its independence, and he and his crew were among the new country's first national heroes.
In the spring of 1902, her refit complete, Amundsen sailed ''Gjøa'' to [[Oslo|Christiania]] (now Oslo), the capital of Norway. At this time Norway was still in a union with [[Sweden]], and Amundsen hoped the nationalistic spirit which was sweeping the country would attract sponsors willing to underwrite the expedition's growing costs. After much wrangling, and a donation from [[Oscar II of Sweden|King Oscar]], he succeeded. By the time Amundsen returned, Norway had gained its independence, and he and his crew were among the new country's first national heroes.


Amundsen served as the expedition leader and ''Gjøa's'' master. His crew were Godfred Hansen, a [[Denmark|Danish]] naval lieutenant and ''Gjøa'''s first officer; [[Helmer Hanssen]], second officer, an experienced ice pilot who later accompanied Amundsen on subsequent expeditions; Anton Lund, an experienced sealing captain; Peder Ristvedt, chief engineer; Gustav Juel Wiik, second engineer, a gunner in the [[Royal Norwegian Navy]]; and [[Adolf Lindstrøm|Adolf Henrik Lindstrøm]], cook.<ref>''Et liv i isen: Polarkokken Adolf H. Lindstrøm'' (by Jan Ove Ekeberg, 2000. Kagge. {{ISBN|978-82-489-0075-7}}</ref>
Amundsen served as the expedition leader and ''Gjøa's'' master. His crew were Godfred Hansen, a [[Denmark|Danish]] naval lieutenant and ''Gjøa'''s first officer; [[Helmer Hanssen]], second officer, an experienced ice pilot who later accompanied Amundsen on subsequent expeditions; Anton Lund, an experienced sealing captain; Peder Ristvedt, chief engineer; Gustav Juel Wiik, second engineer, a gunner in the [[Royal Norwegian Navy]]; and [[Adolf Lindstrøm|Adolf Henrik Lindstrøm]], cook.<ref>''Et liv i isen: Polarkokken Adolf H. Lindstrøm'' (by Jan Ove Ekeberg, 2000. Kagge. {{ISBN|978-82-489-0075-7}}</ref>
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''Gjøa'' left the [[Oslofjord]] on June 16, 1903, and made for the [[Labrador Sea]] west of [[Greenland]]. From there she crossed [[Baffin Bay]] and navigated the narrow, icy straits of the [[Canadian Arctic Archipelago|Arctic Archipelago]]. By late September ''Gjøa'' was west of the [[Boothia Peninsula]] and began to encounter worsening weather and sea ice. Amundsen put her into a natural harbour on the south shore of [[King William Island]]; by October 3 she was iced in.<ref>Kieran Mulvaneu, ''[https://archive.org/details/atendsofearthhis00mulv/page/179 <!-- quote=Gjøa 3 october ice. --> At the Ends of the Earth: A History Of The Polar Regions]'', Island Press, 2001, p. 179, {{ISBN|978-1559639088}}</ref>
''Gjøa'' left the [[Oslofjord]] on June 16, 1903, and made for the [[Labrador Sea]] west of [[Greenland]]. From there she crossed [[Baffin Bay]] and navigated the narrow, icy straits of the [[Canadian Arctic Archipelago|Arctic Archipelago]]. By late September ''Gjøa'' was west of the [[Boothia Peninsula]] and began to encounter worsening weather and sea ice. Amundsen put her into a natural harbour on the south shore of [[King William Island]]; by October 3 she was iced in.<ref>Kieran Mulvaneu, ''[https://archive.org/details/atendsofearthhis00mulv/page/179 <!-- quote=Gjøa 3 october ice. --> At the Ends of the Earth: A History Of The Polar Regions]'', Island Press, 2001, p. 179, {{ISBN|978-1559639088}}</ref>


There she remained for nearly two years, with her crew undertaking sledge journeys to make measurements to determine the location of the [[North Magnetic Pole]] and learning from the local [[Inuit]] people. The harbour, known as Uqsuqtuuq ("much fat") in [[Inuktitut]], has become the only settlement on the island – [[Gjoa Haven]], [[Nunavut]]<!-- sic: o not ø -->, which now has a population of over a thousand people (1,279 at the [[Canada 2011 Census|2011 census]]).<ref name="havencensus2011">Statistics Canada. 2012. [http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2011/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E Gjoa Haven, Nunavut (Code 6208081) and Nunavut (Code 62) (table)]. Census Profile. 2011 Census. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 98-316-XWE. Ottawa. Released October 24, 2012 (accessed May 20, 2014).</ref>
There she remained for nearly two years, with her crew undertaking sledge journeys to make measurements to determine the location of the [[North Magnetic Pole]] and learning from the local [[Inuit]]. The harbour, known as Uqsuqtuuq ("much fat") in [[Inuktitut]], has become the only settlement on the island – [[Gjoa Haven]], [[Nunavut]]<!-- sic: o not ø -->, which now has a population of over a thousand people (1,349 at the [[2021 Canadian census|2021 census]]).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2022-02-09 |title=Profile table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population - Gjoa Haven, Hamlet (HAM) [Census subdivision], Nunavut |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&SearchText=Gjoa&DGUIDlist=2021A00056208081&GENDERlist=1,2,3&STATISTIClist=1,4&HEADERlist=0 |access-date=2024-09-23 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref>
[[File:Nome-1906-roald-amundsen.jpg|thumb|''Gjøa'' arrives in [[Nome, Alaska]] in August 1906]]
[[File:Nome-1906-roald-amundsen.jpg|thumb|''Gjøa'' arrives in [[Nome, Alaska]] in August 1906]]


''Gjøa'' left Gjoa Haven on August 13, 1905, and motored through the treacherous straits south of [[Victoria Island (Canada)|Victoria Island]], and from there west into the [[Beaufort Sea]]. By October ''Gjøa'' was again iced-in, this time near [[Herschel Island]] in the [[Yukon]]. Amundsen left his men on board and spent much of the winter skiing 500 miles south to [[Eagle, Alaska|Eagle]], [[Alaska]] to telegraph news of the expedition's success. He returned in March, but ''Gjøa'' remained icebound until July 11. ''Gjøa'' reached [[Nome, Alaska|Nome]] in [[Alaska]] on August 31, 1906. She sailed on to [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|earthquake ravaged]] [[San Francisco, California|San Francisco]], [[California]], where the expedition was met with a hero's welcome on October 19.
''Gjøa'' left Gjoa Haven on August 13, 1905, and motored through the treacherous straits south of [[Victoria Island (Canada)|Victoria Island]], and from there west into the [[Beaufort Sea]]. By October ''Gjøa'' was again iced-in, this time near [[Herschel Island]] in the [[Yukon]]. Amundsen left his men on board and spent much of the winter skiing 500 miles south to [[Eagle, Alaska|Eagle]], [[Alaska]] to telegraph news of the expedition's success. He returned in March, but ''Gjøa'' remained icebound until July 11. ''Gjøa'' reached [[Nome, Alaska|Nome]] in [[Alaska]] on August 31, 1906. She sailed on to [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|earthquake ravaged]] [[San Francisco, California|San Francisco]], [[California]], where the expedition was met with a hero's welcome on October 19.


=== San Francisco: deterioration and restoration ===
=== San Francisco ===
Rather than sail her round [[Cape Horn]] and back to Norway, the [[Norwegian American]] community in San Francisco prevailed on Amundsen to sell her to them. The ship was donated to the city of San Francisco, and the ship was dragged up the beach<ref>[http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=21336 Roald Amundsen Marker -Historical Marker Database]</ref><ref>[http://www.outsidelands.org/gjoa.php The Gjoa – Western Neighborhoods Project – San Francisco History – The Roald Amundsen Monument – Or The Ship That Isn't There]</ref><ref>[http://www.norway.org/ARCHIVE/sanfrancisco/Events/amundsen/ 100 years since "Gjøa" arrived in San Francisco – Norwegian Consulate General San Francisco]</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Chris Pollock|title=San Francisco's Golden Gate Park: A Thousand and Seventeen Acres of Stories|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o2o6jRFjsMMC&pg=PA122|year=2001|publisher=Graphic Arts Center Publishing Co.|isbn=978-1-55868-545-1|page=122}}</ref> to the northwest corner of [[Golden Gate Park]], surrounded by low fence and put on display. Amundsen knew that because of the notoriety that his exploits aboard ''Gjøa'' had earned, he would be able gain access to [[Fridtjof Nansen|Nansen]]'s ship ''[[Fram (ship)|Fram]]'' which had been custom-built for ice work and was owned by the Norwegian state. Therefore, Amundsen left ''Gjøa'' in San Francisco. He and his crew traveled back to Norway by commercial ship. Of the original expedition members, only Wiik failed to return to Norway, since he had died of illness during the third Arctic winter.
Rather than sail her round [[Cape Horn]] and back to Norway, the [[Norwegian American]] community in San Francisco prevailed on Amundsen to sell ''Gjøa'' to them. The ship was donated to the city of San Francisco, and the ship was dragged up the beach<ref>[http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=21336 Roald Amundsen Marker -Historical Marker Database]</ref><ref>[http://www.outsidelands.org/gjoa.php The Gjoa – Western Neighborhoods Project – San Francisco History – The Roald Amundsen Monument – Or The Ship That Isn't There]</ref><ref>[http://www.norway.org/ARCHIVE/sanfrancisco/Events/amundsen/ 100 years since "Gjøa" arrived in San Francisco – Norwegian Consulate General San Francisco]</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Chris Pollock|title=San Francisco's Golden Gate Park: A Thousand and Seventeen Acres of Stories|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o2o6jRFjsMMC&pg=PA122|year=2001|publisher=Graphic Arts Center Publishing Co.|isbn=978-1-55868-545-1|page=122}}</ref> to the northwest corner of [[Golden Gate Park]], surrounded by a low fence and put on display. Amundsen knew that because of the fame that his exploits aboard ''Gjøa'' had earned, he would be able to gain access to [[Fridtjof Nansen|Nansen]]'s ship ''[[Fram (ship)|Fram]]'' which had been custom-built for ice work and was owned by the Norwegian state. Therefore, Amundsen left ''Gjøa'' in San Francisco. He and his crew traveled back to Norway by commercial ship. Of the original expedition members, only Wiik failed to return to Norway, because he had died of illness during the third Arctic winter.


== Preservation ==
== Preservation ==
[[File:NSM rk 168378 GJÖA IMG 0113.JPG|thumb|''Gjøa'' in the [[Fram Museum]] in Oslo]]
[[File:NSM rk 168378 GJÖA IMG 0113.JPG|thumb|''Gjøa'' in the [[Fram Museum]] in Oslo]]
Over the following decades ''Gjøa'' slowly deteriorated, and by 1939 she was in poor condition. Refurbishment was delayed by [[World War II]], and repairs were not completed until 1949. Being displayed outdoors and having faced 66 years of high winds, ocean salt and sand, the boat once again suffered deterioration, until in 1972, with the help of Erik Krag, a Danish American shipping company owner of San Francisco, ''Gjøa'' was returned to Norway. Erik Krag was knighted by the King of Norway for his efforts in shipping home ''Gjøa''.<ref>[http://www.norway.org/ARCHIVE/sanfrancisco/Events/amundsen/ ''100 years since "Gjøa" arrived in San Francisco'' (Norwegian Consulate General San Francisco – norway.org)]</ref>
Over the following decades ''Gjøa'' slowly deteriorated, and by 1939 she was in poor condition. Refurbishment was delayed by [[World War II]], and repairs were not completed until 1949. Being displayed outdoors and having faced 66 years of high winds, ocean salt and sand, the boat once again suffered deterioration, until in 1972, with the help of Erik Krag, a Danish American shipping company owner of San Francisco, ''Gjøa'' was returned to Norway. Krag was knighted by the king of Norway for his efforts in shipping home ''Gjøa''.<ref>[http://www.norway.org/ARCHIVE/sanfrancisco/Events/amundsen/ ''100 years since "Gjøa" arrived in San Francisco'' (Norwegian Consulate General San Francisco – norway.org)]</ref>


The ''Gjøa'' was displayed in the [[Norsk Sjøfartsmuseum|Norwegian Maritime Museum]] (Norwegian: ''Norsk Maritimt Museum'') in [[Bygdøy]], Oslo. In May 2009 the Norwegian Maritime Museum and the [[Fram Museum]] (Norwegian: ''Frammuseet'') signed an agreement for the Fram Museum of Bygdøy to take over the exhibition of the ''Gjøa''. It is currently displayed in a separate building at Fram Museum.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.frammuseum.no/Polar-Expedition/The-Northwest-Passage-%281903-1906%29.aspx?lang=nn-NO|title= Gjøa-Ekspedisjonen (1903–1906)|publisher= The Fram Museum|access-date= December 1, 2016|url-status= dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150906070030/http://www.frammuseum.no/Polar-Expedition/The-Northwest-Passage-%281903-1906%29.aspx?lang=nn-NO|archive-date= 2015-09-06}}</ref>
''Gjøa'' was displayed in the [[Norsk Sjøfartsmuseum|Norwegian Maritime Museum]] (Norwegian: ''Norsk Maritimt Museum'') in [[Bygdøy]], Oslo. In May 2009 the Norwegian Maritime Museum and the [[Fram Museum]] (Norwegian: ''Frammuseet'') signed an agreement for the Fram Museum of Bygdøy to take over the exhibition of ''Gjøa''. It has been displayed in a separate building at Fram Museum.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.frammuseum.no/Polar-Expedition/The-Northwest-Passage-%281903-1906%29.aspx?lang=nn-NO|title= Gjøa-Ekspedisjonen (1903–1906)|publisher= The Fram Museum|access-date= December 1, 2016|url-status= dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150906070030/http://www.frammuseum.no/Polar-Expedition/The-Northwest-Passage-%281903-1906%29.aspx?lang=nn-NO|archive-date= 2015-09-06}}</ref>


A ''bauta'' (memorial pillar) now stands near ''Gjøa'''s former home in San Francisco.<ref>[http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/gjoa-monument Gjoa Monument | Atlas Obscura]</ref> The ''Gjøa'' was also featured as a filming location in the 2005 documentary, ''The Search for the Northwest Passage'', in which [[Kåre Conradi]] played Amundsen.
A ''[[Bauta (stone)|bauta]]'' (memorial pillar or standing stone) now stands near ''Gjøa'''s former home in San Francisco.<ref>[http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/gjoa-monument Gjoa Monument | Atlas Obscura]</ref> ''Gjøa'' was also featured as a filming location in the 2005 documentary, ''The Search for the Northwest Passage'', in which [[Kåre Conradi]] played Amundsen.


==See also==
==See also==
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==Sources==
==Sources==
* Roald Amundsen told the story of the exploration of the Norwest Passage in two volumes entitled ''Die Nordwestpassage. Meine Polarfahrt mit der Gjöa 1903–1907''. the material was translated into English as ''The North-West Passage: Being the Record of a Voyage of Exploration of the ship "Gjøa" 1903–1907'' (Ams Press Inc; 1908, {{ISBN|978-0-404-11625-5}} and reprinted Kessinger Pub Co; 2007, {{ISBN|978-0-548-77250-8}}).
* Roald Amundsen told the story of the exploration of the Norwest Passage in ''Nordvestpassagen : Beretning om Gjøa-ekspedisjonen 1903-1907 ''. The material was translated into English as ''The North-West Passage: Being the Record of a Voyage of Exploration of the ship "Gjøa" 1903–1907'' (Ams Press Inc; 1908, {{ISBN|978-0-404-11625-5}} and reprinted Kessinger Pub Co; 2007, {{ISBN|978-0-548-77250-8}}).
** {{cite book|title=The North-West Passage; Being the Record of a Voyage of Exploration of the Ship "Gjöa"|url=https://archive.org/details/roaldamundsensth01amun|date=1908|location=New York|publisher=E.P. Dutton and Co.|oclc=971379351|volume=1}}
** {{cite book|title=The North-West Passage; Being the Record of a Voyage of Exploration of the Ship "Gjöa"|url=https://archive.org/details/roaldamundsensth002amun|location=New York|publisher=E.P. Dutton and Co|volume=2}}
<!--{{Gutenberg|no=21878|name=De Noordwestelijke Doorvaart|lang=nl}} (in Dutch)-->
* [[Roland Huntford|Huntford, Roland]] (1999) ''The Last Place on Earth'' (Modern Library) {{ISBN|0-349-11395-5}}
* [[Roland Huntford|Huntford, Roland]] (1999) ''The Last Place on Earth'' (Modern Library) {{ISBN|0-349-11395-5}}
* Oterhals, Leo (2006) ''Havdrønn : om berømte båter og stolte båteiere'' (AS Lagunen) {{ISBN|82-90757-23-9}}
* Oterhals, Leo (2006) ''Havdrønn : om berømte båter og stolte båteiere'' (AS Lagunen) {{ISBN|82-90757-23-9}}
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==External links==
==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline|Gjøa (ship, 1872)}}
* {{Commons category-inline|Gjøa (ship, 1872)}}
* [http://www.outsidelands.org/gjoa.html The memorial bauta in San Francisco]
* [http://www.outsidelands.org/gjoa.html The memorial bauta in San Francisco] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927004733/http://www.outsidelands.org/gjoa.html |date=2007-09-27 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070928122927/http://www.norsk-sjofartsmuseum.no/pub/index.php?subkat=22 Norsk Sjøfartsmuseum]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070928122927/http://www.norsk-sjofartsmuseum.no/pub/index.php?subkat=22 Norsk Sjøfartsmuseum]
* [http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/ships/html/sh_038400_gjoa.htm Houghton Mifflin's ''Ships of the World'']
* [http://www.auctiva.com/hostedimages/showimage.aspx?gid=1412680&image=641191714&images=641191714,641191733,641191887,641191785,641191835,641191862,641191761,641191811&formats=0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0&format=0 ''Gjøa'' Model images]
* [http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/181095193995 Display Model Boat, Polar Explorer Roald Amundsens, Northwest Passage Sloop, ''Gjøa'']


{{Coord|59|54|13.44|N|10|41|56.32|E|region:NO_type:landmark_dim:20|display=title}}
{{Coord|59|54|13.44|N|10|41|56.32|E|region:NO_type:landmark_dim:20|display=title}}

Latest revision as of 03:38, 25 December 2024

This article is about the first ship to cross the Northwest Passage. For other uses, see Gjoa (disambiguation).

Gjøa at the Norwegian Maritime Museum in Oslo

Gjøa [jøː.ɑ] is a museum ship and was the first vessel to transit the Northwest Passage. With a crew of six, Roald Amundsen traversed the passage in a three-year journey, finishing in 1906.[1]

History

[edit]
Gjøa, the first ship to sail through the Northwest Passage
Gjøa in 1903, at the time of the Northwest Passage expedition

Construction

[edit]

The 70 by 20 ft (21.3 by 6.1 m) square-sterned sloop of 47 net register tonnage (4,700 cu ft (130 m3)) was built by Knut Johannesson Skaale in Rosendal, Norway in 1872, the same year Amundsen was born.[1] She was named Gjøa after her then owner's wife. For the next 28 years the vessel served as a herring fishing boat.

Purchase by Amundsen

[edit]

On March 28, 1901, Amundsen bought her from Asbjørn Sexe of Ullensvang, Norway, for his forthcoming expedition to the Arctic Ocean. Gjøa was much smaller than vessels used by other Arctic expeditions, but Amundsen intended to live off the limited resources of the land and sea through which he was to travel, and reasoned that the land could sustain only a tiny crew (this had been a cause of the catastrophic failure of John Franklin's expedition fifty years previously). Her shallow draught would help her traverse the shoals of the Arctic straits. Perhaps most importantly, the ageing ship was all that Amundsen (who was financing his expedition largely by spending his inheritance) could afford.

Amundsen had little experience of Arctic sailing, and so decided to undertake a training expedition before braving the Arctic ice. He engaged Hans Christian Johannsen, her previous owner, and a small crew, and sailed from Tromsø in April 1901. The next five months were spent sealing on the pack ice of the Barents Sea. Following their return to Tromsø in September, Amundsen set about remedying the deficiencies in Gjøa that the trip had exposed. He had a little 13-horsepower marine paraffin motor, connected with a winch, for navigation in light winds and to facilitate handlings.[2][3] Much of the winter was spent upgrading her ice sheathing, as Amundsen knew she would spend several winters iced-in.

Journey through the Northwest Passage

[edit]

In the spring of 1902, her refit complete, Amundsen sailed Gjøa to Christiania (now Oslo), the capital of Norway. At this time Norway was still in a union with Sweden, and Amundsen hoped the nationalistic spirit which was sweeping the country would attract sponsors willing to underwrite the expedition's growing costs. After much wrangling, and a donation from King Oscar, he succeeded. By the time Amundsen returned, Norway had gained its independence, and he and his crew were among the new country's first national heroes.

Amundsen served as the expedition leader and Gjøa's master. His crew were Godfred Hansen, a Danish naval lieutenant and Gjøa's first officer; Helmer Hanssen, second officer, an experienced ice pilot who later accompanied Amundsen on subsequent expeditions; Anton Lund, an experienced sealing captain; Peder Ristvedt, chief engineer; Gustav Juel Wiik, second engineer, a gunner in the Royal Norwegian Navy; and Adolf Henrik Lindstrøm, cook.[4]

Gjøa left the Oslofjord on June 16, 1903, and made for the Labrador Sea west of Greenland. From there she crossed Baffin Bay and navigated the narrow, icy straits of the Arctic Archipelago. By late September Gjøa was west of the Boothia Peninsula and began to encounter worsening weather and sea ice. Amundsen put her into a natural harbour on the south shore of King William Island; by October 3 she was iced in.[5]

There she remained for nearly two years, with her crew undertaking sledge journeys to make measurements to determine the location of the North Magnetic Pole and learning from the local Inuit. The harbour, known as Uqsuqtuuq ("much fat") in Inuktitut, has become the only settlement on the island – Gjoa Haven, Nunavut, which now has a population of over a thousand people (1,349 at the 2021 census).[6]

Gjøa arrives in Nome, Alaska in August 1906

Gjøa left Gjoa Haven on August 13, 1905, and motored through the treacherous straits south of Victoria Island, and from there west into the Beaufort Sea. By October Gjøa was again iced-in, this time near Herschel Island in the Yukon. Amundsen left his men on board and spent much of the winter skiing 500 miles south to Eagle, Alaska to telegraph news of the expedition's success. He returned in March, but Gjøa remained icebound until July 11. Gjøa reached Nome in Alaska on August 31, 1906. She sailed on to earthquake ravaged San Francisco, California, where the expedition was met with a hero's welcome on October 19.

San Francisco

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Rather than sail her round Cape Horn and back to Norway, the Norwegian American community in San Francisco prevailed on Amundsen to sell Gjøa to them. The ship was donated to the city of San Francisco, and the ship was dragged up the beach[7][8][9][10] to the northwest corner of Golden Gate Park, surrounded by a low fence and put on display. Amundsen knew that because of the fame that his exploits aboard Gjøa had earned, he would be able to gain access to Nansen's ship Fram which had been custom-built for ice work and was owned by the Norwegian state. Therefore, Amundsen left Gjøa in San Francisco. He and his crew traveled back to Norway by commercial ship. Of the original expedition members, only Wiik failed to return to Norway, because he had died of illness during the third Arctic winter.

Preservation

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Gjøa in the Fram Museum in Oslo

Over the following decades Gjøa slowly deteriorated, and by 1939 she was in poor condition. Refurbishment was delayed by World War II, and repairs were not completed until 1949. Being displayed outdoors and having faced 66 years of high winds, ocean salt and sand, the boat once again suffered deterioration, until in 1972, with the help of Erik Krag, a Danish American shipping company owner of San Francisco, Gjøa was returned to Norway. Krag was knighted by the king of Norway for his efforts in shipping home Gjøa.[11]

Gjøa was displayed in the Norwegian Maritime Museum (Norwegian: Norsk Maritimt Museum) in Bygdøy, Oslo. In May 2009 the Norwegian Maritime Museum and the Fram Museum (Norwegian: Frammuseet) signed an agreement for the Fram Museum of Bygdøy to take over the exhibition of Gjøa. It has been displayed in a separate building at Fram Museum.[12]

A bauta (memorial pillar or standing stone) now stands near Gjøa's former home in San Francisco.[13] Gjøa was also featured as a filming location in the 2005 documentary, The Search for the Northwest Passage, in which Kåre Conradi played Amundsen.

See also

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Sources

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  • Roald Amundsen told the story of the exploration of the Norwest Passage in Nordvestpassagen : Beretning om Gjøa-ekspedisjonen 1903-1907 . The material was translated into English as The North-West Passage: Being the Record of a Voyage of Exploration of the ship "Gjøa" 1903–1907 (Ams Press Inc; 1908, ISBN 978-0-404-11625-5 and reprinted Kessinger Pub Co; 2007, ISBN 978-0-548-77250-8).
  • Huntford, Roland (1999) The Last Place on Earth (Modern Library) ISBN 0-349-11395-5
  • Oterhals, Leo (2006) Havdrønn : om berømte båter og stolte båteiere (AS Lagunen) ISBN 82-90757-23-9

References

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  1. ^ a b Gjøa – norsk polarskute (Store norske leksikon)
  2. ^ Roald Amundsen (1907). Nordvestpassagen : Beretning om Gjøa-ekspedisjonen 1903-1907 (in Norwegian). Kristiana: Aschehoug. p. 7.
  3. ^ Roald Amundsen (1908). The North West Passage: Being the Record of a Voyage of Exploration of the Ship Gjøa 1903-1907 Volume 1. London: Archibald Constable.
  4. ^ Et liv i isen: Polarkokken Adolf H. Lindstrøm (by Jan Ove Ekeberg, 2000. Kagge. ISBN 978-82-489-0075-7
  5. ^ Kieran Mulvaneu, At the Ends of the Earth: A History Of The Polar Regions, Island Press, 2001, p. 179, ISBN 978-1559639088
  6. ^ Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2022-02-09). "Profile table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population - Gjoa Haven, Hamlet (HAM) [Census subdivision], Nunavut". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2024-09-23.
  7. ^ Roald Amundsen Marker -Historical Marker Database
  8. ^ The Gjoa – Western Neighborhoods Project – San Francisco History – The Roald Amundsen Monument – Or The Ship That Isn't There
  9. ^ 100 years since "Gjøa" arrived in San Francisco – Norwegian Consulate General San Francisco
  10. ^ Chris Pollock (2001). San Francisco's Golden Gate Park: A Thousand and Seventeen Acres of Stories. Graphic Arts Center Publishing Co. p. 122. ISBN 978-1-55868-545-1.
  11. ^ 100 years since "Gjøa" arrived in San Francisco (Norwegian Consulate General San Francisco – norway.org)
  12. ^ "Gjøa-Ekspedisjonen (1903–1906)". The Fram Museum. Archived from the original on 2015-09-06. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  13. ^ Gjoa Monument | Atlas Obscura
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59°54′13.44″N 10°41′56.32″E / 59.9037333°N 10.6989778°E / 59.9037333; 10.6989778

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