Shackleton aboard Quest , 1921, “…He led mentally and physically and gave a sense to the individual that he, the individual, was a most...

Reagan used to say, "You can have open borders or you can have a welfare state but you can't have both." Starting from nowhere, Reagan...

My great, great grandfather's Bible that he had with him while serving in the navy during America's Civil War. As you may recall, when...

April 12, 1916 - Orde-Lees' Journal - excerpt As we and the day advanced, the weather deteriorated but the sun's disc was sufficiently...

April 10, 1916 - Orde-Lees' Journal - excerpts In this journal entry, Lees comments on a rare moment of pessimism from Frank Wild about...

April 9, 1916 - Orde-Lees' Journal Less swell, but any amount of open water all around us. Sir Ernest spent much time in cogitation and...

Note the "water sky" in this image. The darker sky indicate open water, The white sky indicates ice floes. April 8, 1916 - Orde-Lees'...

New photo-essay posted under Celebrating America on the Life Lessons page. Hope you enjoy it!

The Boat Journey Alexander Macklin's Journal April 11, 1916 ... Sir E. led the way in the James Caird and showed great skill in getting...

In late March 1916, Shackleton's ice-floe was approaching open water. In the photo above, which I took in 2000 in the same general area,...

According to Lees in this journal entry, Shackleton calculates that they will need their provisions to last for six months which, in...

Interesting that the others don't even bother to mention that there's a blizzard going on. Orde-Lees Journal Saturday, 25 March, 1916 A...

Hurley's Journal... March 25, 1916 For set Duplex Razors, 1/1/0 Sir E. 180, 250, 235, 165, 195, 150, Total 1175 J.F.H. 145, 190, 145,...

Carpenter Harry McNeish was known for being dour and gloomy but this journal entry sounds almost cheerful - especially given the...

Shackleton aboard Quest Scrolling through photographer Frank Hurley's journal, this entry caught my eye... March 21, 1916 (For new hat...

I put this blog on hold last fall when I was struggling with a number of stories in progress. Now, with those issues resolved, and...

On a peaceful Sunday in December 1941, a stealth attack was unleashed on the U.S. naval station at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.  Coming in...

Orde-Lees' Journal - 7 December, 1915 In Antarctic camplife the world is so small that there is not much that goes on that does not come...

Shackleton loved to refer to himself as "Old Cautious." No one else ever called him that but in this journal entry we catch a glimpse of...

As the days darken earlier in the northern hemisphere, we can relate to Shackleton's words in South and marvel at the extraordinary...