Joseph-Elzéar Bernier
Captain Joseph-Elzéar Bernier (born January 1, 1852 in L'Islet , Québec , † December 26, 1934 in Lévis , Québec) was a Canadian polar explorer . Between 1904 and 1911 he undertook various polar expeditions on behalf of the Canadian parliament and is considered one of the most important Canadian polar pioneers of his time. Bernier commanded over 100 ships in his life and crossed the Atlantic 269 times .
Bernier left school at the age of fourteen and worked as a cabin boy on his father Thomas Bernier's ship. At the age of 17, his father made him captain of his own ship, the St. Joseph . With this freighter he drove on the route from Québec to England.
Bernier spent the next 26 years almost continuously at sea until he was offered the post of director of the Quebec State Prison in 1895. In his position as a civil servant on land, he continued to work on Arctic and polar research.
In 1904 the Canadian government provided him with the first German polar research vessel, the Gauß , which was damaged by ice inclusions and was now called the Arctic . Bernier and his crew spent the winter of 1906/1907 on Baffin Island and the winter of 1908/1909 on Melville Island . On July 1, 1909, after five years of regular landings, Bernier set up a sign on Melville Island claiming the Arctic Island of Canada as territory. He spent the following winter with the Arctic at Arctic Bay .
During the First World War , Bernier brought his nautical experience in the sea area of the North Atlantic as the leader of a ship convoy. After the war he returned to polar research and retired in 1925 at the age of 73.
Bernier marries twice. His first wife, Rose, died in 1917 after 47 years of marriage. Two years later he married Alma Lemieus.
Joseph-Elzéar Bernier died on December 26, 1934 in Lévis , Québec.
Works
- Report on the Dominion of Canada Government Expedition to the Arctic Islands and Hudson Strait, on Board the CGS "Arctic", 1906-1907 . CH Parmalee, Ottawa 1909
- Report on the Dominion Government Expedition to the Northern Waters and Arctic Archipelago of the DGS "Arctic" in 1910 , Department of Marine and Fisheries, Ottawa 1911
- Master Mariner and Arctic Explorer: a narrative of sixty years at sea from the logs and yarns of Captain JE Bernier . Le Droit, Ottawa 1939
literature
- Yolande Dorion-Robitaille: Captain JE Bernier's Contribution to Canadian Sovereignty in the Arctic . Minister of Indian / Northern Affairs, Ottawa 1978.
- TC Fairley, Charles E. Israel: The True North: The Story of Captain Joseph Bernier. Macmillan, Toronto 1957.
Web links
- Daniel Francis: Bernier, Joseph-Elzéar in The Canadian Encyclopedia
- Literature by and about Joseph-Elzéar Bernier in the bibliographic database WorldCat
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Bernier, Joseph-Elzéar |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Canadian polar explorer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 1, 1852 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | L'Islet |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 26, 1934 |
| Place of death | Lévis |