Sir John Ross

Born in 1777 near Stranraer, Scotland, he entered the Royal Navy as a boy and built a long career at sea during the wars of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He is best remembered for his expeditions to the Arctic, where he became one of the early British explorers to search seriously for a Northwest Passage.

His 1818 voyage brought him fame and controversy after he turned back from Lancaster Sound, believing mountains blocked the route. Later expeditions restored his standing: on a privately financed journey beginning in 1829, he and his crew spent several winters in the Arctic, and his party reached the North Magnetic Pole area through the work of his nephew, James Clark Ross.

He wrote vivid accounts of his travels, including narratives of his Arctic voyages, and was honored later in life for his service and discoveries. Today he is remembered as a determined, sometimes disputed, but undeniably important figure in the age of polar exploration.