First Advisor

Andrew Giarelli

Term of Graduation

Spring 2006

Date of Publication

Spring 5-12-2006

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (M.A.) in English

Department

English

Language

English

Subjects

Explorers -- Northwest Passage, Artic regions -- Discovery and exploration, Artic Ocean -- Northwest Passage, United States -- Armed Forces, Harold M Turner

Physical Description

1 online resource (ix, 149 pages)

Abstract

The North Pole can be imagined in two ways. The first, the Magnetic North Pole, is based on the Earth's magnetic field, which is in constant flux. It is a general area of the Arctic that isn't affixed to a specific geographic location but moves to where the lines of magnetic force enter and exit the earth vertically. The second, the true North Pole, refers to its actual physical and fixed geographic location, 90° N. It lays below miles of the Arctic Ocean's water, hundreds of miles from the nearest land.

The North Pole has fueled man's imagination for centuries. From the time man knew of its existence, he has tried to attain it. Attainment of the goal, the geographic North Pole, meant a great deal to those who pursued it. Capturing it first, before another adventurer or country could make a claim, meant even more.

Early in the twentieth century, staking a claim on the top of the world became a world-wide race. In 1909, two American adventurers, Admiral Robert E. Peary and Dr. Frederick A. Cook, each claimed to reach the pole first. When the race to the top of the world ended, the controversy as to which man really achieved this historic milestone began. Almost one hundred years later the argument still rages on today among scholars, scientists and descendants of these Americans. Yet, more and more evidence proves that neither Peary nor Cook actually made it to the geographic North Pole.

In 1952 Harold "Hal" Turner became the first man in history to set foot upon the geographic North Pole, and succeeded where those before him had failed. Turner, the flight engineer of the USAF ten-member expedition that landed a plane upon the geographic pole, never set his sights to be the first to stand on top of the world. But by remaining true to his first love, flying, Turner achieved just that.

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Comments

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Writing.

If you are the rightful copyright holder of this dissertation or thesis and wish to have it removed from the Open Access Collection, please submit a request to pdxscholar@pdx.edu and include clear identification of the work, preferably with URL.

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