The Trent University professor died of cancer in October 2022 but bequeathed a $2-million legacy gift to the hospital foundation to support cancer care equipment and technology.
1845 Franklin expedition member identified using DNA
A new report has identified crewman of the previously unknown remains found on Nunavut s King William Island in 1993
This skull, known as Cranium 80, was formally documented on the western coast of Nunavut s King William Island in 1993, and was believed to belong to a member of the ill-fated Franklin expedition. Recent DNA testing definitively linked it to crewman John Gregory. (Photo: Andrew Gregg)
May 3, 2021
For the first time in more than 170 years, it has finally proven possible to identify the remains of one of the men who sailed with Sir John Franklin to the Arctic in 1845. The work that made this possible has been long in the making; rarely have patience and perseverance been more fittingly rewarded.
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TORONTO A sailor of the doomed 1845 Franklin Arctic expedition was identified using DNA from a living relative in South Africa, marking the first time a crew member of that infamous voyage has been positively identified this way. The skeletal and tooth remains were confirmed to belong to Warrant Officer John Gregory, an engineer aboard HMS Erebus, according to scientists at the University of Waterloo (UW), Lakehead University, and Trent University. Having John Gregory s remains being the first to be identified via genetic analysis is an incredible day for our family, as well as all those interested in the ill-fated Franklin expedition, Gregory s great-great-great grandson Jonathan Gregory of Port Elizabeth, South Africa said in a press release.
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The University of Waterloo s Prof. Douglas Stenton excavating an as-yet unidentified sailor whose remains were found with those of John Gregory
Robert W. Park/ University of Waterloo 3/3
Diana Trepkov/University of Waterloo
Over the years, archeologists have unearthed the remains of members of the infamous Franklin expedition, although it hasn t been possible to confirm the individuals identities. Thanks to DNA analysis, however, scientists have now done so for the first time.
Led by Sir John Franklin, the Arctic exploration expedition departed from England in 1845 aboard the ships HMS Erebus and HMS Terror. A total of 129 crew members were aboard the two vessels, searching for the Northwest Passage, which would provide Northern Hemisphere mariners with a shortcut between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.