David Spilman Fine Books

Antarctica; Leaves from a Diary Kept on Board an Exploring Vessel [Robert Falcon Scott Discovery Expedition 1901-1904] [New Zealand Booklet Series No. 7]

Ford, C. Reginald FRGS

Christchurch: Whitcombe and Tombs Limited, [1908]. Very Good Plus. First Edition. C. R, Ford. [5.75x4.375in] 31 pp., [1], 12 images and 1 illustration by Ford in text; Light blue-green gray waxed linen limp wrappers with black ink lettering and illustration of an emperor penguin on front, cream colored string 3 stab binding, tan verso of covers, yap covers, with all text edges trimmed; Light shelf wear to covers with light soiling, age toning to inside cover edges, binding is tight and text unmarked, several minor spots to rear cover. [Rosove 131.A1 a, Conrad p.112, Taurus 44] DK. Item #14451

Charles Reginald Ford (1880-1972) was a New Zealand Antarctic explorer, a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (FRGS), and became a well regarded architect in New Zealand.

Ford served as Chief Steward aboard the Discovery during Robert Falcon Scott's British National Antarctic Expedition of 1901–04. Having joined the Royal Navy at fifteen, he volunteered for the expedition and took on the dual roles of steward and Scott's personal secretary and accountant. Scott himself praised Ford's diligence, noting that he "soon mastered every detail of our stores, and kept his books with such accuracy that I could rely implicitly on his statements" — a critical function given how dependent the men's survival was on careful provisioning (CamAuckland War Memorial Museum).
In 1903, while nursing a broken leg from a skiing accident, Ford nonetheless participated in a sledging trip to lay a depot for the Southern Party at Minna Bluff. Beyond logistics, Ford contributed to the expedition's morale through the South Polar Times, producing watercolour illustrations and typing much of the 1903 issue after Shackleton was invalided home. He also photographed wildlife and landscapes throughout the voyage.

After the expedition, he assisted Scott in lecture tours in the United Kingdom. In 1906, he returned to New Zealand to get married, study architecture and start a long career. He also published a short booklet on his Antarctic experiences in 1908, drawn from his diary and the first of only three contemporary published accounts of the first Scott voyage. This contemporaneous small pamphlet was intended as a gift or souvenir and not a significant narrative or commentary of the expedition.

Ford died in Auckland on 19 May 1972, the last surviving member of the British National Antarctic Expedition, and is commemorated in Antarctica by Ford Spur at 84°51' S.

Price: $1,200.00