The HMS Investigator's Connection With Hockey

One of the more interesting news stories while I was away on vacation was that of the Parks Canada investigators who found the remains of the HMS Investigator, a British Naval ship that got lodged in the ice 155 years ago and had never been seen since.

The ship's destiny is a fascinating story. The Investigator, captained by Robert McClure, was dispatched in 1850 to search for Sir John Franklin's crew and their two ships, HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, after they disappeared in the Northwest Passage. They never found it thanks to the ice. The crew were trapped in the ice at Mercy Bay for more than two years, during which time three members died. The 63 who survived were eventually rescued by a Royal Navy sledge team that took them to another ship.

As unlikely as this may sound, the story may get even more interesting for hockey fans.

Darill and George Fosty are the world's leading experts on hockey's origin. As it turns out, the earliest known reference to the word hockey is tied to the Franklin Expedition:

The Franklin Expedition is of great interest to many hockey historians. The earliest recorded use of the term "hockey," in Canada, is found in the diary accounts of Franklin during his first pursuit at finding the Northwest Passage in 1825. Franklin's 1825 Expedition would be a partial success, as he mapped over 500 miles of previously uncharted territory, but, in the end, he and his crew would fail to find the passage. It was during this 1825 attempt, that hockey sticks were brought along for enjoyment during the long periods of waiting for ice to recede.

The Fosty brothers say that there is evidence that Franklin's crew played in what is now known as Deline, Northwest Territories in 1825. There are records of similar types of games being played in Nova Scotia soon after that, but never using the term hockey. It was not until 1840 that the term hockey was used in Atlantic Canada, following an unknown name change from the original "Ricket." Is it possible that Deline, NWT, unknown to almost every Canadian to this day, was the actual birthplace of hockey in Canada?

It is all fascinating information. The Fostys have it all covered, plus more information on John Franklin himself at Boxscorenews.com.