Leonidas Hubbard Jr. (1872–1903) was an American journalist and adventurer. He was born in

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

and studied at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

(1893–97), choosing

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the " news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (pro ...

as a career. In 1901 he married Mina Adelaine Benson, a woman two years senior and at the time an assistant superintendent of a Staten Island hospital. They met at the hospital when Hubbard was ill with

typhoid Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by ''Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several d ...

fever Fever, also referred to as pyrexia, is defined as having a temperature above the normal range due to an increase in the body's temperature set point. There is not a single agreed-upon upper limit for normal temperature with sources using val ...

. He became an assistant editor of '' Outing'' magazine and in 1903 led an expedition to

canoe A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle. In British English, the ter ...

the system

Naskaupi River The Naskaupi River is the second largest river in Labrador, Canada. Its drainage basin lies north of that of Labrador's longest river, the Churchill River. Like the Churchill River, it drains into the western end of the estuary known as Lake Mel ...

–

Michikamau Lake Michikamau Lake, in Labrador, Canada, was absorbed into Smallwood Reservoir upon the completion of the Churchill Falls Generating Station in 1974. The lake makes up the largest part of the eastern section of the reservoir, while Lobstick Lake, al ...

Labrador , nickname = "The Big Land" , etymology = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Canada , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 ...

and George River in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. His companions on this journey were his friend, New York lawyer Dillon Wallace and an

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

guide A guide is a person who leads travelers, sportspeople, or tourists through unknown or unfamiliar locations. The term can also be applied to a person who leads others to more abstract goals such as knowledge or wisdom. Travel and recreation Ex ...

from Missanabie, George Elson.

Ill-fated expedition

From the start (departing

North West River North West River is a small town located in central Labrador. Established in 1743 as a trading post by French Fur Trader Louis Fornel, the community later went on to become a hub for the Hudson's Bay Company and home to a hospital and school s ...

on July 15), the expedition was beset with mistakes and problems. Instead of ascending the Naskaupi River, by mistake they followed the shallow Susan Brook. After a hard, long

portaging Portage or portaging (Canada: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a ...

and almost reaching

, with food supplies running out, on September 15 at Windbound lake, they decided to turn back. On October 18, Wallace and Elson went in a search of cached store of flour, leaving Hubbard behind in a tent. Hubbard died of

exhaustion Fatigue describes a state of tiredness that does not resolve with rest or sleep. In general usage, fatigue is synonymous with extreme tiredness or exhaustion that normally follows prolonged physical or mental activity. When it does not resolve ...

and starvation on either the same or the next day. Wallace got lost in the snowstorm, while Elson, after a week of bushwhacking, building

raft A raft is any flat structure for support or transportation over water. It is usually of basic design, characterized by the absence of a hull. Rafts are usually kept afloat by using any combination of buoyant materials such as wood, sealed barrels ...

to cross swollen

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...

s (with no ax), reached the nearest occupied cabin. A search party found Wallace alive on October 30, 1903. After Wallace was nursed back to health (he suffered gangrene in his foot), the two men accompanied Hubbard's body back to New York for burial in May 1904. In 1905, Mina Hubbard, accompanied by George Elson, and Dillon Wallace led two competing expeditions from North West River to the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business di ...

post at the mouth of George River. Both were successful, with Mina Hubbard beating Dillon Wallace by over seven weeks. In 1913, Wallace returned with Judge William Malone and Gilbert Blake to place a memorial plaque where his friend perished (). Their

overturned on Beaver River and the plaque was lost. Wallace then created a memorial using white paint and a brush made from Gilbert's hair. In July 1977, with the assistance of the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Dillon Wallace III, the son of Hubbard's companion, and Rudy Mauro placed a replica of the lost plaque on the inscribed stone at Hubbard's last camp. The inscription reads: The 1903 and 1905 expeditions were the subject of a 2008 Canadian docudrama ''The Last Explorer'', directed by Elson's great nephew, Cree filmmaker Neil Diamond. Three plaques at Mount Repose Cemetery in Haverstraw, NY celebrate his achievements. One of them reads:

References

External links

Greville Haslam Correspondence Re. Hubbard Memorial Tablet
at Dartmouth College Library {{DEFAULTSORT:Hubbard, Leonidas Explorers of North America Explorers of Canada American male journalists Journalists from Michigan 1872 births 1903 deaths Pre-Confederation Newfoundland and Labrador people University of Michigan alumni

Ill-fated expedition

References

Further reading

External links