As the world marvels at the discovery of one of the two lost ships of the Royal Navy’s Franklin expedition, Trent University congratulates Dr. Douglas Stenton ’80, a graduate of the M.A. program in Anthropology, for his key involvement in this historic moment.

Since 2008, the Government of Nunavut has been one Parks Canada's key partners in the search for the wrecks. Dr. Stenton, archaeologist and director of heritage for the Government of Nunavut, has led terrestrial site surveys on King William Island, Adelaide Peninsula and other locations in a search for evidence of the wrecks.

In 2014, Dr. Stenton’s team discovered two artifacts that played an integral role in the recently announced discovery by Parks Canada of the wreck of one of the Franklin vessels. Dr. Stenton’s team discovered the artifacts on an island in eastern Queen Maud Gulf, one of which was unquestionably from a Royal Navy ship. No such artifacts had been found in the area since the late 1800’s. Based on the discovery, Parks Canada’s marine archaeologists shifted their sonar surveys to the area near the island and quickly discovered the wreck.

“The Government of Nunavut is delighted to have made a major contribution to this historic discovery, which was the direct result of the close collaboration and sharing of expertise and resources between the Government of Nunavut, Parks Canada, Canadian Coast Guard and the Canadian Hydrographic Service,” said Dr. Stenton. “On a personal level, it was an extraordinary experience and a major highlight of my 30-plus years of conducting archaeological research in Nunavut.”

Dr. Stenton will be returning to Trent University on Saturday, October 25, 2014 as one of the distinguished Anthropology alumni who will be sharing their on-going research at an Archaeology Symposium. Dr. Stenton will be speaking about the Government of Nunavut’s involvement in the search for the Franklin wrecks, as part of the celebration of Trent’s eminent graduates’ contributions to the anthropological field. The event is supported by the Bagnani Trust, Trent University’s Vice President Strategic Initiative Fund, and the Trent University Archaeological Research Centre (TUARC).

Posted on Friday, September 12, 2014.