On This Day

Ernest Shackleton, as part of the British Nimrod Expedition, reaches a record farthest southern latitude of 88°23' south

Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton (15 February 1874 – 5 January 1922) was an Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer who led three British expeditions to the Antarctic.

Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton (15 February 1874 – 5 January 1922) was an Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer who led three British expeditions to the Antarctic. He was one of the principal figures of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.

Born in Kilkea, County Kildare, Ireland, Shackleton and his Anglo-Irish family moved to Sydenham in suburban south London when he was ten. Shackleton's first experience of the polar regions was as third officer on Captain Robert Falcon Scott's Discovery Expedition of 1901‍–‍1904, from which he was sent home early on health grounds, after he and his companions Scott and Edward Adrian Wilson set a new southern record by marching to latitude 82° S.

Historical Significance

Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton (15 February 1874 – 5 January 1922) was an Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer who led three British expeditions to the Antarctic.

Key People

Ernest Shackleton

Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer

Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer

Events Before

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    Henri Farman becomes the first person to fly an observed circuit of more than 1km, winning the Grand Prix d'Aviation

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    Katie Mulcahey is arrested for lighting a cigarette, violating the one-day-old "Sullivan Ordinance" banning women from smoking in public, and is fined $5. Appearing before the judge, she states, “I’ve got as much right to smoke as you have. I never heard of this new law, and I don’t want to hear abo

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  4. King Carlos I of Portugal and his heir, Prince Luís Filipe, are assassinated by Republican sympathizers in Terreiro do P

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Events After

  1. Author James Weldon Johnson (38) weds civil rights activist Grace Nail Johnson (24) at her family's home

    Author James Weldon Johnson (38) weds civil rights activist Grace Nail Johnson (24) at her family's home

  2. 13th Dalai Lama (Thupten Gyatso) flees Tibet for British India to escape Chinese troops

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  3. First seaplane takes off from water under its own power, piloted by Henri Fabre from the Étang de Berre lagoon in Martig

    First seaplane takes off from water under its own power, piloted by Henri Fabre from the Étang de Berre lagoon in Martigues, France

  4. First night air flight by Claude Grahame-White takes place in England

    The 1910 London to Manchester air race took place between two aviators, each of whom attempted to win a heavier-than-air powered flight challenge between London and Manchester.

  5. Film producer Samuel Goldwyn (27) weds first wife Blanche Lasky

    Film producer Samuel Goldwyn (27) weds first wife Blanche Lasky

More from the 1900s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on January 9, 1909?
Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton (15 February 1874 – 5 January 1922) was an Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer who led three British expeditions to the Antarctic. He was one of the principal figures of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. Born in Kilkea, County Kildare, Ireland, Shackleton and his Anglo-Irish family moved to Sydenham in suburban south London when he was ten.
Why is Ernest Shackleton, as part of the British Nimrod Expedition, reaches a record... significant?
Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton (15 February 1874 – 5 January 1922) was an Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer who led three British expeditions to the Antarctic.
Who was involved in Ernest Shackleton, as part of the British Nimrod Expedition, reaches a record...?
Key figures include Ernest Shackleton (Anglo-Irish Antarctic explorer).

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