Descendants of the 1914-1916 Antarctic expedition Endurance crew will attend the Gathering at the Shackleton Exhibition in Dun Laoghaire.

Almost 100 years ago the Irish explorers Sir Ernest Shackleton, Tom Crean and Tom McCarthy left aboard the Endurance to journey to the South Pole. Five months into their expedition, ice surrounded their ship trapping the 28 man crew in the middle of the freezing ocean. They survived for months by eating seals and penguins. The thick ice eventually took their ship.

The expedition is one of the most significant maritime rescue missions. After more than a year all of the crew members were brought back safe and sound.

The event is open to the public and guests may meet the Honorary Alexandra Shackleton (Sir Shackleton’s granddaughter) and four generations of Crean’s (including Ben O’Brien, Tom Crean’s great great grandson). Descendents and guests will relive the epic rescue mission through original photographs and video.

Featuring over 150 photographs and videos by expedition photographer Frank Hurley, the Shackleton Exhibition opened last year at the Dun Laoghaire Ferry Terminal. His photographs and videos capture some of the most dramatic moments of the expedition including the sinking of the Endurance. He also captured the open boat journey across Elephant Island, the trek across the ice, and the 800 mile rescue mission across the South Atlantic Ocean.

Born in Kildare, Ireland in 1874, Shackleton led the expedition aboard the Endurance after completing previous expeditions to Antarctica. Shackleton sailed 800 miles with five other crew members in a whale boat to South Georgia and then crossed the island to a whaling station to seek aid for the remaining crew in the stuck ship. He led four rescue missions and in August 1916 all of them were rescued. Shackleton published his account of the expedition in his 1919 book titled South. On his next mission he sought to circumnavigate the Antarctic coast, but he died of a heart attack off the coast of South Georgia on January 22, 1922 and was buried on the island.

Admission is $6.80 per person. There will be a special luncheon with talks about the Endurance Expedition on the Royal St George Yacht Club from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm and costs $27.

Although the Shackleton Exhibition is open year round, there are a limited number of places available for the Gathering.
 
To learn more about the Shackleton Exhibition, visit the website at www.shackletonexhibition.com.