Posted the day before I found out about Peglar

So it turned out that was a lie 🤣 I just didn't know it yet! Also "the puck stops here" like ya'll know I'm Canada down

I wanted to do something for Terror Camp since early spring, my plan being 15 minutes about William Clossan and Charles Best. But after hearing about Bridgens/Young/Orren I kept going back and forth over whether I should stick to my original plan or try to find some way I could work them into it.

This was my "I just found out I helped to identify Bridgens but I can't say anything about it and I don't want to event hint at it for fear of giving it away so instead I'll post vaguely about being excited by the general genealogy I'm doing but really I mean I'm dying to share about Bridgens" post

So it turns out identifying a single sailor was not overly ambitious 😂

Smithsonian Magazine had a good article! Although I may be biased because I like that they linked my website 😅 www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/t...

It is William Orren's 220th birthday today

I am green with envy for everyone attending the Archaeological Society of Alberta Conference talks today on the Franklin expedition!

Front page of the Globe & Mail, under the fold!

I spoke to the Globe & Mail on Tuesday and am mentioned in their article: www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/scien...

The research paper about the identification of Harry Peglar is online now! www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

My write-up and response to the identifications of several members of the Franklin expedition is now live on my website! www.alongblank.com/2026/05/iden...

A huge congrats to Kaitlyn on her contributions to the recent ID of the remains of FOUR (!!!!) new Franklin Expedition men, as part of Dr. Douglas Stenton's research team. Full scientific paper in the thread. For access to Kaitlyn's 2025 TC presentation, please email command [@] terror dot camp.

University of Waterloo researchers are looking for descendants of those who perished in the Franklin Expedition willing to DNA test. #genealogy #geneticgenealogy uwaterloo.ca/news/media/d...

I take one (1) nap and FOUR SAILORS FROM THE FRANKLIN EXPEDITION WERE IDENTIFIED?!?!?!

If I comment on the post on the The Terror subreddit am I still gonna be in shadow ban jail because that'd be very funny

I booked the afternoon off work because I knew there'd be no way I could focus today 😂

Last year I was able to assist in identifying 4 (FOUR?!?) members of the Franklin expedition! I'm the amateur genealogist who researched Bridgens, Young, Orren, and Peglar, and was able to find and contact living descendants of their families who agreed to do DNA tests!

I'm free! I can finally talk about this!!!!! It's been ten months!!!

👀

Today, 5 May, is the National Day of awareness and remembrance for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQI+ people.

OK I need to buckle down and actually finish getting these probate files organized soon like I said I would do literally a year ago.

I stopped by the Arctic Fever exhibit at the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library in Toronto last week! It's free to the public and ends in a few days. If you're in Toronto I highly recommend checking it out!

I have such FOMO! An entire day of fascinating sounding Franklin expedition research - I wish it was livestreamed! canadianarchaeology.com/caa/annual-m...

Another weekend in the GTA. Spring, 2026.

Back in Toronto next week and hoping to catch this exhibit this time! Also: Florence + The Machine, Alan Menken, and West Side Story in concert.

I'm being tormented by the The Terror subreddit where there's a comment that I'm pretty sure is talking about my spreadsheet, so I made a new account to link it but my comment isn't appearing because it's from a brand new account lol

Pi day weekend in Toronto, ON.

Today’s the anniversary of the death of Private William Braine of the Royal Marines, crew member of HMS Erebus, who died at Beechey Island in 1846. He was one of three members of the Franklin expedition to die there during their overwintering, and was buried there with his two comrades.

I've put together some NEW notes on Francis Crozier’s name and career seen in the light of his father’s local (and not so local) connections - at www.thethousandthpart.com/notes/george-croziers-choices

I stumbled on a collection of police records from Fife around the 1920s that include mugshots and it's my new favourite thing. These two lads were arrested for playing football -- I don't think they have any regrets

According to his seaman's ticket, HMS Terror quartermaster John Kenley had his wife's name tattooed on his arm 😢

!!!

Popping down to Toronto next week and I'm hoping to stop by and check this exhibit out!

I have a new post up on my blog outlining my genealogy research on Abraham Seely, an AB aboard HMS Erebus during the Franklin expedition. www.alongblank.com/2026/02/abra...

I was hoping to go to a conference in the UK this year (work related, not genealogy) but that doesn’t seem like it’s happening, so now I’m wondering if instead I can find a NWP tour for my vacation time 👀

Woke up at 3:30am to watch men's dual moguls and dear lord was that worth it! Such a exciting and chaotic event!

My mother is obsessed with curling to the point that she can name like every competitive Canadian curler, and also their spouses and children, which is not creepy at all. She watches like every event local and international with a Canadian in it.

I am forever thankful for CBC's excellent Olympic coverage and all their dedicated streams for different sports

I’m planting myself in front of the TV for the next two weeks for the Olympics! I like to keep my hands busy so my goal is to finish a sock (already have the first of a pair done) and most if not all of a cardigan!

Very excited to announce my talk at the @rgsibg.bsky.social !! 27 April, both in person and online. 🥳 #NavalHistory www.rgs.org/events/upcom...

YOLO I'm going to Nova Scotia! Plans still pending but I'm definitely going to hit up the archives and the Randall house museum for some Best family history. It turns out my sister is talking at a conference in May so we're planning to link up and do Cape Breton together, which should be fun!

This has been an extremely difficult start to the Olympics for Canada. First Deanna Stellato-Dudek injured in a training accident. And now Mark McMorris taken off of mountain in a stretch tonight after a training crash.

😱 No! Such a terrible start to these Olympics

It's been a few weeks since I sent off some letters to descendants so now I get to play the "Is the letter still in transit or am I being ghosted?" game

Rude as hell that Stars On Ice is entirely skipping over Saskatchewan on a Winter Olympics year

FML probatesearch, the UK's service for scanning and sending probate documents from 1858-present, went from £1.50 to £16. I used it literally ALL the time for genealogy. For a few of the Franklin crew I looked at, it was the sole reason I was able to find living descendants.

Who needs to read about polar exploration when you can experience it yourself from the convenience of your own home! (This is practically balmy, the windchill was -48 this morning 🥶)

Would someone be able to do me a favour and just send a random test email to the email address on this page and then let me know about it? I want to test that it’s working with an email address that isn’t mine www.alongblank.com/p/about-me.h...