A bit of Hero worship

For a long time Tom Crean was a forgotten man. Born in Annascaul in Kerry in 1877 Crean took part in three of the great Antarctic expeditions. He was part of Soctt's teams  on the Discovery and the fateful Terra Nova expeditions and he played a kep part in Shackleton's Endurance expedition. After the Endurance was crushed in Antarctic ice, Crean was one of the crew of the James Caird the  boat that set off from Elephant Island to South Georgia to seek help for the Endurance crew.


After retiring from the Royal Navy he opened a pub, the South Pole Inn, in his native Annascaul. Stupidly the climate of opinion in the Irish Free State meant that he was unable to talk about his exploits and he died rather forgotten  in 1938.

Fortunately his contribtion to polar exploration is recognised. THere is a statue to him in Annascaul, not far from the South Pole Inn itself, which is a trove of pictures and memorabilia.