On January 28, 1944 Explorer, Matthew Alexander Henson Received A Congressional Medal For His Work On A History-Making Expedition With Admiral Robert E. Peary, In 1909. Henson Was Born On August 8, 1866, In Charles County, MD. He Was The Great-Grand-Nephew Of Josiah Henson, The Famous Runaway Slave And Author Who Helped Other Slaves To Freedom, Via The Underground Railroad.
Henson Lost His Parents While A Young Boy. He Went To Sea At Age 12 And Worked As A Cabin Boy On The Sailing Ship, Katie Hines. He Also Learned To Read And Write While Aboard Ship. In 1887, He Met Commander Robert E. Peary And Was Hired As Servant For One Of The Lieutenant's Upcoming Expeditions. For The Next 20 Years Henson Would Accompany Peary On His Travels To The Arctic North, Including A History-Making Expedition In 1909.
On April 6, 1909, Matthew Henson Became The FIRST MAN TO REACH THE NORTH POLE. PEARY ARRIVED APPROXIMATELY 45 MINUTES AFTER HENSON. The Temperature Was -29 DEGREES When Henson Planted The American Flag At 90 DEGREE NORTH ---The ONLY PLACE ON THE PLANET WHERE THE ONLY WAY YOU CAN GO IS SOUTH.
Upon His Return To The United States, Henson Mainly Lectured And Wrote The Book, A NEGRO EXPLORER AT THE NORTH POLE In 1912. Due To The RACIST ATTITUDES Of The Time, Matthew Henson's Contributions And Accomplishment Went Unrecognized For Decades In America; PEARY RECEIVED THE CREDIT FOR REACHING THE NORTH POLE
Henson, Died March 9, 1955. In 1988 He Was Reinterred In ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY.
"In Order For Black History To Live, We Must Continue To Breathe Life Into It." -- Hubert Gaddy, Jr.
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