The Terror fan helps scientists solve nearly two-century archeological mystery
A historian who discovered Franklin's lost expedition through AMC's The Terror helped solve a centuries-old mystery
Screenshot: BBC Trailers/YouTube
A new study published on Tuesday resolved an archeological mystery that dates back almost two centuries. As depicted in AMC’s critically acclaimed series The Terror, an English expedition led by Captain John Franklin ended in disaster when its two ships became stuck in the ice of the Canadian Arctic. All 129 crew members of the HMS Terror and HMS Erebus perished as a result of various maladies and afflictions, and the remains of bodies that were eventually found went largely unidentified. But researchers have now been able to match the DNA of a descendant to the remains of James Fitzjames, captain of the Erebus, and they’ve got a Terror fan to thank.
Literally: Fabiënne Tetteroo, herself a historian, is mentioned in the acknowledgments of the paper outlining the identification of Fitzjames’ remains (via The Verge). Tetteroo first became interested in Franklin’s lost expedition after watching the AMC show, and in particular developed an interest in Fitzjames. According to her website, she’s now writing her own biography of Fitzjames. The archaeologists who identified Fitzjames thanked Tetteroo “for generously sharing the results of her investigations of Fitzjames’ family history and for her efforts to identify possible candidates for our Franklin expedition DNA research. It was through her efforts that we were connected with the descendant donor.”
FITZJAMES HAS BEEN FOUND! 😭He was one of the first to die after they abandoned the ships. My boy didn’t have to suffer for long. I’m so grateful that he has been identified. Crying and in shock too. I helped find you, my dear Fitzjames. 😭❤️ pic.twitter.com/kLjohivg89
— JamesFitzjames.com ⚓️ (@CaptFitzjamesRN) September 24, 2024
The site where Fitzjames—who was played by Tobias Menzies in the show—and at least a dozen others died was found in the 1860s, per The Guardian. It wasn’t until 2013 when a team led by Douglas Stenton, adjunct professor of anthropology at the University of Waterloo, was given permission to bring some of the remains back to England. That team put out a call for possible relatives of members of the expedition to donate DNA samples for the identification process. Until now, only one other member of the expedition (John Gregory, an engineer aboard the Erebus) had been identified back in 2021. The DNA of a descendant, apparently found through Tetteroo’s research, was matched to a molar from one mandible (a jawbone). The molar was etched with knife marks, indicating cannibalism, one of the many gruesome fates that befell the Franklin expedition, also depicted in the series. “The identification of Fitzjames’ remains provides new insights about the expedition’s sad ending,” Stenton told the BBC.