Erika Behrisch Elce discusses her research and her two books about Lady Franklin's long campaign to find her husband Sir John and the Franklin Expedition, lost in the search for the Northwest Passage.
When Sir John Franklin and his 1845 expedition to search for the Northwest Passage were lost in the Arctic, his wife Jane embarked upon a campaign to rescue them. She spent her fortune offering rewards and mounting rescue expeditions, and she kept alive the public’s interest in the lost men. But above all she wrote a battalion of letters: to the Admiralty, to politicians, to the press, and to the prominent in Britain and America.
Erika Behrisch Elce’s fascination with the Franklins led her to publish first an annotated selection of Lady Franklin’s public letters in 'As affecting the fate of my absent husband'. She then wrote a novel, 'Lady Franklin of Russell Square', which imagines Lady Franklin’s private world in London during the decade of search for her husband. In the first June installment of the KFPL Live monthly speakers’ series we are excited to host Erika as she explores the writer’s dance of history and fiction, the power of storytelling to move mountains, and the private tragedies that unfold beneath public adventures.
This program requires free registration.
Join us each month for an engaging and informative event, featuring a variety of guest speakers, interviews, Q&A, panel discussions and presentations.
AGE GROUP: | Teens | Seniors | New Adults | Adults |
EVENT TYPE: | Interests & Lifelong Learning |
