Matthew Alexander Henson was an American explorer and writer who spent over two decades exploring the Arctic alongside Robert Peary. Born in Maryland to free sharecropper parents, Henson left school at age twelve to work as a cabin boy. He later worked as a department store salesclerk, where he met Peary in 1887. Peary hired him as a personal valet, initiating a 23-year partnership that would see the duo embark on seven Arctic voyages.
Henson served as a vital navigator, craftsman, and translator on these expeditions, famously learning Inuit survival techniques and languages. During the 1908–1909 expedition, Henson, Peary, and four Inuit assistants claimed to have reached the geographic North Pole on April 6, 1909. Henson later stated that he was the first member of the party to physically reach the pole. Although later research in 1989 cast doubt on the expedition's precise navigation and success, the journey remains a landmark event in polar exploration.
In 1912, Henson published his memoir, A Negro Explorer at the North Pole, documenting his experiences and the challenges of Arctic travel. Though initially overlooked, Henson received significant recognition later in life. He became the first African American made a life member of The Explorers Club in 1937, received the Peary Polar Expedition Medal in 1944, and was honored by multiple U.S. presidents.
