Elisha Kent Kane (1820-1857)

Elisha Kent Kane (1820-1857) is a Pennsylvania historical marker in Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, dedicated 2016.

Laurel Hill Cemetery, 3822 Ridge Ave., Philadelphia

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Born in Philadelphia, Kane was a prominent explorer of the Arctic in the 1850s. His writings after his expeditions influenced scientific and popular opinion on the polar regions. He was first to chart a course that became the route that Robert Peary used to claim the North Pole in 1909. When he died, he was so revered that his body was sent on a two-week cortege across the country before being interred in its final resting place here.

TodayHistorical map

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David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Historical maps covering this location

1872 · Philadelphia County, City. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1872 · Delaware, Montgomery, Bucks counties. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1895 · The Matthews-Northrup up-to-date map of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Digital Commonwealth, Boston Public Library)
1901 · Philadelphia (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1902 · Philadelphia and vicinity, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware / Henry Gannett, chief… (University Library, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)

Philadelphia, 1901, covering the location of Elisha Kent Kane (1820-1857), with a pin at the marker's coordinates — Philadelphia, 1901, covering this location. David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries. The pin is ours, placed from the marker's coordinates.

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Marker data: Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission via data.pa.gov

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