Two Days in May 1929 on the Keram River Virginia-Lee Webb, Ph.D. The Crane Pacific Expedition was an around-the-world scientific journey lasting eleven months. It began in Boston on November 16, 1928, and returned to port in the United States on October 21, 1929. The voyage got its name from the Crane family of Chicago, Boston, and Ipswich, who initiated the project and provided financial support. Richard Teller Route of Crane Pacific Expedition Crane Jr. (1873–1931) was head of the family and the Crane companies founded by his father. Richard was married to Florence (1871–1949), the daughter of Harlow Higinbotham who had been president of the World Colombian Exposition in Chicago in 1893. Richard and Florence had two children, a daughter also named Florence (1909–1969) and a son named Cornelius Vanderbilt Crane (1905–1962). It was Cornelius who provided the idea for the expedition and who would be its leader. The Crane family was philanthropic and supported the advancement of science, and Richard was a member of the Board of Trustees of the Field Museum, Chicago. In 1927, Cornelius was given a custom-built seafaring yacht named Illyria. Because of the family affiliations with the Field Museum, Cornelius presented the idea of a scientific expedition to the Museum’s director, who enthusiastically supported the idea. Thus, the Museum would receive the collections gathered on the expedition, and several staff members were invited to participate. The type of voyage Cornelius proposed was ideal for the Museum and would benefit several areas of research. Although Cornelius had Cornelius Crane on Illyria philanthropic and scientific goals, a primary objective of his tour du monde was to visit the South Seas. He decided to mirror his multidisciplinary expedition after the routes taken by Charles Darwin in 1831 and by Darwin’s “co-evolutionist” Alfred Russell Wallace, who traveled to the East Indies in the 1850s. Cornelius was aware of the Field Museum’s prior scientific expeditions that went to the Pacific before him, especially the expedition to the island of New Guinea and surrounding islands by A.B. Lewis on the Field Expedition of 1909–1913. After discussions with D.C. Davies, the director of the Field Museum, the preparation for the voyage began. Agreements, itineraries, and collecting priorities were set. As leader and sponsor of the expedition, Cornelius carefully selected the professionals and colleagues to accompany him. He required each individual be an expert in an appropriate scientific subject and be a “complete
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Michael Hamson Oceanic Art
