Three Accounts of the Vasil'ev-Shismarev Expedition of 1819-1822

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ceived a report from the manager of the local office that he had no interpreters who knew the language of the North Americans, and that, therefore, requesting from him four baidars [umiaks, or skin boats] and six Aleuts, he left that island on the 19th. Going around St. Lawrence Island toward the NE he saw ice, and found Kotzebue Sound completely covered with it. This circumstance prompted him to sail for an inspection of Ratmanov Island [Big Diomede].* Although he passed the point where it should be visible in clear weather he did not see any sign of land. Returning again to Kotzebue Sound, he found no more ice there.

On July 18, C[aptain] V[asilev] put out to sea with both sloops, and decided to sail northward along the American shore for a most exact survey. Frequent fogs, an overcast horizon, and ice in various directions did not permit Cap. Vas. to execute this project. On the 29th, being at latitude 71[degree sign] 06', longitude 166[degree sign] 08' west of Greenwich, they approached the ice itself and saw that the entire expanse that the eye could see was covered with it. "It was possible to sail westward along the ice," says C. V. in his report. "but as we were 35 miles above Icy Cape and about four degrees farther west in longitude, it was desirable for me to examine Icy Cape and I turned around at a depth of 24 sazhens [168 feet]."

---------------------- *See the first part of this history, pp. 196, 197.³

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Bering Strait during the whole of September."

Coming into sight of St. Lawrence Island, Cap. Vasilev instructed Cap. Lieut. Shishmarev to finish surveying it, and he sailed toward the American shore. The gradual decrease in the depth of the sea from the eastern end of St. Lawrence Island was the reason that Cap. Vasilev turned west. and sailed toward the islands of [St.] Paul and [St.] George. Determining their geographic position, he continued his way to Unalashka and arrived there on August 19.

"Being in the Arctic Sea," says Cap. Vasilev, "I saw the necessity for a small sailing vessel, which could keep quite close to shore." On the sloop Good Intent there were parts of a disassembled boat in the hold. Therefore, Cap. Vasilev set his course from Unalashka to Novo-arkhagelsk port [NovoArkhangelsk, or Sitka ] where there were more facilities than elsewhere to assemble that boat. He arrived there on September 15, and entrused Lieutenant Ignatev with the assembling of the mentioned boat, sailed from there on October 25.

Having spent the winter season in southern regions, Cap. Vasilev arrived in Sitka on May 13, 1821, at the port of NovoArkhangelsk. Finding that the boat was completely ready, he took on a reserve of water and wood,and receiving interpreters from the Chief Ruler of the American district, Fleet Cap. Lieut. Matveia Ivanovich Muravev, he put out to sea with all three vessels on May 30.

Taking in consideration that the newly assembled boat

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strong that they broke three-inch thick planks.

On August 9th, Captain Vasilev sighted Cape Lisburne and the coast of Asia. On this date he says, "We came out of the Arctic Sea."

On August 13th, Captian Vasilev arrived at Cape Darby, and learning that Lieut. Avinov had not been there, went toward Stuart Island. Casting anchor there he sent Lieut. Boil ashore in an armed longboat. This officer, returning on the 16th, reported, "The inhabitants who had come to this island from Cape Stephens stated that they had never seen foreigners, and that no vessel had ever visited them. To the south of Cape Stephens," they continued, "flows into the sea a large river, Kuiukht-pak [Yukon], from which shoals extend far out."

"Not finding the boat," says Cap. Vasilev, "we weighed anchor, and taking a course W went to a depth of seven and eight sazhens. Having rounded the shoals we bore up to the eastern side of St. Lawrence Island, passed on the north side of [St.] Matthew Island and among the Commander, Bering, and Attu islands. On September 8 we arrived at the port of Petropavlovsk, where we found the sailing boat.

Avinov's Voyage, 1821

Lieutenant Avinov reported to Cap. Vas. that on July 6th he sailed from Bristol Bay toward Cape Newenham. A strong wind and heavy seas forced him to head for Hagenmeister [Hagemeister] Bay. Coming out of it on the 19th he surveyed the shore to Cape Newenham, and from it, northward. On the

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a general direction SE and of a chain of low mountains. Toward the sea, several cliff-like capes, about 500 feet in height, stand out. Between these capes, the shore is low and forms small inlets, but timber is nowhere to be seen, not even a little green grass is to be seen. What a contrast to the shores of America. In many places we saw large settlements, but could not approach them because of the ice.

Ice, head winds, and stormy weather prompted Mr. Shishmarev to abandon further attempts, and to sail to Mechegmenskaia Bay [Mechegmenan Bay] where he hoped to fortify his crew with fresh provisions. The Chukchi here received the Russians very amicably, and the chief delivered ten live deer to the sloop. Cap. Shishmarev collected, here, too, rather interesting information, discovering, at the same time, that among the Mechegmenskaia Chukchi lived four more nations, talking various languages different from the Chukchi dialect.

On Aug 15, Mr. Shishmarev left Mechegmenskaia Bay and went to St. Lawrence Island. Having surveyed its northern shore, and having established communications with the inhabitants, who, in his opinion, are much poorer than the Chukchi, Mr. Shishmarev went his way to St. Matthew Island, which was discovered in 1766 by Lieut. Sind. Determining the geographical location of this island and both [?] located near it, Mr. Shishmarev decided to end his voyage in arctic regions, and went toward the harbor of St. Peter and Paul ----------|