This photograph shows the crew of an American whaling ship, Era, in Hudson Bay in 1904. Many of these men had never been to sea before. They lived below decks in the cramped forecastle where they took their meals and rested between watches. In the early days of British whaling as many as three men might have shared a single berth. Whaling was an international industry and crewmen came from all points of the globe. Often American whalers would hire local Inuit men to fill out their crews for the summer hunting season. In this picture the men's parkas were made for them by the Inuit who came to live around the ships in their winter harbours.
Courtesy: National Photography Collection, Public Archives of Canada (C-24520)
