New evidence on the Manager's Villa in Stromness Harbour, South Georgia

Abstract

In May 1916 Sir Ernest Shackleton and two companions arrived at the Stromness whaling station, South Georgia, after their dramatic boat journey from Elephant Island and traverse of the island's mountains. The Manager's Villa, where they were believed to have been made welcome, became a historic building that has been frequently visited by those journeying to South Georgia. There have been two different manager's dwellings in Stromness through the years, but their history has not been clear. New evidence indicates that the Villa that was assumed to be the one Shackleton reached in 1916, was not erected in Stromness until 1925. In that year it was moved from the abandoned Ocean Harbour whaling station farther south on the island and replaced the original Manager's Villa. This paper reviews new evidence on the Stromness villas and concludes that the historic focus should be shifted to the correct building.