JOSEPH MATKIN AND THE VOYAGE OF THE CHALLENGER

by PHIL LISTON-SMITH

Joseph Matkin

Joseph Matkin, born on December 2nd 1852 in Uppingham, Rutland was the second son of Charles Matkin and Sarah Craxford. He was educated at Oakham School where he spent seven years.

His early career was spent with the Merchant Marine where he gained his sea legs and developed a taste for exploration. In the three years between 1867 and 1870 he made the long sea voyage to Australia twice (aboard the ships “Sussex” and “Essex”. Upon his return to England He enlisted in the Royal Navy in August 1870 where he spent the next two years assigned to HMS Invincible.

It was in November 1872 when he was transferred to another ship and became part of a historic undertaking.

THE CHALLENGER EXPEDITION

The Challenger expedition established the foundations of oceanography and is second only to Darwin's voyage aboard the Beagle for its contributions to nineteenth century science. The massive quantity of specimens and information acquired was written up in the fifty volume series of Challenger Reports, and personal accounts were published by officers and scientists. No ocean voyage had ever been so well documented.

Life on deck HMS Challenger

When HMS Challenger sailed from Portsmouth in 1872, a young assistant ship's steward, Joseph Matkin, was among the crew. As such, he was a below-decks crewman and not expected to have much interaction with the officers or scientific staff. Since he was not an officer or one of the scientific staff, it is likely Matkin's role on Challenger would have been lost to history, had it not been for his prolific letter writing and the remarkable survival of the bulk of his letters, most of which are now in the possession of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography's archives. His duties focused primarily on the Challenger's stores of food and "household" goods, and the issuance of such to the ship's company from the tiny Steward's Issuing Room on the lowest deck in the bottom of the ship. He kept inventory and made purchases of fresh food throughout the course of the journey; hence the focus in his letters on the availability and price of foods, particularly fruit, at each landing.

Throughout the three-and-a-half year voyage, Matkin maintained a journal from which he composed the many letters he sent home to his family in Oakham. In his letters he commented on oceanographic operations, reported on shipboard events of special concern to the crew, and discussed at length the history, geography, and peoples of the many exotic and remote ports at which the ship called on its famous circumnavigation of the globe.

LIFE ON BOARD SHIP

Aspects of old Oakham. Detail from "England's Hunting Country" Brian Hollingshead 1977

Yet no account of the seamen's life "below decks" was known to exist until the early 1980's when two substantial collections of Matkin's letters surfaced. The letters are unique in their perspective and fascinating for their depth and literacy. Matkin, son of a printer, was well aware of the significance of the voyage and strove to present a learned account in a proper style. His letters convey a wealth of detail about shipboard logistics, the crew's attitudes toward scientific operations, and officer-scientist-crew relations. Joseph’s granddaughter donated the letters to Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1985 where they joined the letterbook of his cousin J.T. Swann in the Institution's archives.

See a higher resolution image of the "Aspects of Oakham" drawing

He left HMS Challenger and the Royal Navy in June 1876 to return to England. At first returning to Oakham he soon settled in London where he was employed as a clerk in the Lower Division of the Local Government Board in Whitehall. He remained with the Civil Service until his retirement in 1894. He lived variously in London, Oakham and with his son William in Bedford.

Tragedy struck in 1927 when he was involved in a road traffic accident. He was hit by a motorcycle and died from the complications of his injuries in St Pancras Hospital, London on October 27th 1927

Phil Liston-Smith May 2nd 2005

Read an account of the Voyage of HMS Challenger

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