Antarctic Expeditions to 1953
Summary of Antarctic Expeditions (with a known or suspected contemporaneous postal history)
Details listed by permission from: Hal Vogel, Essence of Polar Philately, (USA: American Society of Polar Philately, 2008, 2020), Appendices II-V, (separately revised).
Essence of Polar Philately by Hal Vogel
An encyclopedia of polar philately which includes chapters on acquisition, valuation and gems; and 13 appendices on Arctic/Antarctic expeditions, vessels, stations, and aerophilatelic polar events. Available from the American Philatelic Society here.
A gallery of polar postal history connected to these expeditions has being added to the website. If images have already been added to the gallery for a specific expedition then you can click on the link to view.
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| YEAR | EXPEDITION NAME | LEADER |
| 1820-21 | United States sealing/discovery voyage | Nathaniel Palmer |
| 1820-21 | United States sealing voyages (O'Cain) | Jonathan Winship |
| 1820-22 | South Shetlands sealing squadron collects rocks for NY Lyceum | |
| 1821-22 | United States Fanning-Pendleton sealing/discovery squadron | Benjamin Pendleton |
| 1822-24 | United States sealing and exploring cruise (Wasp) | Benjamin Morrell |
| 1822-24 | British sealing expedition aboard Jane and Beaufoy | James Weddell |
| 1825-26 | Enderby Antarctic sealing and exploring cruise | George Norris |
| 1826-29 | French naval expedition | Dumont d'Urville |
| 1830-33 | Enderby Antarctic sealing and exploring cruise | John Biscoe |
| 1837-40 | French naval expedition | Dumont d'Urville |
| 1838-42 | United States Exploring Expedition | Charles Wilkes |
| 1839-43 | British naval expedition | James Clark Ross |
| 1845-51 | British world circumnavigation naval voyage | Henry Kellett |
| 1851-53 | United States whaling and sealing voyages | Erasmus Rogers |
| 1853-54 | United States mercantile voyage | John J. Heard |
| 1872-76 | British naval oceanographic voyage (Challenger) | Nares & Thompson |
| 1874 | German pre-Transit of Venus Expedition | Kapt. von Reibnitz |
| 1874-75 | French Transit of Venus Expedition | Cdt Duperré |
| 1874-75 | United States Transit of Venus Expedition | George Ryan |
| 1874-75 | la Grye French Transit of Venus Expedition | Jean-Jacques Bouquet de |
| 1874-75 | British Transit of Venus Expedition | J. L. Wharton |
| 1874-75 | German Transit of Venus Expedition | H. Seeliger |
| 1874-76 | German Transit of Venus Expedition | Karl Börgen |
| 1878-82 | British naval hydrographic survey (Alert) | George Nares |
| 1882-83 | German (First) International Polar Year Expedition | Karl Schrader |
| 1882-83 | French International Polar Year Expedition | Courcella-Senevil |
| 1891-93 | Norwegian whaling reconnaissance | Carl Larsen |
| 1892-93 | Scottish whaling reconnaissance | Alexander Fairweather |
| 1892-93 | Fishing boat Angèle Elisa cruise to Saint Paul and Amsterdam | Captain Bertinet |
| 1893-95 | Norwegian whaling exploration | Carl Larsen |
| 1893-95 | Norwegian sealing and whaling exploration | Henrik Bull |
| 1894 | The aborted American Antarctic Expedition | Frederick Cook |
| 1894-95 | Fishing boat Angèle Elisa cruise to Saint Paul and Amsterdam | L. Villepastour |
| 1895-97 | Swedish Tierra del Fuego Expedition | Otto Nordenskjöld |
| 1896-99 | Princeton U. (yearly) paleontological/biological expeditions to Patagonia | John Hatcher |
| 1897 | French naval vessel Lapérouse cruise to Saint Paul and Amsterdam | Captain Le Do |
| 1897-98 | French fishing vessel H.P.B. cruise to Saint Paul and Amsterdam | Captain Benard |
| 1897-99 | Belgian (Belgica) Antarctic Expedition | Adrien de Gerlache |
| 1898-99 | German Deep Sea Expedition | Carl Chun |
| 1898-99 | French fishing vessel H.P.B. cruise to Saint Paul and Amsterdam | Captain Hermann |
| 1898-1900 | British Antarctic Expedition | Carsten Borchgrevink |
| 1901-03 | German (Gauss) South Polar Expedition | Erich von Drygalski |
| 1901-04 | Swedish South Polar Expedition | Otto Nordenskjöld |
| 1901-04 | Scott British National Antarctic Expedition | Robert F. |
| 1901-03 | British relief expedition | William Colbeck |
| 1902-04 | Scottish National Antarctic Expedition | William Bruce |
| 1903 | Argentine relief of Swedish expedition | Julían Irízar |
| 1903 | HMS Terpsichore visit to Saint Paul and Amsterdam | Charles Coke |
| 1903-04 | British (second) relief expedition | William Colbeck |
| 1903-04 | Swedish relief expedition | K. H. Gyldén |
| 1903-05 | French Antarctic Expedition | Jean-Baptiste Charcot |
| 1904-1953 | Various whaling and sealing expeditions | |
| 1904-05 | Argentine meteorological station relief | Otto Diebel |
| 1905 | British/Chilean South Georgia Exploration Co. commercial expedition | Ernest Swinhoe |
| 1905-06 | Argentine meteorological station relief | Albin Lind |
| 1906 | Doctor from whaler Fridtjof Nansen on South Georgia 1907-09 | August Szielasko |
| 1907-09 | Swedish Magellanian Expedition | Carl Skottsberg |
| 1907-10 | French southern Antarctic islands expedition | Raymond du Baty |
| 1908-10 | French Antarctic Expedition | Jean-Baptiste Charcot |
| 1909 | British Antarctic support expedition | John Davis |
| 1909-14 | Kerguelen French (first period) exploration and commercial residence | Henri Bossière |
| 1910 | National Geographic Society (US) Antarctic Expedition (aborted) | Robert Bartlett |
| 1910-12 | Norwegian South Pole expedition | Roald Amundsen |
| 1910-12 | Japanese Antarctic expedition | Nobu Shirase |
| 1910-13 | British (South Pole) Antarctic Expedition | Robert F. Scott |
| 1911-12 | German South Polar Expedition | Wilhelm Filchner |
| 1912-13 | Argentine Orcadas del Sur met station relief | Harald Wiström |
| 1911-14 | Australasian Antarctic Expedition | Douglas Mawson |
| 1912-13 | American Museum of Natural History (Daisy) expedition | Robert Murphy |
| 1912-14 | French southern Antarctic islands scientific cruise | Raymond du Baty |
| 1914 | Aborted Austrian Antarctic Expedition | Felix König |
| 1914 | Aborted British Antarctic & Oceanographic Expedition | J. Foster Stackhouse |
| 1914-16 | Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition | Ernest Shackleton |
| 1914-17 | Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (Ross Sea Party) | Æneas Mackintosh |
| 1915-16 | Auckland Islands General Grant salvage expedition | Percy Catling |
| 1915-17 | United States (Carnegie) magnetic research expedition | James Ault |
| 1916 | Fourth (Endurance) relief expedition | Ernest Shackleton |
| 1917-18 | Ornithological studies on S. Shetland Islands while FID administrator | Arthur Bennett |
| 1918-19 | Ornithological studies on S. Shetland Islands while FID administrator | Arthur Bennett |
| 1920-22 | British Imperial Expedition | John Cope |
| 1920-31 | Kerguelen French (second period) commercial residence | Henri Bossière |
| 1921-22 | Shackleton-Rowett Antarctic Expedition | Ernest Shackleton |
| 1923-24 | French biological expedition to Kerguelen | Etienne Peau |
| 1923-26 | Blossom South Atlantic Expedition with (aborted) Antarctic phase | George Simmons |
| 1923-51 | Discovery Committee oceanographic expeditions | Discovery |
| 1925-27 | German (Meteor) South Atlantic Expedition | Alfred Merz |
| 1928 | Argentine annual Orcadas Del Sur Antarctic met station relief | Ernst Bruhns |
| 1928-29 | Wilkins-Hearst Antarctic Expedition | Hubert Wilkins |
| 1928-30 | (First) Byrd Antarctic Expedition | Richard Byrd |
| 1929-30 | Third Norwegian (Christensen) Antarctic expedition | Hjalmar Riiser-Larsen |
| 1929-30 | Second Antarctic flight expedition | Hubert Wilkins |
| 1929-31 | British Australian New Zealand Antarctic Research Expedition | Douglas Mawson |
| 1930-31 | Fourth Norwegian (Christensen) Antarctic expedition | Hjalmar Riiser-Larsen |
| 1930-31 | French vessel Antarès cruise to Crozet, Saint Paul and Kerguelen | E.L. Piton French |
| 1931 | French vessel Ile Saint-Paul cruise to Saint Paul and Amsterdam | Emile Bourge |
| 1932-33 | Fifth Norwegian (Christensen) Antarctic expedition | Lars Christensen |
| 1933-34 | Sixth Norwegian (Christensen) Antarctic expedition | Lars Christensen |
| 1933-34 | (First) U.S Trans-Antarctic flight expedition | Lincoln Ellsworth |
| 1933-35 | (Second) Byrd Antarctic Expedition | Richard Byrd |
| 1934 | HMS Milford Bouvet Island cruise | Edward Evans |
| 1934-35 | Seventh Norwegian (Christensen) Antarctic expedition | Klarius Mikkelsen |
| 1934-35 | (Second) U.S Trans-Antarctic flight expedition | Lincoln Ellsworth |
| 1934-37 | British Graham Land Expedition | John Rymill |
| 1935-36 | (Third) U.S Trans-Antarctic flight expedition | Lincoln Ellsworth |
| 1936-37 | Norwegian (Christensen) Antarctic expedition | Lars Christensen |
| 1937 | British naval voyage | Hugh Marrack |
| 1937-39 | Aborted British Antarctic Expedition to Victoria Land aboard Westward | Ernest Walker |
| 1938-39 | German (Schwabenland) Antarctic expedition | Alfred Ritscher |
| 1938-39 | U.S. (Wyatt Earp) Antarctic expedition | Lincoln Ellsworth |
| 1939-45 | Various pre-WWII and WWII Antarctic naval war cruises | |
| 1939-41 | United States Antarctic Service Expedition | Richard Byrd |
| 1941 | Richardson Pan-American Highway Expedition to Cape Horn | Sullivan Richardson |
| 1941-45 | New Zealand Cape Expeditions (Sub-Antarctic WWII Coast Watchers) | |
| 1942 | Resumption of base post office with Orcadas Del Sud annual relief | Alfonso Chaki |
| 1943-44 | Operation Tabarin I | James Marr |
| 1944-45 | Operation Tabarin II | Andrew Taylor |
| 1945 | New Zealand Navy begins regular visits to Campbell Island | |
| 1945-46 | UK Falkland Islands Dependencies Survey begins annual relief | |
| 1946-47 | Argentina begins annual relief of existing and new Antarctic Peninsular stations | |
| 1946-47 | U.S. Navy Antarctic Developments Project (Operation Highjump) | Richard Byrd |
| 1947 | Chile begins establishment and annual relief of Antarctic stations | |
| 1946-48 | Ronne Antarctic Research Expedition | Finn Ronne |
| 1947-48 | Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions begins annual station relief | |
| 1947-48 | Norwegian Brategg expedition | Holger Holgersen |
| 1947-48 | South African naval expedition (Operation Snoektown) | John Fairbairn |
| 1947-48 | U.S. Navy Second Antarctic Developments Project (Operation Windmill) | G. Ketchum |
| 1948 | Australia attempts to establish Antarctic coastal station | Stuart Campbell |
| 1948-49 | French (EPF) expedition | André-Frank Liotard |
| 1949 | British Naval South Georgia voyage | |
| 1949-50 | French expedition (EPF) establishes continental and several | André-Frank Liotard |
| 1949-52 | Norwegian-British-Swedish Antarctic Expedition | John Giaever |
| 1949 | French annual Southern and Antarctic Territory fishing protection voyages begin | |
| 1951-52 | British recurring South Georgia expeditions begin | |
| 1953-54 | Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions begins annual presence on | |
| 1953 | British-American Tierra del Fuego scientific expedition. | Rendell Rhoades |