to England the report made by an Eskimo that he had seen and been on board (in Prince Regent Inlet) Franklin's stranded ships. Unfortunately the thickness of the ice prevented anyone, including Captain Parker, from getting through to investigate the truth of the matter; however, he was able to land a cask of preserved meat and thirty bags of coal sent out by Lady Franklin at Cape Hay on the south shore of Lancaster Sound. The ship's company received £500 for their efforts to find the expedition. The jolly sailor Noted for his hospitality, Captain Parker was described by William Parker Snow on a visit to the Truelove as ".....the tout ensemble of a bluff and honest-hearted sailor. Frank and lively he seemed not to know how to make enough of us, or to give us sufficient pleasure in our visit to him.....". He plied his guests with bottled beer, sherry, ham and excellent cheese, etc., and when they left he insisted upon giving them fresh beef, a fine ham and a leg of mutton preserved from the previous March when he had left Hull. Final days John Parker retired from the sea about 1862 following a stroke and died at his home in Hull on 12 February 1867. When he was buried in the Sacristy of Sculcoates Cemetery, Hull the flags on board the Truelove and many buildings on the dock quays were flown at half-mast out of respect. References Further reading Barron, Captain William, 1895, Old Whaling Days, Conway Maritime Press 1970,SBN 85177007X. Credland, Arthur G., The Hull Whaling Trade, An Arctic Enterprise, Hutton Press, Ltd.,Beverley,1995,. Lubbock, Basil, The Arctic Whalers, Glasgow, 1937, . Ross, W. Gillies, This Distant and Unsurveyed Country, A Woman's Winter at Baffin Island, 1857–58, McGill-Queen's University Press, 1997, . Sea captains British people in whaling 1803 births 1867 deaths