Charles John Green

Charles John Green was born on 24 November 1888 at Richmond, Surrey. He trained in the bakery trade, joining the Merchant Navy as a cook in 1910. Whilst in Buenos Aires he joined the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition [Weddell Sea Party], 1914-1916 (leader Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton), serving as cook on board Endurance . After the ship was crushed in the pack ice of the Weddell Sea, the crew lived for six months on drifting ice until this broke up northeast of the Antarctic Peninsula. Proceeding in three open boats, the party of twenty-eight men reached Elephant Island on 15 April 1916. Throughout the ordeal, Green cheerfully continued to provide hot meals with little equipment. He and his companions were rescued from the island on 30 August 1916.

After the expedition, Green served with the Royal Navy during the First World War, returning to the Merchant Navy on demobilisation in 1919. He was invited to join the Shackleton-Rowett Expedition, 1921-1922 (leader Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton), as cook aboard Quest . On his return, he continued to serve as a cook with the Merchant Navy and developed new skills as a lecturer, giving talks to organisations and schools in Britain and other countries. Retiring from the sea in 1931, he worked at a bakery in Hull. Following service during the Second World War, he continued to give lectures on his experiences in the Antarctic. He died on 26 September 1974 at Beverley.