Aberdeen Arctic Co

The Aberdeen Arctic company was founded by the whaler William Penny who wished to establish a British colony in Cumberland Sound in order to prolong the whaling season, Penny formed the Royal Arctic Company in 1852, later renamed the Aberdeen Arctic Company. With the company's purchase of the brigs Lady Franklin and Sophia, Penny led the first whaling expedition to winter deliberately with ships in the Baffin Bay and Davis Strait region between 1853 and 1854, introducing the practice of floe whaling which allowed whalers to commence work earlier in the season.

From the guide to the Aberdeen Arctic Co collection, 1854-1862, (Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge)