Timothy McCarthy

Timothy McCarthy (15 July 1888 – 16 March 1917) was an Irish able seaman (AB). He is best known for his service in the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1914–1916, for which he was awarded the Bronze Polar Medal. Biography McCarthy was born on 15 July 1888 in Kinsale, Ireland. He signed on the Endurance as an able seaman, and participated fully in the dangers and privations of the Weddell Sea, particularly after the Endurance sank and the ship's company and shore party were marooned on a nearby ice floe. Later, the ship's company and shore party were forced to take to lifeboats, and the seamanship of the ABs became a decisive element in the survival of the entire company. Expedition commander Ernest Shackleton was impressed by McCarthy's skill during the survival journey from the northern Weddell Sea to Elephant Island, and so when the expedition leader decided to relaunch the best lifeboat into the open Southern Ocean, with the goal of contacting potential rescuers in South Georgia, McCarthy was one of the five men he chose to accompany him. The sixteen-day voyage of the James Caird in April–May 1916 became a classic story of human endurance, and the boat's navigator, Frank Worsley, offered fervent and repeated praise to McCarthy for his services in keeping the boat afloat and helping to ensure the survival of the party.