New Bedford and Greenland Share a Historic and Cultural Bond

If President Donald Trump is successful in convincing Greenland to become part of the United States, it would be like welcoming an old friend to the fold for the City of New Bedford. New Bedford and Greenland have a long and historic connection extending from the whaling days to the present time.

Legislation is pending that could lead to the world's largest island becoming the 51st state. The Trump Administration believes Greenland, located between the Arctic and the Atlantic Ocean, is key to America's national security and vital in keeping the Arctic free from Russian or Chinese dominance.

If America wants to sell Greenland on joining the team, perhaps it should send a delegation from New Bedford, as the history between the two is rich.

In the 19th Century, New Bedford whalers frequented the coast of Greenland. The schooner Effie M. Morrissey (New Bedford's Ernestina-Morrissey) explored the Arctic and was used to supply U.S bases in Greenland during World War II.

Corporal Loren E. Howarth, a New Bedford native, was part of a Coast Guard rescue mission and was killed in Greenland during World War II. Howarth's Grumman Duck plane crashed while attempting to save a B-17 crew that had gone down.

The story is included in the book Frozen in Time: An Epic Story of Survival and a Modern Quest for Lost Heroes of World War II by Michael Zuckoff.

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New Bedford artist William Bradford led expeditions to Greenland between 1861 and 1869, and painted landscapes, many of which are held by the New Bedford Whaling Museum and the New Bedford Art Museum.

Those studying the impacts of what some believe to be climate change have traveled to New Bedford to compare Bradford's painting of frozen landscapes to current conditions in Greenland.