Ada Blackjack – Making A Difference

In 1921, Ada Blackjack, an Iñupiat woman from Alaska, joined a doomed Arctic expedition to Wrangel Island as a seamstress. Trapped in a frozen wilderness after the crew left in search of help, Ada was left completely alone—except for a cat named Vic. For two years, she endured freezing temperatures, starvation, and isolation, surviving by trapping foxes, reading a Bible, and sheer will.

When she was finally rescued in 1923, Ada had become known as the real-life “female Robinson Crusoe.” Her strength and resilience—once overlooked—have since been rightfully honored. A quiet seamstress became a symbol of survival in one of the harshest places on Earth.

Sources: Ada Blackjack: A True Story of Survival in the Arctic by Jennifer Niven, Polar Record Archives, National Geographic