Nearly forgotten today, Elisha Kent Kane was one of the most celebrated figures of the 19th century. The funeral processions through several cities upon his death was outdone only by Abraham Lincoln's. Surgeon, traveler, explorer, writer, and adventurer, Kane was considered a hero in his lifetime. Only 36 at his death in 1857, he had traveled the world and made two voyages to the Arctic on rescue missions. On one voyage, he and his men had to abandon their ice-bound ship and make an 83-day march with the loss of only one crew member. During all this time, he was almost constantly in ill health. He suffered from a heart condition as well as fevers and other illnesses. Probably knowing his life would be short, he lived a courageous and undaunted existence.