MASONIC BIOGRAPHIES FAMOUS FREEMASONS

Henry Asbjörn Larsen 1939 [PAC/C-70771] September 30, 1899 - October 29, 1964 Born in Fredikstad, Norway, Larsen took out Canadian citizenship in 1927 and in 1928 he enlisted in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Shortly thereafter he was assigned as master of the St. Roch. Rising to the rank of Sergeant, in 1940 Larsen was ordered to attempt to navigate the Northwest Passage. The St. Roch became the second ship to sail the passage, and the first ship to sail it both ways in a single season. The St. Roch left Vancouver on June 23, 1940 reaching Halifax harbour on October 11, 1942. In 1944, the St. Roch left Halifax, arriving in Vancouver on October 16, 1944. He was the author of five books, one in Norwegian. His autobiography, The Big Ship, was published posthumously. The Conquest of the North West Passage: The Arctic Voyages of the St Roch, 1940-44. The Geographical Journal Vol CX No 1-3 (1947). Reports and Other Papers Relating to the Two Voyages of the R.C.M.P. Schooner "St Roch" Through the North West Passage 1940-42 and 1944. King’s Printer (1945). The North-West Passage, 1940-42-and 1944. City Archives, Vancouver (1948) reprinted (1954). Henry med det Store Skipet. Mortensen Forlag, Oslo (1964) reprinted by Flyt Forlag (2003). The Big Ship, an Autobiography by Henry Larsen in co-operation with Frank R. Sheer and Edvard Omholt Jensen. McClelland and Stewart Ltd., 1967. Larsen stayed with the RCMP until 1961, making his way upward to the rank of Superintendent in 1953. He retired in 1961. Raised: April 11, 1935 Mount Newton Lodge No. 89, BCR GLBC Reg. No. 17735 Source: Grand Lodge records; Henry Larson, The Big Ship; also see W.R. Denslow, 10,000 Famous Freemasons; Birthdate noted in James P. Delgado, Dauntless St. Roch. Victoria, BC : Horsedale & Schubart Publishers, 1992.

ANTI-MASONRY | FAMOUS FREEMASONS | HOME | ESSAYS & PAPERS | SITEMAP

© 1871-2023 Grand Lodge of British Columbia and Yukon A.F. & A. M. Updated: 2005/10/17 freemasonry.bcy.ca/biography/larsen_h/larsen_h.html