Robert Peary and Frederick Cook in 1907 Frederick Cook left New York without fanfare, sailing into the Arctic as the private guest of the gambler and big-game hunter John Bradley. When he returned two years later, he was a national hero, believed by many Americans to have reached the North Pole. One hundred thousand New Yorkers lined the parade route to greet Cook, a native son of Brooklyn, as he made his way from the harbor (see fig. 15). Although his claim had been challenged by rival explorer Robert Peary two weeks earlier, this fact did not appear to diminish the crowds. If anything, Peary’s charge that Cook had faked his polar trek only galvanized support for Cook.“We Believe in You,’’read the banner above the giant triumphal arch under which he passed in procession. Cook’s support was not limited to New Yorkers. Across the country, men and women expressed their conviction that Cook had reached the top of the world. In Cincinnati, the Anti-Tuberculosis League made him an honorary member. In Kingfisher, Oklahoma, a soda fountain worker designed a new ice cream soda in his honor. A Montana mine owner led his men in cheers for Cook in which the explorer’s support reached “down to the depths of 2800 feet.’’Almost unanimously, Cook supporters acknowledged that his graciousness toward Peary in the face of the latter’s public attacks had brought them over to Cook’s side. Many declared that Cook’s conduct, more than any other piece of evidence, convinced them he was telling the truth about his North Pole trek. From the beginning of the controversy, then, character played an important and perhaps critical role in the judgment of explorers and their claims of discovery. 1