The Most Famous

EXPLORERS from United States

This page contains a list of the greatest American Explorers. The pantheon dataset contains 498 Explorers, 35 of which were born in United States. This makes United States the birth place of the 4th most number of Explorers behind Spain, and France.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary American Explorers of all time. This list of famous American Explorers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of American Explorers.

1. Richard E. Byrd (1888 - 1957)

With an HPI of 66.92, Richard E. Byrd is the most famous American Explorer. His biography has been translated into 50 different languages on wikipedia.

Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr. (October 25, 1888 – March 11, 1957), an American naval officer, was a pioneering American aviator, polar explorer, and organizer of polar logistics. Aircraft flights in which he served as a navigator and expedition leader crossed the Atlantic Ocean, a segment of the Arctic Ocean, and a segment of the Antarctic Plateau. He is also known for discovering Mount Sidley, the largest dormant volcano in Antarctica. Byrd claimed to be the first to reach both the North and South Poles by air. However, there is some controversy as to whether or not Byrd was actually the first person to reach the North Pole. It is generally believed that the distance Byrd claimed to fly was longer than the possible fuel range of his airplane. He was a recipient of the Medal of Honor, the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration, and the Navy Cross, the second highest honor for valor given by the U.S. Navy.

2. Davy Crockett (1786 - 1836)

With an HPI of 63.95, Davy Crockett is the 2nd most famous American Explorer. His biography has been translated into 45 different languages.

Colonel David Crockett (August 17, 1786 – March 6, 1836) was an American politician, militia officer and frontiersman. Often referred to in popular culture as the "King of the Wild Frontier", he represented Tennessee in the United States House of Representatives and fought in the Texas Revolution. Crockett grew up in East Tennessee, where he gained a reputation for hunting and storytelling. He was made a colonel in the militia of Lawrence County, Tennessee and was elected to the Tennessee state legislature in 1821. In 1827, he was elected to the U.S. Congress where he vehemently opposed many of the policies of President Andrew Jackson, especially the Indian Removal Act. Crockett's opposition to Jackson's policies led to his defeat in the 1831 elections. He was re-elected in 1833, then narrowly lost in 1835, prompting his angry departure to Texas (then the Mexican state of Tejas) shortly thereafter. In early 1836, he took part in the Texas Revolution and died at the Battle of the Alamo. It is unclear whether he died in battle or was executed after being captured by the Mexican Army. Crockett became famous during his lifetime for larger-than-life exploits popularized by stage plays and almanacs. After his death, he continued to be credited with acts of mythical proportion. These led in the 20th century to television and film portrayals, and he became one of the best-known American folk heroes.

3. Hugh Glass (1783 - 1833)

With an HPI of 62.49, Hugh Glass is the 3rd most famous American Explorer. His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Hugh Glass (c. 1783 – 1833) was an American frontiersman, fur trapper, trader, hunter and explorer. He is best known for his story of survival and forgiveness after being left for dead by companions when he was mauled by a grizzly bear. No records exist regarding his origins but he is widely said to have been born in Pennsylvania to Scotch-Irish parents. Glass became an explorer of the watershed of the Upper Missouri River, in present-day Montana, the Dakotas, and the Platte River area of Nebraska. His life story has been the basis of two feature-length films: Man in the Wilderness (1971) and The Revenant (2015). They both portray the survival struggle of Glass, who crawled and stumbled 200 miles (320 km) to Fort Kiowa, South Dakota, after being abandoned without supplies or weapons by fellow explorers and fur traders during General Ashley's expedition of 1823. Another version of the story was told in a 1966 episode of the TV series Death Valley Days, titled "Hugh Glass Meets the Bear". Despite the story's popularity, its accuracy has been disputed. It was first recorded in 1825 in The Port Folio, a Philadelphia literary journal, as a literary piece and later picked up by various newspapers. Although originally published anonymously, it was later revealed to be the work of James Hall, brother of The Port Folio's editor. There is no writing from Hugh Glass himself to corroborate the veracity of it. Also, it is likely to have been embellished over the years as a legend.

4. Calamity Jane (1852 - 1903)

With an HPI of 61.09, Calamity Jane is the 4th most famous American Explorer. Her biography has been translated into 33 different languages.

Martha Jane Canary (May 1, 1852 – August 1, 1903), better known as Calamity Jane, was an American frontierswoman, sharpshooter, and storyteller. In addition to many exploits, she was known for being an acquaintance of Wild Bill Hickok. Late in her life, she appeared in Buffalo Bill's Wild West show and at the 1901 Pan-American Exposition. She is said to have exhibited compassion to others, especially to the sick and needy. This facet of her character contrasted with her daredevil ways and helped to make her a noted frontier figure. She was also known for her habit of wearing men's attire.

5. Michael Rockefeller (1938 - 1963)

With an HPI of 60.82, Michael Rockefeller is the 5th most famous American Explorer. His biography has been translated into 24 different languages.

Michael Clark Rockefeller (May 18, 1938; disappeared November 19, 1961) was a member of the Rockefeller family. He was the son of New York Governor and later U.S. Vice President Nelson Rockefeller, a grandson of American financier John D. Rockefeller Jr. and a great-grandson of Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller Sr. Rockefeller disappeared during an expedition in the Asmat region of southwestern Dutch New Guinea, which is now a part of the Indonesian province of South Papua. In 2014, Carl Hoffman published a book that included details from the official inquest into the disappearance, in which villagers and tribal elders admitted to Rockefeller being killed and eaten after swimming to shore in 1961. Rockefeller's twin sister wrote in a memoir published in 2012 that she believes her brother drowned. No remains of Rockefeller or physical proof of his death have been discovered.

6. Sacagawea (1780 - 1812)

With an HPI of 60.53, Sacagawea is the 6th most famous American Explorer. Her biography has been translated into 45 different languages.

Sacagawea ( SAK-ə-jə-WEE-ə or sə-KOG-ə-WAY-ə; also spelled Sakakawea or Sacajawea; May c. 1788 – December 20, 1812) was a Lemhi Shoshone woman who, in her teens, helped the Lewis and Clark Expedition in achieving their chartered mission objectives by exploring the Louisiana Territory. Sacagawea traveled with the expedition thousands of miles from North Dakota to the Pacific Ocean, helping to establish cultural contacts with Native American people and contributing to the expedition's knowledge of natural history in different regions. The National American Woman Suffrage Association of the early 20th century adopted Sacagawea as a symbol of women's worth and independence, erecting several statues and plaques in her memory, and doing much to recount her accomplishments.

7. Frederick Cook (1865 - 1940)

With an HPI of 58.46, Frederick Cook is the 7th most famous American Explorer. His biography has been translated into 30 different languages.

Frederick Albert Cook (June 10, 1865 – August 5, 1940) was an American explorer, physician and ethnographer, who is most known for allegedly being the first to reach the North Pole on April 21, 1908. A competing claim was made a year later by Robert Peary, though both men's accounts have since been fiercely disputed; in December 1909, after reviewing Cook's limited records, a commission of the University of Copenhagen ruled his claim unproven. Nonetheless, in 1911, Cook published a memoir of the expedition in which he maintained the veracity of his assertions. In addition, he also claimed to have been the first person to reach the summit of Denali (then known as Mount McKinley), the highest mountain in North America, a claim which has since been similarly discredited. Though he may not have achieved either Denali or the North Pole, his was the first and only expedition where a United States national discovered an Arctic island, Meighen Island.

8. Don Walsh (1931 - 2023)

With an HPI of 57.55, Don Walsh is the 8th most famous American Explorer. His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Don Walsh (November 2, 1931 – November 12, 2023) was an American oceanographer, U.S. Navy officer and marine policy specialist. While aboard the bathyscaphe Trieste, he and Jacques Piccard made a record maximum descent in the Challenger Deep on January 23, 1960, to 35,813 feet (10,916 m). Later and more accurate measurements have measured it at 35,798 feet (10,911 m).

9. Simon Fraser (1776 - 1862)

With an HPI of 56.61, Simon Fraser is the 9th most famous American Explorer. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Simon Fraser (20 May 1776 – 18 August 1862) was a Canadian explorer and fur trader who charted much of what is now the Canadian province of British Columbia. He also built the first European settlement in British Columbia. Employed by the Montreal-based North West Company, he had been by 1805 put in charge of all of the company's operations west of the Rocky Mountains. He was responsible for building that area's first trading posts, and in 1808, he explored what is now known as the Fraser River, which bears his name. Fraser's exploratory efforts were partly responsible for Canada's boundary later being established at the 49th parallel (after the War of 1812) since he, as a British subject, was the first European to establish permanent settlements in the area. According to the historian Alexander Begg, Fraser "was offered a knighthood but declined the title due to his limited wealth."

10. Jimmie Angel (1899 - 1956)

With an HPI of 55.85, Jimmie Angel is the 10th most famous American Explorer. His biography has been translated into 24 different languages.

James "Jimmie" Crawford Angel (August 1, 1899 – December 8, 1956) was an American aviator after whom Angel Falls in Venezuela, the tallest waterfall in the world, is named.

People

Pantheon has 39 people classified as American explorers born between 1734 and 1968. Of these 39, 2 (5.13%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living American explorers include Ann Bancroft, and Sue Hendrickson. The most famous deceased American explorers include Richard E. Byrd, Davy Crockett, and Hugh Glass. As of April 2024, 4 new American explorers have been added to Pantheon including Simon Fraser, Ada Blackjack, and Ezra Meeker.