The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-07.
Back, Sir George
17961878, British explorer in N Canada. He accompanied Sir John Franklin on arctic expeditions in 1818, 181922, and 182427. On an expedition (183335) to search for the missing John Ross, Back explored the Great Fish River (now Back River) and Montreal Island in the present Nunavut Territory. His Narrative of the Arctic Land Expedition appeared in 1836. On a later journey (183637) he explored the arctic coast of Canada.