Fort Conger Fort Conger is a former settlement , military fortification , and scientific research post in Qikiqtaaluk , Nunavut , Canada . It was established in 1881 as an Arctic exploration camp , notable as the site of the first major northern polar region scientific expedition , part of the US government ' s contribution to the First International Polar Year . In 1991 , some of the structures at Fort Conger were designated as Classified Federal Heritage Buildings . Fort Conger is located on the northern shore of Lady Franklin Bay in northeastern Ellesmere Island within Quttinirpaaq National Park . Bellot Island lies across from Fort Conger within Discovery Harbour . Though lacking in timber , the area is characterized by grasses and sedges . The surroundings are rugged and boast high cliffs around the harbour . Now uninhabited , it is one of only a handful of previously manned stations in the Queen Elizabeth Islands . History . Before Fort Conger was developed , its Discovery Harbour was used as a wintering site by the crew of the HMS " Discovery " , led by George Nares , during the British Arctic Expedition of 1875 . Though Nares left behind provisions at Fort Conger , much of those supplies were unfound when Fort Conger was established as a research base in 1881 during the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition , led by First Lieutenant Adolphus Greely . The fort was named by Greely after U . S . Senator Omar D . Conger who had supported the expedition . Twenty - five men , including officers , enlisted , and Inuit , lived and conducted research at Fort Conger over the next two years . During his 1899 expedition to reach the geographic North Pole , Robert Peary reached Fort Conger , only to have several toes snap off at the first joint because of frostbite . Bedridden for weeks while recuperating , Peary wrote on a wall , " Inveniam viam aut faciam " ( " I shall find a way or make one . " ) , attributed to the Roman philosopher Seneca the Elder . Two additional Peary expedition parties returned to Fort Conger in 1905 and 1908 . Other explorers used Fort Conger as a base from 1915 through 1935 . In 1937 , the MacGregor Arctic Expedition attempted to reoccupy Fort Conger . Construction . The original fort was built as a three - room building , long , wide , and high . Lean - tos on either side of the building housed supplies . The double - wall construction of the main building consisted of long , wooden boards , covered with tar paper . This type of construction was found to be unsuitable for the Arctic as it was difficult to keep the building warm . Peary found Fort Conger to be " grotesque in its utter unfitness and unsuitableness for polar winter quarters " and eventually tore down the original building . Re - using the wood , he built several smaller , adjoining buildings , some of which still stand and are classified as Federal Heritage Buildings . Research . As a scientific station , Fort Conger has been the site of many research projects from the early " Pendulum Observations " , to " Research on the microbes attacking the historic woods at Fort Conger and the Peary huts on Ellesmere Island " conducted by the University of Minnesota . Unexpected large quantities of arsenic have been discovered at Fort Conger in recent years , its presence most likely attributable to it being delivered here for sample preservation . In 2013 , a comprehensive 17 - page report on the history of Fort Conger was published in the journal , Arctic . < / ref >