Hall, Charles Francis (1821–1871)

US Arctic explorer, born in Vermont. In 1860 he went alone to the Arctic in search of traces of Sir John Franklin's party. The whaler in which he travelled became ice-bound and Hall lived among the Inuit of Baffin Island for two years, discovering relics of Martin Frobisher's 16th-century expedition. He described his experience in Life with the Esquimaux (1864).

He made another expedition in 1864–69 and discovered some items of information about Franklin's crew. In 1871 he went on a US government-sponsored North Polar expedition in the Polaris and reached 82° 11' N latitude, until 1876 the most northerly point attained. He died during this expedition.