Francis Fox Tuckett

Francis Fox Tuckett FRGS (10 February 1834 – 20 June 1913)D.W.F., 'Obituary: Francis Fox Tuckett' in "The Geographical Journal", Vol. 42, No. 2 (August, 1913), pp. 206-207] was an English mountaineer. He was vice-president of the Alpine Club from 1866–68, and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. [http://cliftonantiquarian.co.uk/CAC_docs/Index.pdf Index to 'Proceedings of the Clifton Antiquarian Club'] at cliftonantiquarian.co.uk, accessed 11 July 2008]

Life and family

Tuckett was born in 1834 at the Old House, Frenchay Common, near Bristol, the eldest child of Francis and Mariana Tuckett. [http://www.frenchaymuseumarchives.co.uk/Archives/PagesBiogy/Tuckett/Tuckett_FF.htm Francis Fox Tuckett] at frenchaymuseumarchives.co.uk, accessed 8 July 2008]

His father, Francis Tuckett of Frenchay (1802–1868), was a world traveller as well as a leather merchant, horticulturalist, social reformer, philanthropist and Quaker. Himself the son of Philip Debell Tuckett (1749–1816), [Dates for P. D. Tuckett from "Milligan's Biographical dictionary of British Quakers in commerce and industry", p. 444 (NB, there were at least three members of this family called Philip Debell Tuckett.)] Francis Tuckett married Mariana Fox (1807–1863), a daughter of Robert Were Fox the Elder (1754–1818) and a member of the notable Fox family of Falmouth, on 29 March 1833. [http://www.frenchaymuseumarchives.co.uk/Archives/PagesBiogy/Tuckett/Tuckett_Mariana.htm Mariana Tuckett] at frenchaymuseumarchives.co.uk, accessed 11 July 2008] Francis Tuckett was in Naples when he died in 1868. [ [http://www.frenchaymuseumarchives.co.uk/Archives/PagesBiogy/Tuckett/Tuckett_Francis.htm Francis Tuckett] at frenchaymuseumarchives.co.uk, accessed 11 July 2008]

Tuckett's grandfather Robert Were Fox the Elder was a Quaker ship broker and business man in Cornwall, [Payton, Philip, 'Fox, Robert Were (1754–1818)' in "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography" (Oxford University Press, 2004)] while his uncle Robert Were Fox the Younger (1789–1877) was a geologist and natural philosopher who became a Fellow of the Royal Society. [Crook, Denise, 'Fox, Robert Were (1789–1877)', in "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography" (Oxford University Press, 2004)] [Collins, John Henry, "A Catalogue of the Works of Robert Were Fox, F.R.S., with a Sketch of his Life" (Truro: Lake & Lake, 1878)]

Francis Fox Tuckett was the eldest of five children, and his parents' only son. His eldest sister Elizabeth Fox Tuckett, born in 1835, died young, and his other sisters were a second Elizabeth Fox (1837), followed by Mariana Fox (1839) and Charlotte Fox (1842).

Tuckett entered his father's business as a leather factor and was also a gentleman farmer all of his life, taking two to three months off each year for alpine exploration. In 1882, his business, under the name of 'Tuckett and Rake', was at 18 & 20, Victoria Street, Bristol, and was described as 'Leather, Valonia, and Raw Hide factors'. [LondonGazette|issue=25114|startpage=2610|date=2 June 1882|accessdate=2008-07-09]

On 17 January 1896, at the age of 62, Tuckett married Alice Fox while he was in New Zealand.

He died in 1913 at his birthplace, the Old House, Frenchay Common, and was buried at the Friends' Meeting House in Frenchay.

Alpinism

Tuckett was one of the main figures of the Golden age of alpinism, making the ascent of 269 peaks and the crossing of 687 passes.Helmut Dumler and Willi P. Burkhardt, "The High Mountains of the Alps", London: Diadem, 1994, p. 33. In "Scrambles amongst the Alps" Edward Whymper called Tuckett "that mighty mountaineer, whose name is known throughout the length and breadth of the Alps".Edward Whymper, "Scrambles amongst the Alps", 6th edition, London: John Murray, 1936, p. 134. Geoffrey Winthrop Young called Tuckett's approach to climbing "encyclopaedic".Geoffrey Winthrop Young, 'Mountain Prophets', "Alpine Journal", Vol. LIV, reprinted in "Peaks, Passes and Glaciers", ed. Walt Unsworth, London: Allen Lane, 1981, p. 127.

His first trip to the Alps was in 1842 in the company of his father. They went to Chamonix and he explored the Mer de Glace.

On 18 June 1859 he made the first ascent of the Aletschhorn in the Swiss Alps together with the guides Johann Joseph Bennen, Peter Bohren and V. Tairraz. Here he showed his passion for scientific observation, making barometric calculations during the climb and on the summit in the teeth of a strong gale. Of the scene at the summit he wrote:

In 1861, Tuckett tested a prototype Alpine sleeping bag. Within a few years he had perfected a bag design which consisted of blanket material with rubber-coated fabric on the underside. [ [http://www.mammut.ch/mammut/uploadedFiles/Sleep%20Well_Pt1_E.pdf Sleep Well Part 1: Temperature Ratings: A Review of Temperature Standards for Sleeping Bags] at mammut.ch, accessed 11 July 2008]

He pioneered exploration within the Dauphiné Alps in the French Alps, in 1862 making the first crossings of the col des Ecrins, the col du Sélé and the col du Glacier Blanc in the Massif des Écrins with the guides Michel Croz, Peter Perren and Bartolommeo Peyrotte. He also made an attempt, with the same party, on the highest mountain in the range, the unclimbed Barre des Ecrins. In Tuckett's own words:According to Whymper, Tuckett "halted before the Pointe des Ecrins [as the Barre was then called] , and, dismayed by its appearance, withdrew his forces to gather less dangerous laurels elsewhere". The expedition did have the benefit, however, of " [throwing] some light on the Ecrins"."Scrambles amongst the Alps", p. 135.Tuckett was also one of the first alpinists to explore the Dolomites in Italy; in 1864, together with Douglas William Freshfield, he traversed the Pale di San Martino group in eastern Trentino, crossing the San Martino Dolomites for the first time, a feat which astonished the mountaineering world as they had no maps and little equipment, relying on skill and intuition. In Trentino, the names of Tuckett, Freshfield, John Ball, and Edward Robson Whitwell are remembered as the pioneers who put the Dolomites on the map. [http://www.italtourism.com/Italtourism/Storylines/British%20Mountaineering%20Tradition.pdf The British Mountaineering Tradition in Trentino] at italtourism.com, accessed 8 July 2008] In 1871, in the Brenta Dolomites, Tuckett, with Freshfield and guide Devouassou climbed the Cima Brenta (3,150 m) via the Vedretta di Brenta Superiore on the west side; at the time this peak was thought to be the highest summit in the range. [Gillian Price, "Walking in the Dolomites", Milnthorpe: Cicerone, 1991, p. 234.] The Rifugio Tuckett ("right") above Madonna di Campiglio, originally called the "Berliner Hütte", ["Walking in the Dolomites", p. 234.] situated at an altitude of 2,272 metres in the Brenta Dolomites, is named after him, as is the "Bocca del Tuckett" (2,648 m), a pass between two steep, rocky peaks that may be seen from the hut. ["Walking in the Dolomites", p. 234.]

In the Bernina Range in Italy and Switzerland, Tuckett and E. N. Buxton made the first crossing of the "Fuorcla dal Zupò", the "fairly difficult" pass between Piz Zupò and Piz Argient, together with guides Peter Jenny, Christian Michel and Franz Biner on 28 July 1864;Robin Collomb, "Bernina Alps", Goring: West Col Productions, 1988, p. 47. on the same day, with the same party, he made the first crossing of the Fuorcla Crast' Agüzza."Bernina Alps", p. 51. In the same range Tuckett and F. A. Y. Brown made the first ascent of the south ridge (or "Spallagrat") of Piz Bernina together with guides Christian Almer and Franz Andermatten on 23 June 1866."The High Mountains of the Alps", p. 8; "Bernina Alps", p. 59. This is today the normal route up the mountain.

His sister Charlotte wrote that "He kept himself in good training for his beloved pursuit of mountaineering by his daily walks to and from Bristol, five miles each way. He used to get home for six and for more years than I can say, the institution existed of an apple tart served with his tea".

Another sister, Elizabeth, who was a traveller, writer and artist in her own right, illustrated her "Alpine Journal" with sketches. One is of the first ascent of the Cimon della Pala by Edward Robson Whitwell in 1870.

Collector and antiquarian

A Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and a member of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, on his travels Tuckett built up a collection of objects which by 1917 had been donated to the Pitt Rivers Museum at Oxford. [ [http://history.prm.ox.ac.uk/collector_3863.html Relational Museum Collector Information: Collector Francis Fox Tuckett] at prm.ox.ac.uk, accessed 8 July 2008]

As a member of the Clifton Antiquarian Club, Tuckett published antiquarian papers in its Proceedings, including "Notes of ancient Norwegian wooden churches" (1888) ["Proceedings of the Clifton Antiquarian Club", Vol. I (1888) pp. 114-129] and "Notes on ancient Egyptian methods of hewing, dressing, sculpturing and polishing stone" (1889). ["Proceedings of the Clifton Antiquarian Club", Vol. II (1889) pp. 115-135]

Author

Tuckett's "A Pioneer in the High Alps: Alpine Diaries and Letters of F. F. Tuckett, 1856–1874" was published posthumously in 1920. [Tuckett, F. F., ""A Pioneer in the High Alps: Alpine Diaries and Letters of F. F. Tuckett, 1856–1874" (London: E. Arnold, 1920] [Reviewed in "The Geographical Journal", Vol. 58, No. 2 (Aug., 1921), p. 138]

Honours

*Knight of the Order of Saint Lazarus, 1865, appointed by King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy for geographical and scientific work in the Italian Alps

References