The Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition was an attempt to cross the Antarctic continent led by Ernest Shackleton. The personnel were divided into two groups: the Weddell Sea party consisting of the men who would attempt the crossing and their support, and the Ross Sea party whose job it was to lay stores on the far side of the Pole for the members of the Weddell Sea party who would make the crossing. Both arms of the expedition had a final complement of 28 men. The Weddell Sea party's ship Endurance was crushed in pack ice and the crossing attempt was never made. All the Weddell Sea party were rescued, but several members of the Ross Sea party perished after their support ship Aurora broke free from its mooring post and drifted away, leaving the shore party stranded.
Names and dates of birth are included where known. After Endurance was lost, the Weddell Sea party spent some months camped on the ice before making for Elephant Island in the three lifeboats salvaged from the vessel, the James Caird, the Dudley Docker and the Stancomb Wills. The boat each man was assigned to for the crossing is listed.
Some of the original crew left the expedition to sign up when war was declared with Germany, and others returned to England after the ship put in at Buenos Aires.
| Name | Life | Boat | Position | Additional information | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1874–1922 | James Caird | Commander | James Caird rescue crew | |||
| Frank Wild | 1873–1939 | James Caird | Cape Wild namesake | |||
| Frank Worsley | Dudley Docker | Captain | James Caird rescue crew | |||
| Frank Hurley | 1885–1962 | James Caird | Photographer | |||
| Hubert Hudson | 1886–1942 | Stancomb Wills | Navigator | Original Stancomb Willis captain | ||
| Lionel Greenstreet | 1889–1979 | Dudley Docker | First officer | |||
| Tom Crean | 1877–1938 | Stancomb Wills | Second officer | James Caird rescue crew | ||
| Alfred Cheetham | 1867–1918 | Dudley Docker | Third officer | |||
| style=font-size:100x100px; | Lewis Rickinson | 1883–1945 | Chief engineer | Suspected heart attack on Elephant Island | ||
| Alexander Kerr | 1892–1964 | Dudley Docker | Second engineer | |||
| James McIlroy | 1879–1968 | Stancomb Wills | Surgeon | |||
| Alexander Macklin | 1889–1967 | Dudley Docker | Surgeon | |||
| Robert Clark | 1882–1950 | James Caird | Biologist | |||
| Leonard Hussey | 1891–1964 | James Caird | Meteorologist | |||
| James Wordie | 1889–1962 | James Caird | Geologist | |||
| Reginald James | 1891–1964 | James Caird | Physicist | |||
| George Marston | 1882–1940 | Dudley Docker | Artist | |||
| Thomas Orde-Lees | 1877–1958 | Dudley Docker | Storekeeper; motor expert | |||
| 1874–1930 | James Caird | Carpenter | James Caird rescue crew; not recommended for Polar medal | |||
| Charles Green | 1888–1974 | James Caird | Cook | |||
| William Stephenson | 1889–1953 | Stancomb Wills | Fireman; stoker | Not recommended for Polar medal | ||
| Ernest Holness | 1892–1924 | Dudley Docker | Fireman; stoker | Not recommended for Polar medal | ||
| John Vincent | 1879–1941 | James Caird | Able seaman | James Caird rescue crew; not recommended for Polar medal | ||
| Timothy McCarthy | 1888–1917 | James Caird | Able seaman | James Caird rescue crew | ||
| Walter How | 1885–1972 | Stancomb Wills | Able seaman | |||
| William Bakewell | 1888–1969 | Stancomb Wills | Able seaman | Recruited in Buenos Aires; American claiming to be Canadian | ||
| Thomas McLeod | 1869–1960 | Dudley Docker | Able seaman | |||
| Perce Blackborow | 1894–1949 | Stancomb Wills | Steward | Stowaway; hidden aboard by Bakewell; gangrenous toes of left foot amputated | ||
| Sir Daniel Gooch | 1869–1926 | Dog handler | Returned home after South Georgia stop | |||
| Mrs Chippy | –1915 | McNish's male cat; shot after Endurance sinking |
| Position ! | Additional information | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aeneas Mackintosh | 1879 | 1916 | Commander | Died during the expedition | |
| Ernest Joyce | 1875 | 1940 | Sledging Equipment and Dogs | ||
| Ernest Wild | 1879 | 1918 | Storekeeper | ||
| Reverend Arnold Spencer-Smith | 1883 | 1916 | Chaplain and Photographer | Died during the expedition | |
| John Lachlan Cope | 1893 | 1947 | Biologist and Surgeon | ||
| Alexander Stevens | 1886 | 1965 | Chief Scientist | ||
| Richard W Richards | 1893 | 1985 | Physicist | Would become the last member of the Expedition to pass away | |
| 1885 | 1966 | Physicist | |||
| Irvine Gaze | 1890 | 1978 | General Assistant | ||
| Victor Hayward | 1887 | 1916 | General Assistant | Died during the expedition |
| Position ! | Additional information | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aubrey Howard Ninnis | 1883 | 1956 | Motor Tractor Specialist | Intended for the shore party but stranded when the Aurora broke adrift | |
| Lionel Hooke | 1895 | 1974 | Wireless Telegraph Operator | Intended for the shore party but stranded when the Aurora broke adrift | |
| Joseph Stenhouse | 1887 | 1941 | 1st Officer (subsequently Captain) | ||
| Leslie Thompson | 2nd Officer | ||||
| Alfred Larkman | 1890 | 1962 | Chief Engineer | ||
| C. Adrian Donnelly/Donolly | 2nd Engineer | ||||
| James Paton | 1869 | 1918 | Boatswain | ||
| Clarence Maugher/Mauger | Carpenter | ||||
| Sydney Atkin | Able Seaman | ||||
| Arthur Downing | Able Seaman | ||||
| William Kavanagh | Able Seaman | ||||
| A. "Shorty" Warren | Able Seaman | ||||
| Charles Glidden | Ordinary Seaman | ||||
| S. Grady/Grade | Fireman | ||||
| William Mugridge | Fireman | ||||
| Harold Shaw | Fireman | ||||
| Edwin Thomas Wise | 1872 | 1943 | Cook | ||
| Emile d'Anglade | Steward |