McNish, the carpenter whose modifications had made the James Caird seaworthy, was not awarded the Polar Medal. He struggled in civilian life after the war, and he died in poverty in Wellington, New Zealand, in 1930. In the decades since, his contributions to the survival have been more fully recognized: the historical reassessment of his role has been substantial, and a replica of the James Caird, displayed at the Dulwich College in London, stands as evidence of what he built.
Shackleton returned to Antarctica once more, on an expedition called the Quest, in 1921. He died of a heart attack on January 5, 1922, at South Georgia — the island he had crossed in thirty-six hours in 1916 — and was buried there at the request of his wife. He was 47 years old.
Worsley lived until 1943, continuing his nautical career through the First and Second World Wars. Crean retired to County Kerry and ran a pub called the South Pole Inn. Wild, who had spent more time in Antarctica than anyone of his generation, eventually emigrated to South Africa, where he died in 1939. Lewis Rickinson, the engineer who suffered the heart attack on landing at Elephant Island, lived until 1945.
Lionel Greenstreet, the first officer who had joined the expedition with 24 hours’ notice, outlived all the others and died in 1979, the last surviving member of the Endurance crew. He had served in both World Wars and spent decades as a professional mariner. He was in his early nineties when he died, and he had been telling the story of the Endurance for more than sixty years.