James Reid is a minor character in AMC's The Terror. He is the ice master on HMS Erebus.
In The Show[]
Mr. Reid is first mentioned in Episode 1 when Henry Foster Collins asks if he should send him to Terror to give Captain Crozier an ice report and Sir John tells him that wouldn't be necessary. He later appears at an officers meeting on Erebus where Sir John, Crozier, Fitzjames and other officers discuss what to do about Erebus. He then appears at the end of the episode when Sir John tells him to mark their position with care, once the ships are ice locked on September 12th, 1846.
Following Sir John's death from being attacked by the Tuunbaq and Crozier taking over the expedition, Reid is mentioned in episode 4 by Thomas Jopson to Captain Crozier (who had missed the officers meeting) that Erebus is holding up on an even keel on the shifting ice while Terror is listing nine degrees to port. By Episode 5; while a party from Terror is collecting alcohol for Crozier and later take Lady Silence back to Terror, Fitzjames tells Edward Little that Reid will report to him about Erebus' slight list to starboard.
He attends the carnivale celebrating the first sunrise of 1848 but is later killed in episode 8 when the Tuunbaq attacks the camp. His body is cremated along with the others killed during the camp attack.
In The Book[]
Reid was part of a party led by Lt. Little to search for open leads, but the party is attacked and killed by Tuunbaq. Reid was found missing his head and was only identified by the tobacco pouch in his jacket. His body, that of an unidentified man, and Harry Peglar are buried at sea by Captain Crozier and his men who found their bodies.
Trivia[]
- The dust cover of a watch belonging to Reid was recovered from Repulse Bay in 1854.
- A skull that likely belonged to Reid was recovered from Erebus Bay in 2015.
- However, in 2021 the skull was identified through DNA as Erebus engineer John Gregory.