Despite his calamitous Coppermine expedition of 1819-22 (RCIN 1124418), in 1824, John Franklin was commissioned by the Admiralty to command a second overland expedition in the Canadian Arctic. It was hoped that following the 1821 merger of the North West Company with the Hudson’s Bay Company it would be easier for Franklin and his party to gain access to the supplies and Indigenous assistance that were wanting in 1819 and which led to the first expedition’s notoriety.

Franklin, accompanied by John Richardson and George Back, was to travel to the Mackenzie River delta in 1825 to overwinter. The following summer, Franklin's party was to west towards Icy Cape to meet Frederick Beechey, who had been commanded to sail through the Bering Strait with HMS Blossom to rendezvous with them. Richardson, meanwhile, travelled east towards the mouth of the Coppermine River.

It was a successful, if rather uneventful expedition. Franklin was forced to turn back around 140 miles from Icy Cape due to fog and ice, while Richardson successfully explored the 900 miles of coast between the two rivers, making important observations of the botany and zoology of the region.

The success of the Mackenzie River expedition was a prime factor in Franklin being the choice to lead his fateful expedition in 1845.