In 1910, the explorer Knud Rasmussen established a missionary and trading post in north-western Greenland, which he named “Thule” (later Qaanaaq).

Thule has given its name to the northernmost United States Air Force airfield, Thule Air Base in northwest Greenland, and to the smaller lobe of Kuiper belt object 486958 Arrokoth, visited by the New Horizons spacecraft (No stamps from there… yet).

The first European to arrive in the area was William Baffin, for whom Baffin Bay was named in 1616. While in the area, Baffin named several places, such as Wolstenholme Fjord, Smith Sound, and Wolstenholme Island. Thule had few other visitors until the late 1800s. The first group of Europeans to spend the winter in the area was the crew of the ship North Star. The bay is named after this ship.