Balto

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For the 1995 animated film, see Balto (film).
Statue of Balto in Central Park (New York City)
Statue of Balto in Central Park (New York City)

Balto (c. 1919 – 14 March 1933) was a Siberian Husky sled dog (although some sources incorrectly state that he is an Alaskan Malamute) who led his team on the final leg of the 1925 serum run to Nome, in which diphtheria antitoxin was transported from Anchorage, Alaska to Nenana, Alaska by Train and then to Nome by dog sled to combat an outbreak of the disease. [1] [2] [3] The run is commemorated by the annual Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. Balto was named after the Sámi explorer Samuel Balto.

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[edit] 1925 serum run

In January 1925, doctors realized that a potentially deadly diphtheria epidemic was poised to sweep through Nome's young people. The only serum that could stop the outbreak was in Anchorage, nearly a thousand miles (1,600 km) away. The only aircraft that could quickly deliver the medicine was taken out of winter storage, but its engine was frozen and would not start; after considering alternatives, officials decided to move the medicine by sled dog. The serum was transported by train from Anchorage to Nenana, where the first musher embarked as part of a relay aimed at delivering the needed serum to Nome. More than 20 mushers took part, facing a blizzard with −53 °F temperatures and strong winds. News coverage of the race was worldwide.

On February 2, 1925, the Norwegian Gunnar Kaasen drove his team, led by Balto into Nome. The longest and most hazardous stretch of the run was actually covered by another Norwegian, Leonhard Seppala and his dog team, led by Togo. They came from Nome towards the end of the run and picked up the serum from musher Henry Ivanoff. The serum was later passed to Kaasen.

Kaasen did not consider Balto a particularly good lead dog, but Balto proved himself on the Iditarod trail, saving his team from certain death in the Topkok River. Balto was also able to stay on the trail in near whiteout conditions in which Kaasen admitted he could barely see his hand in front of his face. During a blizzard, Kaasen and his team missed the last sled dog team and had to take the medicine twice as far, which was what eventually brought them to fame.

Togo was the star dog for Leonhard Seppala even before the great 1925 Serum Run. Instead of celebrating the triumph together as one huge team, many became jealous of the publicity Balto received, especially from President Coolidge and the press. The elite and Seppala favored Togo, the general public loved the story behind Balto, but they would take a far different path after the celebrations were over. Balto was not welcomed at the ceremony in New York in which Seppala and Togo received awards from the explorer Roald Amundsen.

Balto wasn't destined to be a star in the breeding shed since he was neutered at a young age, hence he was relegated to being neglected on the vaudeville circuit with his team. While visiting Los Angeles, former prize fighter turned businessman George Kimble, from Cleveland was shocked to discover the dogs were unhealthy and badly treated.

Mr. Kimble worked together with the newspaper, the Cleveland Plain Dealer,to bring Balto and his team to Cleveland. On March 19, 1927, Balto and six companions were brought to Cleveland and given a hero's welcome in a triumphant parade. The dogs were then taken to the Brookside Zoo (now the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo). In 1998 the Alaska Legislature passed HJR 62- 'Bring Back Balto' resolution.

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History declined to return Balto; however, in October 1998, Balto left for a five-month stay at the Anchorage Museum of History and Art which drew record crowds.

[edit] Aftermath

After the mission's success, Balto and Kaasen became celebrities. A statue of Balto, sculpted by Frederick Roth, was erected in New York City's Central Park on December 17, 1925, just 10 months after Balto's arrival in Nome. Balto himself was present for the monument's unveiling. [3] The statue is located on the main path leading north from the Tisch Children's Zoo. [4] In front of the statue a low-relief slate plaque depicts Balto's sled team, and bears the following inscription:

“ Dedicated to the indomitable spirit of the sled dogs that relayed antitoxin six hundred miles over rough ice, across treacherous waters, through Arctic blizzards from Nenana to the relief of stricken Nome in the Winter of 1925.
Endurance · Fidelity · Intelligence[4]
 ”
Balto as seen in Balto III: Wings of Change.
Balto as seen in Balto III: Wings of Change.
Balto at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
Balto at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

On December 22, 1995, Universal Pictures released the animated film Balto. The film was based on the events of the 1925 Serum Run.

[edit] See also

Outdoor sculpture in New York City

[edit] References

  1. ^ Brooks, Barbara A.; Sherry E. Wallis (1998). The Alaskan Malamute: Yesterday and Today. Loveland, CO: Alpine Publications. ISBN 0-931866-96-0.  Page 139.
  2. ^ Salisbury, Gay; Laney Salisbury (2003). The Cruelest Miles: The Heroic Story of Dogs and Men in a Race against an Epidemic. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 187. ISBN 0-393-01962-4. 
  3. ^ a b (2001-08-27) "BALTO - Historical Sign," New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. Retrieved from http://www.nycgovparks.org/sub_your_park/historical_signs/hs_historical_sign.php?id=10771 on 2007-02-26.
  4. ^ a b "Balto", Central Park Conservancy: Official Website for Central Park. Retrieved from http://www.centralparknyc.org/site/PageServer?pagename=virtualpark_southend_balto on 2008-01-05.

[edit] External links