The Legend of Balto

The Iditerod Trail was first used when the Alaskan gold rush began in the 1880's. One of the mining towns was called Iditerod, named for the Indian word "Haiditerod" meaning a far, distant place. The Iditerod Trail became a way to reach these far, distant places. It was a major transportation route for dog sled teams. It continued to be in use until the mid 1920's.

In 1967, a dog sled driver named Joe Reddington joined with Dorothy Page to celebrate the event. A sled dog race was held, and it was extended to Nome in 1973. A trip from Anchorage to Nome was similar to the famous antitoxin run of 1925. The race was named the Iditerod and became known as "The last great race on Earth."

In 1925, an epidemic of diptheria hit the city of Nome, Alaska. Dr. Curtis Welch, the only physician in town, put out an urgent plea for antitoxin serum. Already several children had died and others were ill with the highly contagious disease. Unfortunately the closest antitoxin that could be found was in Anchorage, on the other side of the state (The largest in the U.S.) Airplanes were still quite new, and could not fly in such cold weather. The antitoxin would be taken to Nenana by rail, and then a relay of dog sled teams would carry it to Nome.

A total of 20 mushers and over 100 dogs were recruited for the run, for the trip would cover almost 700 miles. Leon Seppala, a Norwegian gold miner, travelled 260 of those miles with his lead dog Togo. He was forced to depend on Togo's sense of direction in the fierce weather, and Togo proved to be a dependable guide. It is said that Togo was left permanently lame from the run.

The last leg of the run was done by Gunnar Kaasen, who had been driving dog teams in Alaska for 21 years. His lead dog was Balto. Gunnar was blinded by snow and placed all his trust in Balto, who proved worthy of the task. It is said that at on point Balto stopped and refused to go any further, ultimately saving the team from falling through the ice. He lead them tried and true into the town of Nome and the outbreak was contained and halted. Balto became an instant hero, and a statue was constructed and placed in Central Park, New York City commemerating Balto and the other sled dogs.

    The heroic dogs toured the U.S., but their fame soon faded and the team was sold to a Vaudville promoter.

     After his death in 1933, Balto was stuffed, mounted, and put on display at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History where he stands today. The museum also displays a film shot in 1925 of Balto and the original team.

     Togo died on December 5, 1929, after which he was stuffed and sent to the Peabody Museum at Yale University as a part of the Whitney Collection of other famous dogs. Togo has since been moved to Wasilla, Alaska to the Iditerod HQ.

   Who is the real hero of this event? I leave it for you to decide. Many argue that Togo did most of the work and did not recieve his just reward. True, Togo did run farther than Balto. But Balto was not a natural lead dog. He was penciled in, if you will, at the last moment to pull the team. He was not the seasoned sled dog that Togo was. So is his feat not as great as that of Togo's? And what of the other 98+ dogs? Did they not also pull the sleds just as hard? I will not pick sides on this matter. Again, I leave it up to you. My final thought: The Statue pictured below reads "Dedicated to the indomitable spirit of the sled dogs that relayed anti toxin 600 miles over treacherous waters, through arctic blizzards, from Nenana to the relief of stricken Nome in the winter of 1925, Endurance Fidelity Intelligence" It doesn't say Balto saved the day.

     "It's not exactly a one dog show, Dixie. They're racing to see who's going to be on   the dog sled Team."                -Jenna

    "It doesn't matter who's on the team, as long as the medicine gets through. Stop    being such a glory hound!"      -Jenna