Leonhard Seppala and Togo: The 1925 Serum Run's Overlooked Heroes

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!

In the winter of 1924 to 1925, Dr. Curtis Welch in Nome, Alaska, recognized the gray throat coating of diphtheria in sick children and found his antitoxin had expired, with the port frozen in and the next shipment stranded. Aging biplanes with water cooled engines could not fly in 50 below, so about 300,000 units found in Anchorage went by train to Nenana and then by a relay of 20 mushers and about 150 dogs, many of the drivers Athabaskan and Inupiat mail carriers, across 674 miles. Norwegian musher Leonhard Seppala, a three time All Alaska Sweepstakes winner, set out from Nome with his 12 year old Siberian husky Togo to meet the serum.

Unaware the relay had been sped up, Seppala ran into Henry Ivanoff near Shaktoolik, took the serum, and turned straight back into a storm with a wind chill of 85 below. Togo led the team across 20 miles of breaking sea ice on Norton Sound in the dark, ice that blew out to sea hours later, and over Little McKinley. Seppala and Togo covered 261 miles in all, against an average leg of about 30. Gunnar Kaasen, driving Seppala's discarded freight dog Balto, skipped the planned handoff to Ed Rohn at Point Safety and reached Nome himself, and Balto got the fame, the vaudeville tour and the Central Park statue.

Charlie Olson's frostbitten hands and Kaasen digging the serum cylinder out of a snowbank by hand
Sculptor F.G. Roth putting Togo's racing collars and awards on the Balto statue
Seppala's team filling Madison Square Garden for 10 days and Roald Amundsen giving Togo a gold medal
The kennel in Poland Spring, Maine, with Elizabeth Ricker that shaped the Siberian husky in North America
The Air Mail Act of 1925 and the Iditarod's Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian Award

Tämä jakso on lisätty Podme-palveluun avoimen RSS-syötteen kautta eikä se ole Podmen omaa tuotantoa. Siksi jakso saattaa sisältää mainontaa.

Jaksot(16184)

The Art of Adult Friendship: Why Quality Matters More Than Quantity

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore how our understanding of friendship changes as we grow old...

9 Marras 18min

Summer Explained: The Science, History, and Traditions of the Warmest Season

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore summer, the season most closely associated with sunshine, ...

7 Marras 18min

Sir Patrick Stewart: From Shakespeare to Star Trek, the Life and Legacy of a Legend

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the extraordinary life of Sir Patrick Stewart, the acclaim...

7 Marras 49min

Larry David: The Genius of Social Awkwardness, Seinfeld, and Curb Your Enthusiasm

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the life and career of Larry David, the comedian, writer, ...

6 Marras 38min

Why Australian Shepherds Aren't From Australia

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the history of the Australian Shepherd, an intelligent, en...

5 Marras 45min

Labrador Retriever: From Newfoundland Fishing Dogs to Modern-Day Heroes

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the remarkable history of the Labrador Retriever, one of t...

4 Marras 53min

Discovering Ireland: A Journey Through History, Culture, and the Wild Atlantic Way

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore Ireland through the philosophy of slow travel: go slower, ...

3 Marras 48min

Willie Hutch: An Overnight I'll Be There Lyric and The Mack's Soundtrack

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!William McKinley Hutchins was born in Los Angeles in December 1944 and raised in Dallas, where h...

2 Marras 21min