Review: History of Sled Dogs

Posted on March 11, 2024 by Helen Hegener

The March, 2024 issue of Alaska magazine includes a very nice review by Alaskan writer and book critic David A. James, who writes about Northern Light Media’s 2023 book, The History of Sled Dogs in North America, by Helen Hegener. From the review: “With its abundant illustrations, essays from other historians, and reprints of old newspaper and magazine articles, the lively book places readers on the trail in the early 20th century.”

David also writes, “One of the surprises of the book is learning just how popular mushing was elsewhere in North America. Events were held in many states, attracting thousands of fans, and (Leonhard) Seppala was just one of several Alaskan mushers who gained national renown on the racing circuit.” He continues, “Mushers at the time didn’t let dry ground stop them. They simply put wheels on their sleds and kept going wherever there was a road or negotiable trail.”

Subtitled From the Bering Sea to the Atlantic Ocean, the 416-page full-color book is a large 8.5 x 11” format, and covers sled dog history from the crossing of the Bering Strait at Beringia to the 1940s when sled dogs from Nome and other locations aiding troops in the Second World War by hauling munitions to the front and evacuating the wounded soldiers to safety. From the book: “In July 1942 the Remount Branch of the Quartermaster Corps formally took over the War Dog activities and established the first War Dog Reception and Training Center at the Quartermaster Remount Depot, in Front Royal, Virginia. Additional training centers were established in California, Nebraska, Mississippi, Montana, and other sites. The centers conditioned and trained dogs for all types of skill categories, including guard dogs, scouts, messengers, mine detectors, and sled and pack dogs.”

Reprints from the WWII Basic Field Manual for Dog Team Transportation include pen and ink renderings of sleds, harnesses, the points in a good sled dog, and how to hitch the dogs to the sled.

The book is graced by 16 paintings by award-winning Colorado artist Veryl Goodnight, whose historically accurate portrayals of sled dogs in many different situations adds depth and dimension to the book. Veryl’s beautiful website includes the complete collection of sled dog paintings featured in the book, and a video about the making of her wonderful painting, ‘The Gold Rush Dogs.’

David James’ review is also noted in the SubStack email newsletter, The History of Sled Dogs, and more illustrations and a brief excerpt from the book are included there.

For more reviews and information about the book, or to order it, visit the book’s page.

Posted in Alaska History, Book Reviews, Books, Gold Rush History, News & Information, Newsletter, Sled Dog History | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Women’s Bronc Riding

Posted on February 11, 2024 by Helen Hegener

The History of Women’s Professional Bronc Riding 1904-1940, by Jody Ellen Meanus, shares the profiles and photographs of more than thirty champion women bronc riders who made history in the early days of rodeo.

Pictured on the cover, Dorothy Morrell was named Women’s World Champion Bucking Horse Rider at the 1914 Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo. She worked as a stunt double and horseback extra in Hollywood westerns as early as 1915. In 1917 she married cowboy and actor Skeeter Bill Robbins and they rode in the First International Rodeo in London, England in 1924.

Women’s bronc riding is a part of rodeo history which many people are unfamiliar with, although it was, at one time, a well respected aspect of professional rodeo. In the early 1900’s  major rodeos such as the Pendleton Round-Up, Cheyenne Frontier Days and the Calgary Stampede welcomed women bronc riders and often featured them as the star attraction in their top billings to draw in crowds. During the 1930’s professional rodeo began to undergo series of decidedly biased changes that ultimately led to the near total demise of women’s roughstock competition.

“In 1904, when 21-year-old Bertha Kaepernick mounted a bronc at the Cheyenne Frontier Days, her wild ride launched a new era in rodeo.”

In 1914 Bertha Kaepernick Blanchett came within four points of winning the All-Around title at the Pendleton Round-Up. This caused the rodeo committee to change the qualifications for winning to ensure that while a cowgirl could place second, only a cowboy could win the All Around Championship of the World.

The creak of leather, the smell of horses, the sounds of the arena and the anticipation that accompanied every ride; for the women who lived the rodeo life it was all of this and more, it was the hopes for a good ride, a fair judge, and a safe trip to the next stop on the rodeo circuit. In the late 1930’s however, a deliberate effort removed many women’s competitions from professional rodeo. There have been few injustices in the world of rodeo comparable to the biased campaign that ultimately led to the near total demise of women’s participation in professional roughstock events.

Tad Lucas, known as “Rodeo’s First Lady,” made her professional debut in 1917 and became a full-time professional in 1922. Tad traveled the world competing and performing in rodeos along with her cowboy husband, James Edward “Buck” Lucas. She was one of the founding members of the Girls Rodeo Association in 1948, now the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA), the oldest women’s professional sports association and the only one governed entirely by women.

Mary Lou LeCompte, Assistant Professor at the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education at the University of Texas at Austin, wrote a very good synopsis of the history in an article titled Home on the Range: Women in Professional Rodeo: 1929-1947, published in The Journal of Sport History, Vol. 17, No. 3 (Winter, 1990). An excerpt:

“Rodeo cowgirls were among America’s pioneer professional athletes, achieving financial success and international acclaim prior to the Golden Age of sport, and long before female professional athletes were widely accepted by the public. Over 450 women enjoyed professional rodeo careers between 1890 and 1943. These cowgirls were featured at many of the biggest, most lucrative rodeos in the United States and abroad, with the top cowgirls’ earnings equaling and sometimes surpassing those of the foremost cowboys. Furthermore, unlike most female athletes, cowgirls received overwhelmingly favorable and unbiased treatment from the press. These women were obviously dedicated professionals, and most were also all-around athletes. A vast majority of them competed in two or more events, and worked as contract entertainers as well as contestants. Despite their versatility, almost 60 percent competed in bronc riding, which, during the 1930s, became both the most profitable and the most controversial cowgirl contest.”

“To the yesterdays that are gone, to the waddies I used to know, to the bronc busters that rode beside me, to the horses beneath me–I take off my hat. I wouldn’t have missed one minute of it.” ~Fannie Sperry Steele

Fannie Sperry Steele, the “Ladies’ Bucking Horse Champion of the World.” In a career that spanned two decades, Fannie became a legend, and she was one of the first women inducted into the National Rodeo Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City. In 1978 she became the first Montana native in the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame, and in 2009 she was inducted into the Montana Cowboys Hall of Fame.

This book details the little-known history of women’s professional bronc riding, and why it was removed from the rodeo arena. Included are discussions of the history of this golden era of rodeo, as well as stories of some of the women who skillfully stepped into the stirrups of early day bucking horses.

One of the most famous rodeo photographs ever taken was Walter S. Bowman’s spectacular photo of Bonnie McCarroll being thrown from a saddle bronc named ‘Silver’ at the 1915 Pendleton Round-Up. By 1922 Bonnie McCarroll was the top female bronc rider in the nation, placing first at the prestigious Cheyenne Frontier Days, and becoming the first to win the bronc riding championship at the Madison Square Garden Rodeo, becoming the only cowgirl ever to win at the two most prestigious rodeos in the nation in the same year. 

The History of Women’s Professional Bronc Riding: 1904 to 1940, by Jody Ellen Meanus. 180 pages, full color, indexed, with more than 120 photographs. Bibliography, Resources, Indexed. Available from Northern Light Media for $39.95 plus $5.00 shipping, or from any bookseller.

The History of Women’s Professional Bronc Riding 1904-1940

The History of Women’s Professional Bronc Riding: 1904 to 1940, by Jody Ellen Meanus, published by Northern Light Media. 180 pages, full color, bibliography, indexed, and more than 120 photographs. $39.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$44.95

Posted in Books, News & Information, Rodeo, Rodeo History, Western History | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Site for the Railroad Book

Posted on January 26, 2024 by Helen Hegener

oie_gfZznmjqEijLLongtime readers of my books may be aware that I’ve built websites to accompany many of my titles on Alaska’s history. One such website is The Alaska Railroad 1902-1923, which shares the content and the research materials and resources which I used in writing the book, published in 2017. The story of building the Alaska Railroad was a fascinating book to research and to write, and I came across some really wonderful online resources in the process of learning about this important part of our history.

The Alaska Railroad Record, for example, published from 1916 to 1920, was a detailed weekly record of construction, along with news, progress reports, schedules, personnel notes, and other material relevant to the railroad. This several-page newsletter was a primary research document for my book, The Alaska Railroad 1902-1923, and the complete collection of issues is linked at my companion site and available to read online.  

The first half of my book, including the Preface, Introduction, and the first seven chapters, are online at the website and can be read for free.

oie_2qHcG67ScS6fPart 1, which is online to read, covers the prehistory of the Alaska Railroad, from 1902, when Seward was built on Resurrection Bay, to 1914, when the U. S. Government began the surveys which would determine a final route for the railroad. This section tells the histories of the Alaska Central, Alaska Northern, and Tanana Valley Railroads, which provided a jump-start to the Alaska Railroad. Also included in this section is a chapter on the importance of coal to the railroad and to Alaska’s history, and stories of the notorious Morgan–Guggenheim Syndicate and the Ballinger-Pinchot scandal.

Part 2, which is not online, covers the actual construction of the Alaska Railroad from 1915, when Ship Creek became the staging area for construction of the railroad, through 1923, when President Warren G. Harding drove the Golden Spike in Nenana. 

oie_XYq4TeVkWPYxAlso online is are biographies which introduce the people whose vision, ambitions, foresight and hard work built the railroad, such as Frederick Mears, Falcon Joslin, John Ballaine, Martha White, William C. Edes, Phinney S. Hunt, Colin M. Ingersoll, Nellie Neal Lawing, James Wickersham, Thomas Riggs, Jr. and many others.

In the book there are two complete bibliographies, one organized by author and the other by title, plus links to all of the libraries, museums, historic sites and other reference materials for the book. Original maps and links to historic documents and publications, and dozens of photographs, with links to hundreds more, provide convenient access for the reader to continue their own in-depth research, although as with the aforementioned Alaska Railroad Record, some may no longer be available online.

The Alaska Railroad: 1902-1923

The Alaska Railroad: 1902-1923, Blazing an Iron Trail Across The Last Frontier, by Helen Hegener, published in May, 2017 by Northern Light Media. 400 pages, over 100 b/w historic photos, maps, bibliography, indexed. The book can be ordered via PayPal for $24.00 plus $5.00 postage, by clicking below.

$29.95

Posted in Alaska History, Alaska Railroad, Books, News & Information, Transportation, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Adventures on the Iditarod Trail

Posted on December 4, 2023 by Helen Hegener

“Each time a musher sets out from Anchorage, pointed towards Nome in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, he or she writes a new story.” ~Lew Freedman, from the Introduction

Adventures on the Iditarod Trail: Fast Dogs, Freezing Mushers and the Alaska Wild, by Lew Freedman, features engaging interviews with mushers from several decades of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. In his introduction, Lew Freedman writes, “March in Alaska belongs to the Iditarod. The throwback nature of the event in a hurry-up world, the romance of the wilderness, the challenge of conquering the elements, all figure into why the Iditarod is so popular.”

This book is about the mushers who accepted the challenge. There’s the Old Guard who ran in the ’70s: Dick Mackey, Rod Perry, Raymie Redington, Bob Chlupach, Sonny Lindner, and Richard Burmeister. The first three were mushing pioneers in the inaugural race in 1973, when no one was even certain if they could make it to Nome over the old gold rush freighting trail. 

There are the Champions and Respected Veterans who came after them in the ’80s: Libby Riddles, Martin Buser, Jeff King, Burt Bomhoff, Vern Halter, Dave Monson, and Frank Teasley. These early racers tell riveting stories about how they came to Alaska, when they began running dogs, why they entered the Last Great Race, and what happened on the trail to Nome. They tell what it was like to stay with the villagers, to travel minimally-groomed trails, and to brave the fiercest storms with old-school equipment, before the advent of headlamps, cookers, and other amenities. 

Mushers who began running the Iditarod in the 1990s include John Baker, Ramey Smyth, Bruce Lee, and Susan Whiton, and then the early years of the 21st century saw Lance Mackey, Ryan Redington, and Dallas Seavey hit the Iditarod Trail, all three becoming future champions. And in the last decade or so we’ve seen the Young Guns, relatively speaking: Brent Sass, Nicholas Petit, Mille Porsild, Ritchie Diehl, Anna and Kristy Berington, Jessie Holmes, and Cindy Abbott. 

Author Lew Freedman has been interviewing mushers since he was sports editor of the Anchorage Daily News many years ago. He truly knows the sport, the players, the trail, and the questions to ask. As he writes in the epilogue, which is a tribute to 1980 Iditarod Champion Joe May, a key component is “. . . how you become hooked on dogs, and racing, and how it can take over your life . . .” 

In this book Lew explores that question as some of the race’s most interesting and compelling competitors share their adventures on the Iditarod Trail. 

Adventures on the Iditarod Trail

Adventures on the Iditarod Trail: Fast Dogs, Freezing Mushers and the Alaska Wild, by Lew Freedman. Published in December, 2023 by Northern Light Media. 290 pages, 6′ x 9″ b/w format, includes photos, map, bibliography, indexed. $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

Posted in Alaska History, Books, Iditarod, News & Information, Sled Dog History, Sled Dog Races | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ordering Books

Posted on September 14, 2023 by Helen Hegener

Books

2023 NLM Header

NOTE: The titles below are linked to PayPal for purchase via PayPal or any major credit card. PayPal offers choice and flexibility when sending payments, and provides free Purchase Protection. To order via check or money order mail to Northern Light Media, 1255 South Ridgecrest Rd., Wasilla, Alaska 99623. Many more books are available at this website, and all are available through any bookstore. 

cover

The Greatest Fish Ever Caught – Alaska Fishing Tales

Award-winning writer Lew Freedman shares Alaska fishing tales with wit and humor in this collection of true stories about fishing in the Last Frontier. From salmon to halibut to trophy rainbow trout, with side trips for shrimp, clams, and an octopus (!), Lew shares dozens of adventurous fishing trips across the Great Land. 6″ x 9″ format, 266 pages, ISBN 979-8884786264, published in March, 2024. $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

Front cover

The History of Women’s Professional Bronc Riding 1904-1940

This book by Jody Ellen Meanus shares the profiles and photographs of more than thirty champion women bronc riders who made history in the early days of rodeo. 180 pages, full color, indexed, with more than 120 photographs. Bibliography, Resources, Indexed. ISBN 979-8870015576. Available from Northern Light Media for $39.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$44.95

Adventures on the Iditarod Trail

Interviews with some of the race’s most interesting and compelling competitors sharing their adventures on the Iditarod Trail. Published in December, 2023. 292 pages, 6′ x 9″ b/w format, includes photos, map, bibliography, indexed. ISBN 979-8871190364 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

The Hope 91 Sled Dog Race

A historic race from Nome, Alaska to Anadyr, Chukotka, Russia, a testament to the courage and vision of a handful of Alaskans, and their counterparts across the Bering Strait, who saw the value in building a bridge between their countries via a month-long 1,200-mile sled dog race across some of the wildest lands on Earth. Published in 2023. 228 pages, 6” x 9” format, full color on premium paper, indexed, with dozens of color and b/w photos. ISBN 979-8393817428 $39.95 plus $6.00 shipping.

$45.95

The History of Sled Dogs in North America

With contributions by some of the foremost sled dog historians, this full color elegantly illustrated book traces the history of the great sled dog teams who ran the snow-covered trails of the past, hauling freight, gold, mail, passengers and more, and providing what was often the only access to isolated towns and villages. “….A vast and intriguing read… One heck of a book!” —David James, Anchorage Daily News Published in 2023. Full color on premium paper, 416 pages, 8.5″ x 11″ format, dozens of b/w and color photographs, images, and artwork, extensively annotated, resources, bibliography, indexed. ISBN 979-8365139428 $69.95 plus $6.00 shipping.

$75.95

The Alaska Railroad 1902-1923

The history of the railroad’s construction is a wide-ranging look at Alaska’s growth and development, in which the railroad played a major role;, the history is told through historic documents, photographs, and publications. Published in 2017. 400 pages, over 100 b/w historic photos, maps, bibliography, indexed. ISBN 978-1542329941 $29.95 plus $6.00 shipping.

$35.95

Alaskan Sled Dog Tales

In the Territory of Alaska, dogteams were an integral part of events such as the 1925 Serum Run to Nome, explorations of the land before there were roads or railroads, and the thrilling adventures of legendary mushers such as Leonhard Seppala, Harry Karstens, Jujiro Wada, ‘Iron Man” Johnson, Arthur Treadwell Walden, the ‘Malemute Kid,’ and many others. Stories such as Alaskan mail carrier Eli Smith’s epic trip to Washington, D.C., Alaska Nellie’s daring rescue of a lost mail carrier, the Rev. Samuel Hall Young’s 1913 trip over the Iditarod Trail, and Territorial Judge James Wickersham’s 1901 dogsled trip down the frozen Yukon River from Eagle to Rampart. Dozens of old photographs and postcards showcase the history. Published in 2016. 320 pages, 6′ x 9″ b/w format, includes maps, charts, bibliography, indexed. ISBN 978-0692668474 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

Alaskan Roadhouses: Shelter, Food and Lodging Along Alaska’s Roads and Trails

This book shares the history, photographs, maps, artwork, and articles about these iconic Alaskan structures through the adventurous stories of Alaska’s early travelers. With photos and excepts from books, newspapers and magazine articles from the turn of the century, exciting tales of the roadhouses are shared Published in 2016. 284 pages, over 100 black/white photographs, 6″ x 9″ format. ISBN 978-1517785635 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

“I Wish You Could Come Too,” The Alaska Diaries of Dr. James Taylor White

A first-hand look at life aboard a revenue cutter during Alaska’s formative early years. The ships of the U.S. Treasury Department’s Revenue-Cutter Service patrolled the waters of the Bering Sea, the coast of Alaska, and the Yukon River, and for several of those voyages a bright and engaging young physician, Dr. James Taylor White, served aboard and recorded his adventurous work in personal correspondence and journals. Published in 2021. 412 pages, over 45 photographs, images, and maps. 6″ x 9″ b/w format, extensively annotated, bibliography, indexed. ISBN 979-8488207240 $29.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$34.95

Northern Journey

In “Northern Journey” Lew tells the stories behind the adventures which became his books and articles, and he shares tales of learning the language of northerners, racing on snowshoes, facing down moose, engaging in polar bear swims, and noting that the river ice under his 5,000-pound taxi is very close to breaking up. “Northern Journey, A Report from the Frontier,” by Lew Freedman. Published by Northern Light Media in 2023. 238 pages, 6″ x 9″ format, more than two dozen photos. ISBN 979-8373238281 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

“A Mighty Nice Place,” The 1935 Matanuska Colony Project

In the spring of 1935 the U.S. government took a direct hand in the future of Alaska when it offered 203 Depression-distraught farm families in Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin an opportunity to begin again in a far-off land, with government financing and support. The Matanuska Colony Project was part of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal for America, an audacious plan to build a government-sponsored farming community in Alaska’s Matanuska Valley. Published in 2016. 276 pages, 120 photos, 6″ x 9″ b/w format. ISBN 978-1539698951 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

The All Alaska Sweepstakes

The All Alaska Sweepstakes, the race that made ‘Scotty’ Allan and Leonhard Seppala famous, is the oldest organized distance sled dog race in the world, with records kept by the Nome Kennel Club dating back to the first race in 1908. This book traces its gold rush roots and details the 2008 centennial run for the richest purse ever offered for a sled dog race: $100,000.00 winner-take-all! Published in 2013. 160 pages, over 350 photos. Full color, 8.5″x 11″ format. ISBN 978-0-9843977-0-9 $29.95 plus $5.00 shipping

$34.95

The First Iditarod

The story of the first 1,000-mile race from Anchorage to Nome in 1973, told mostly in the verbatim words of the intrepid mushers who made that very first journey. On that cold morning in March, 1973, thirty-six mushers stood at the starting line in Anchorage, Alaska, looking over the backs of their teams and down the trail toward Nome, over 1,000 miles away. They were on their way to making history. Published in 2019. 200 pages. 6″ x 9″ format, b/w illustrations, bibliography, resources, indexed. ISBN 978-0984397761 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

The Matanuska Colony Barns

In 1935 the U.S. Government transported 200 families from the Great Depression-stricken midwest to a valley of unparalleled beauty in Alaska, where they were given the chance to begin new lives as part of a federally-funded social experiment, the Matanuska Colony Project. As part of each family’s farmstead, a magnificent barn was raised, a sturdy square structure 32′ by 32′ and soaring 32′ high. Today these Colony barns are an iconic reminder of what has been called the last great pioneering adventure in America. Published in 2013. 140 pages, full color. Includes Colonist families listing, maps, bibliography, resources, indexed. ISBN 978-0-9843977-4-7 $29.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$34.95

The Yukon Quest Trail

The Yukon Quest Trail takes readers checkpoint by checkpoint from Fairbanks to Whitehorse, an extraordinary journey in which the author shares details of the trail, along with the incredible history of both the race and the wild and beautiful land it crosses. Over 180 full-color photographs, and Trail Notes for Mushers, by two-time Yukon Quest Champion John Schandelmeier. The Yukon Quest Trail: 1,000 Miles Across Northern Alaska and the Yukon Territory, text and photographs by Helen Hegener, additional photos by Eric Vercammen and Scott Chesney; with Trail Notes for Mushers, by two-time Yukon Quest Champion John Schandelmeier. Published in December, 2014 by Northern Light Media. 151 pages, 8.5″ x 11″ full color format, bibliography, maps, indexed. $29.00, plus $5.00 for First Class shipping.

$34.00

Trailing and Camping in Alaska, 1898-1909

Written in 1909 by Addison M. Powell, an adventurer, prospector, hunter, and a former guide for Captain William R. Abercrombie’s 1898 Copper River Exploring Expedition, one of three military expeditions organized under the direction of the Secretary of War with directives for exploring the interior of the new territory of Alaska. Originally published in 1909. 300 pages, 30 b/w photos, published by Northern Light Media in 2018. ISBN 978-1727274264 $24.95 plus $5.00 shipping.

$29.95

Posted in Alaska History, Alaska Railroad, Book Reviews, Books, Colony Barns, Explorers, Gold Rush History, Iditarod, Matanuska Colony, Matanuska Valley, Roadhouses, Sled Dog History, Sled Dog Races, Yukon Quest | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Northern Light Media Sites

Posted on July 16, 2023 by Helen Hegener

Over the past 15 years I have built multiple websites to support the books I have published, utilizing the WordPress platform to share chapters, excerpts, photographs, documents, research notes and more, and the network of sites under the Northern Light Media banner has been a valuable asset to my company. One recurring problem with this, however, has been the WordPress-placed ads on the sites which I’ve created under their free terms. The cost for the most basic plan is almost $50/year, which would be reasonable enough if I wasn’t trying to pay for more than a dozen sites. And if I want to do things like share videos, sell books, and share to social media automatically, the price doubles. So I’m switching horses.

I have been impressed with the SubStack platform from the beginning. Founded in 2017 and headquartered in San Francisco, SubStack is an American online platform that allows writers to send digital newsletters directly to subscribers, and supports those newsletters with online publishing and design infrastructure. My first venture into the SubStack world was with an email newsletter for my Alaskan History Magazine in December, 2020, and the entire content of the magazine is still online in the archives of my Northern Light Media SubStack site: [ https://northernlightmedia.substack.com ]

My second SubStack site (above) was for my book The History of Sled Dogs in North America (Northern Light Media, 2023), which can be accessed here: [ https://historyofsleddogs.substack.com ]

Over the past few days I’ve switched sites for The Hope ’91 Sled Dog Race (above) [ https://hope91.substack.com ], and over the coming days and weeks I’ll be building SubStack sites for many more of my books. Some will include newsletters for updates, but most will not, being simply informational sites with photos and research from the books, reviews and comments and ordering details. Either way, I trust the new sites will provide an excellent ad-free online platform for each of my books.

Posted in Alaska History, Books, News & Information, Newsletter | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Reviewed: Dr. Stein’s Book

Posted on June 13, 2023 by Helen Hegener

I was delighted to see my July/August issue of Alaska Magazine included this splendid review of the book I published in 2021, “I Wish You Could Come Too: The Alaska Diaries of Dr. James Taylor White,” by the late Dr. Gary C. Stein.

Reviewer David A. James explains who Dr. White was, a physician aboard the Revenue Cutter Bear, and he details the importance of the journals Dr. White kept during some of Alaska’s key historic events, noting the book is “….a capstone to Stein’s career and an invaluable resource for better understanding daily life in Alaska prior to, and during, the Gold Rush.”

At the Alaska Historical Society’s annual awards recognizing accomplishments in history last year, the late professor Gary C. Stein was recognized for his work as an Alaska historian in the 1970s and 80s and for his service as a past Alaska Historical Society president.

This book was the result of Dr. Stein’s four decades of research through Dr. White’s diaries, correspondence, scrapbooks, photographs, and natural history and ethnological collections located in various archives, museums and cemeteries in Alaska, Washington State, California, and Washington, D.C.

Working with Dr. Stein on this book was one of the highlights of my publishing career, and I miss his notes and emails, but even more, I wish he could have seen the positively glowing reviews his book has been garnering since publication, like David’s current review for Alaska Magazine. David also reviewed the book last fall for the Anchorage Daily News, and that review (and others) can be accessed from my website page for the book.

Order the book:

jt-white-cover-420res

The Alaska Diaries of Dr. James Taylor White

“I Wish You Could Come Too,” The Alaska Diaries of Dr. James Taylor White, by Gary C. Stein. $29.95 plus $6.00 shipping from Northern Light Media. 412 pages, over 45 photographs, images, and maps. 6″ x 9″ b/w format, extensively annotated, bibliography, indexed.

$35.95

Posted in Alaska History, Book Reviews, Books, Gold Rush History, News & Information | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

ARR’s 100th Anniversary

Posted on June 12, 2023 by Helen Hegener
Bartlett Glacier and the railroad trestle at Mile 47, in the Kenai Mountains north of Seward.

2023 is the 100th Anniversary of the opening of the Alaska Railroad, whose 500-mile-long tracks run from the seaport town of Seward, on the Kenai Peninsula, to Fairbanks, the Golden Heart of Alaska. Along the way they cross two formidable mountain ranges, several broad and daunting rivers, and numerous deep gorges and canyons. The rails wind along the tidewater edge of Turnagain Arm, past Bartlett and Spencer Glaciers, and skirt the highest point on the North American continent, the Great One, Denali.

Work train crossing the bridge over the Knik River, April 12, 1916.

The Alaska Railroad: 1902-1923, subtitled Blazing an Iron Trail Across The Last Frontier, shares the compelling story of the construction of the Alaska Railroad and its predecessors, from 1902, when John Ballaine built the Alaska Central Railroad; through 1923, when President Warren G. Harding drove the Alaska Railroad’s ceremonial Golden Spike in Nenana. This 400-page book is a wide-ranging look at Alaska’s growth and development, and the many ways in which the railroad played a major role. 

A website for the book, by Northern Light Media. ~•~

Alaska Railroad

The Alaska Railroad: 1902-1923

The Alaska Railroad: 1902-1923, Blazing an Iron Trail Across The Last Frontier, by Helen Hegener, published in May, 2017 by Northern Light Media. 400 pages, over 100 b/w historic photos, maps, bibliography, indexed. The book can be ordered for $24.95 plus $5.00 for First Class postage.

$29.95


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A News Spot about Hope ’91

Posted on May 6, 2023 by Helen Hegener

The book about the Hope ‘91 sled dog race is in the final stages, the proofing copies are next, and after both Jon and I have had time to thoroughly proofread the book, I’ll make any changes or corrections we decide on and then send the book for final printing! 

The story of this historic race from Nome, Alaska to Anadyr, Chukotka, Russia is a testament to the courage and vision of a handful of Alaskans, and their counterparts across the Bering Strait, who saw the value in building a bridge between their countries via a month-long 1,200-mile sled dog race across some of the wildest lands on Earth. They brought together mushers from Alaska, Canada, Norway, Switzerland, Japan and Chukotka, in an effort to share the skills and knowledge of long distance sled dog racing. Along the way they shared friendships, faced unimaginable perils, and inspired a renewed interest in the ancient sled dog breeding traditions.

Yesterday Jon and I spent a few hours in his studio with Emmy award winning news photographer Eric Sowl of KTUU, for a program about the book and the history of the race which will air in a couple of weeks. I’ll share that link here when it’s available. UPDATE: you can watch it on the KTUU website!

Jon’s Hope Race artifacts
Eric filming Jon
Jon explains the sled on his ceiling
Reindeer coat from Chukotka
Filming Jon
Photo Albums

Jon and I are both delighted that this book has come together so smoothly, and we think it will be a great addition to the history of sled dog races, as well as an interesting and informative look at our neighboring country across the Bering Strait. 

The finished book is 228 pages, 6” x 9” format, full color on premium paper, indexed, with dozens of color and b/w photos, and the price is $39.95 plus $6.50 postage for shipping.

The Hope ’91 Sled Dog Race

$39.95 plus $6.50 postage, for a total of $46.45. Orders will be processed within 48 hours of ordering, and books will arrive in 10 to 12 days.

$46.45

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1991 Hope / Надежда Race

Posted on February 12, 2023 by Helen Hegener

From Nome, Alaska to Anadyr, Russia

Jon Van Zyle’s 1991 poster for the Hope Race.

Since December my research and writing has been focused on the historic 1991 Hope Race from Nome, Alaska, to Anadyr, Russia. The genesis of this book came about during a visit to the Alaskan artist Jon Van Zyle in December, when I commented on an unusual sled displayed on the ceiling of his studio. That led to stories of the race, which led to pulling out a photo album, which led to an hour or more of poring over the photos, more stories, more artifacts from the adventures, and now, a few weeks later, Jon and I are working together on this book.

Jon was one of three people who officially co-chaired the race, the others being Leo Rasmussen from Nome, and Jerry Tokar from Anchorage. As a Race Judge, Jon was the only one of the three who physically accompanied the eight mushers from four countries who competed in the race, along with race Marshal Earl Norris, Race Judge Barbara Moore, Race Veterinarian Jim Leach, official photographer Frank Flavin, and a couple of other people. The race route had the mushers leaving Nome by dog team and traveling to Teller and Wales, Alaska. From Wales they loaded their teams into big orange Russian helicopters for a flight across the Bering Strait to Uelen, and then continued by dogsled through many small villages, through the larger seaport settlement of Provideniya, and finally to Anadyr, the easternmost town in Russia. The total distance was between 1,000 to 1,200 miles.

The mushers in the 1991 race were Scott Cameron (Palmer, Alaska), Nicolai Ettyne (Neshkan, USSR), Kazuo Kojima (Tokyo, Japan), Kate Persons (Sikusuilaq Springs, Alaska), Ketil Reitan (Kaktovik, Alaska), Mary Shields (Fairbanks, Alaska), Peter Thomann (Willow, Alaska), and Frank Turner (Pelly Crossing, Yukon Territory, Canada). Seven Russian mushers also took part in the race.

A photograph of a Russian musher which Jon shared on Facebook.

Jon shared this commentary and announcement of the book project on Facebook in January:

“We sent the invitations to various mushers who would be willing to participate in a ”race ” that was not a race,” but a learning experience for the Chukchi …The Chukchi have driven dog teams for thousands of years, and certainly know how to travel, or hunt, etc. with them … But at that time, they did not understand the ”in’s and outs” of long distant racing … As you know, traveling and racing are two different things … Also, the Olympics were thinking about including dog races in the winter Olympics ( a spectator sport ), as it was in the 1930’s … and I’m sure the Russians had alternative plans to learn the sport from us to win the Olympics … We set the race up for the Chukchi mushers, as a ” learn how to do this, ” (learn feeding, learn conserving dogs, learn ”setting up ” a dog team, etc. etc. ) …and then at two or three checkpoints before the finish, then start ”racing ” … It worked well … Especially in the feeding of their dog teams … Proven by the race results at the finish line … And that the Hope Race is still active, ( albeit shorter ) but it still continues … which is a nice legacy for us all ….”

A photograph Jon shared on Facebook with his post.

Jon has presented me with an incredible array of paperwork, booklets, maps, photographs, statements, news releases, and his personal trail journal for the race, and this is only the beginning of my research. I am looking forward to the journey ahead as I bring this book into print. Those who have followed my work for a few years will know that I have taken on some major subjects in my research, writing, and publishing, but I honestly believe this book about the inaugural Hope/Nadezhda Race will be one of the most historically important, engaging, and enjoyable!

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