Editor's note: This month University of Alaska Press
releases Sheila Nickerson’s new book, Harnessed
to the Pole: Sledge Dogs in Service to American Explorers of the Arctic,
1853-1909. The book chronicles the indispensible role played by dogs in the
Arctic expeditions of such famed explorers as Elisha Kent Kane and Robert Peary.
The following interview was conducted by email.
Tell us briefly about the book and how you
arrived at this particular topic.
The
book is a study of the sledge dogs which accompanied 19th century
American explorers on their expeditions in the Arctic and eventually in their
race to the North Pole. I came to the
subject after extensive research for two
earlier books dealing with the Arctic, Disappearance: A Map and Midnight to the North: The Untold Story of the Inuit Woman Who Saved
the Polaris Expedition. I was particularly interested in two of the
earliest explorers, Elisha Kent Kane and Charles Francis Hall. As I studied their writings, I became increasingly aware of allusions to
dogs. Further research confirmed that
there was a storyline, though a faint one,
that portrayed the role of these valiant animals. It had never been told and deserved to be. These little “camels of the north” needed to be named and
remembered and, like the Sherpas of the Himalayas, to be given their rightful
place in history. Without them there would have been no success for
Americans vying for the Pole.
Your book follows eight American explorers
and their dog teams—how did you select those explorers?
I wanted
to highlight the American explorers because they are less well known than polar
explorers of other nationalities such as Stefansson, Amundsen, Rasmussen, Nansen, and Shackelton. Some of them, like Frederick Schwatka, are
almost forgotten. Also, the American explorers built upon one
another’s experiences in a relatively consistent manner, forging a route to the
North Pole which, over years and countless adventures, led to success. The “American Route” is a logical sequence to
follow. The Americans, too, quickly
adopted the methods of the Inuit people, early on learning the importance of
dogs. Moreover, though inconsistently, they wrote about the dogs in such a way that
they left at least a faint trail to follow.
Some went further, not afraid to express emotional
ties with the animals upon which their lives depended.
Besides pulling sledges, in what ways were
dogs indispensable to polar expeditions?
Dogs
guarded against predators—polar bears and wolves; helped in the hunt,
particularly with caribou and musk oxen;
located seals under the ice; warned of strangers approaching; found their way in storms; gave alarm at the edge of the sea ice; provided
warmth in emergency conditions; and,
when all hope for success in hunting was gone, provided meat; in death, they
contributed skins. Perhaps most
importantly, they provided companionship and distraction from the rigors and
depression of the arctic winter. In some cases their companionship was the only means of fending off the horrors
of the long, ice-bound winter which
could propel both man and animal into madness.
One would imagine the performance of each
explorer—“success versus failure” if we want to call it that—resulted directly
from how they treated their dogs. True?
The
better dogs were treated, the better they performed. But good treatment, as we judge it today, was
not always possible. At times there was
simply no food to provide them and many miles to cover, often in fiercely
stormy weather. Also, diseases such as
rabies and distemper could sweep through villages, killing all teams. The most “successful” American explorer,
Peary, did what he thought right for his dogs but considered them tools of his
campaign to reach the Pole, carefully
calculating how many needed to be taken along for food.
Throughout the centuries of polar exploration
by Europeans many expeditions failed for, among other reasons, not using dogs.
Can you speak to the transition—cultural, economic, purely utilitarian, or
otherwise—that led to the acceptance of employing dogs? How, when, and why did
that happen?
The
British, unwilling to adopt the methods of indigenous people, thought it was
more proper to put men in harnesses to pull boats and sledges rather than
dogs. It was only during the search for
the lost John Franklin expedition that they began to use dogs for hauling. The few exceptions, such as Francis Leopold
McClintock and John Rae, succeeded where others failed miserably, suffering
starvation, scurvy, cold, and exhaustion.
Kane and Hall, the two earliest American explorers, quickly recognized
the value of adopting the ways of indigenous people, including the use of dogs
for transportation and hunting. Their
success with native ways established the precedent that eventually enabled the
Americans to achieve the Pole.
Why do these dogs and their history matter today?
These
dogs, who worked so bravely and
thanklessly for their masters, deserve
recognition. At a time when dogs are now
being recognized for military and civilian service and monuments are being
established to honor them, these dogs of the 19th century Arctic need to be
remembered for their unspoken role in enabling American explorers to be first
to reach the Pole. Since a number of the American explorations in
which they served were military or quasi-military, there is even greater reason
to acknowledge them as military working
dogs. They played a vital role in
enabling Americans to “win” the North Pole.
Now, as nations vie for the
natural resources of the Pole, that accomplishment matters more than ever.
