The Legend of Balto
From BaltoWiki
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The true story of Balto differs from the story told by the animated film. Balto wasn't a wolfdog, he was just another sleddog. He didn't relay antitoxin six hundred miles by himself. He didn't even run most of the journey. He didn't have a goose for a friend or two polar bears by the names of Muk and Luk (as far as we know...) and people actually died from diphtheria, though it was never shown in the kid's movie.
The animated film Balto, by Amblimation and Universal Pictures, is all but historically accurate. The Legend of Balto is unfortunately a lesser known tale around America today. It's a story about bravery and endurance—a story about an unforgettable sleddog that came to fame by leading a team through miles and miles of snow and ice.
A terrible blizzard was brewing in Nome, 1925. It was an unfortunate coincidence that the small Alaskan town would have an outbreak of diphtheria without the necessary serum to combat it. Nome called out for urgent help. Seattle replied, readying airplanes loaded with fresh serum to fly to Nome. By the time they were ready to takeoff, the blizzard in Nome was deemed too dangerous for the open cockpit airplanes. Anchorage replied, loading a train with serum. The train was to plow its way through the snow to a small town called Nenana. From there, dog teams would carry it through the snowstorm to Nome.
The serum passed from dog team to dog team for nearly a week before finally reaching Gunnar Kaasen's team, led by Balto. The team plunged into the blizzard and its blinding snow and wind. They faced many dangerous obstacles to finish their run. Some thought Kaasen and his team wouldn't make it through the dangerous part of the run. When he arrived to deliver the serum to the last runner, Kaasen found him asleep. Since the team was still strong and ready, Kaasen decided to travel the last 21 miles of the run to Nome.
The last leg of the journey was filled with even more dangers. At one time, hurricane force winds blew the team into the air. When Kaasen looked up at the sled, the serum was gone. He searched madly through the snow with his bare hands before finding it.
By the next day, Kaasen and his team had made it to Nome! The serum was used throughout the town and saved a great many lives. Kaasen, Balto and the rest of the team became heroes across the United States. The "Heroes of Alaska" were brought to Hollywood to star in a film, Balto's Race to Nome. A statue of Balto was put in place in New York's Central Park to commemorate the heroes.
Balto and the rest of the dogs that led the dog sled were sold to a museum that housed them under despicable conditions. When a businessman visited the museum, he found the dogs and asked to purchase them. After starting a Balto Fund, which ended up in great success, he purchased Balto and his companions and they were taken to the Cleveland Zoo to live out their lives with some dignity.
Interest in the heroes waned away fairly quickly. Balto died on March 14, 1933 at the age of 11 with only a few things to remember him by: a statue, a few old newspapers, and an excellent animated film.
Resources & External Links
There is so much more to the story than this! Explore deep into the unforgettable story of the serum run by surfing these websites.
