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In 1928, Igloo, a wire fox terrier, accompanied Admiral Richard Byrd and his party to the South Pole for the purposes of exploration and map making. Born around 1926, this was not Igloo's first trip to a frigid end of the Earth; he had also accompanied Byrd on his attempt to fly over the North Pole two years earlier. Igloo joined the team during their two-year stay in Little America, Antarctica, on the Ross Ice Shelf. Nicknamed Iggie, Byrd’s constant companion, slept by his bedside in a wool-lined blanket covered box. He had many adventures exploring the local wilderness, sniffing penguins, playing with the sled dogs, and growing a thicker coat. Although this fluffier coat was not enough to protect Igloo from the cold, the expedition tailor and sailmaker made him a woolen coat that covered him from head to toe and a pair of tiny leather boots. An international hero, Igloo received numerous awards, including the Congressional Medal of Honor. The New York Times reported in 1930, "it is the unanimous opinion of the men of the expedition that Iggie helped make life a little more merrier for them in Little America." (And we bet he would have fit right in with @flySFO’s Wag Brigade!) His gravestone is an iceberg which marks the spot where he is interred in Dedham, Massachusetts. photograph: Richard Evelyn Byrd film production, dog ‘Igloo’; c. 1930 Purchase 2007.077.017.034
This image was posted on May 10, 2023.