loading image

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.

Similar Instagram posts

#Onthisday in 1935, Amelia Earhart departed from Honolulu, HI bound for Oakland, CA. This image was posted on January 11, 2022. #ameliaearhart #avgeek #avatrix #womeninaviation #aviationhistory
Richard E. Byrd was a famous aviator who explored the North and South Poles in the early 20th century. This image was posted on September 06, 2018.
In 1911, Harriet Quimby became the first woman in the United States to earn a pilot’s license. This image was posted on July 06, 2022. #earlywomenaviators #avgeek #aviationhistory #womeninhistory #aviator #pilot #womeninaviation
One of the earliest female French aviators, Mathilde Franck (1866–1956) was taught to fly by the Farman brothers, Henri (1874–1958) and Maurice (1877–1964), in early 1910. This image was posted on June 21, 2022. #earlywomenaviators #avgeek #aviationhistory #womeninhistory #aviator #pilot #womeninaviation
Mary Fuller McChesney (1922 – 2022) was a largely self-taught sculptor and art historian. This image was posted on June 28, 2022. #californiamodernistwomen #california #womenartists #modernism
In 1910, Blanche Scott (1884–1970) proved her automotive and mechanical skills by becoming the first woman to drive west across the continent from New York to San Francisco. This image was posted on June 13, 2022. #earlywomenaviators #avgeek #aviationhistory #womeninhistory #aviator #pilot
Early airlines, especially in the 1920s and 1930s, struggled to turn a profit without a lucrative airmail route contract. This image was posted on October 19, 2022. #paa #panamerican #panam #avgeek #aviationhistory