Togo, Balto, And Seppala: A Story Of Heroism, Fame And Jealousy

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262 – June, 2023

By Caroline Coile

For almost 100 years, people in New York’s Central Park have slowed to admire the bronze statue of a husky named Balto. Some stop to the read the plaque: “Dedicated to the indomitable spirit of the sled dogs that relayed antitoxin six hundred miles over rough ice across treacherous waters through arctic blizzards from Nenana to the relief of stricken Nome in the winter of 1925. Endurance. Fidelity. Intelligence.”

The description is true–but is the statue of the wrong dog?

According to Balto’s original owner, Leonhard “Sepp” Seppala, yes.

Seppala came to Alaska from Finland during the Nome gold rush, where his first job was to drive a dogsled between 50 to 100 miles every day. He took the position so seriously he even trained with dogs using a cart during the summer–something not done at the time. When in 1913 he was assigned to raise some puppies from Siberia as a gift to accompany Roald Amundsen on his trip to the North Pole, Seppala was elated. When that expedition was cancelled, Seppala inherited the dogs and they became his personal team. He entered his first race the next year, a near disastrous attempt that taught him that both he and his dogs needed more training and experience. By the next year he had won his first race. Seppala went on to earn a reputation as Alaska’s preeminent sled dog trainer, and his kennels and fame grew.

THE CALL FOR HELP

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262 – June, 2023

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Posted by AnthonyA on Jun 23 2023. Filed under Current Articles, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.