PREVIEW



Balto and the Legacy of the Serum Run

When: Through Sunday, May 2.

Where: Cleveland Museum of Natural History, 1 Wade Oval Drive.

Tickets: Adults, $10; children, $8.

Info: cmnh.org or 216-231-4600.

Who in Cleveland has never heard the story of Balto the wonder dog? Is there anyone who doesn't know of his famous delivery of serum to save the residents of Nome, Alaska, from diphtheria?

The Siberian husky Balto has been glorified in print, on radio, in bronze and on film. There are children's books, an animated movie, and Balto himself is preserved at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

And until Sunday, May 2, the museum is hosting a new exhibit on Balto, "Balto and the Legacy of the Serum Run." It details the story with newspaper clips, photographs, newsreels and artifacts. There's even an interactive video game and Balto merchandise. Remember Balto beer?

But just in case the story of Balto has escaped the attention of even one unfortunate soul here in Ohio, let's review the facts.

In 1925, a telegraph came out of Nome, Alaska, a small town on the edge of the Bering Sea. Cases of diphtheria were detected by a local doctor.

The news made it to radio. A call went out for antitoxin serum. But there was a problem. Nome, 650 miles away from the last Alaskan train stop, was frozen in by sea and too cold for airplanes. Only a relay of dog sleds could get the serum there before the deadly disease would lay waste to the villagers. Children were particularly vulnerable.

Twenty mushers and more than a hundred dogs were organized to make the life-or-death run. The trip normally took a month. The dog teams organized by Leonard Seppala made the trip in 51/2 days. The most dangerous leg was a shortcut made by Seppala and his lead dog, Togo. They left land and cut across the Norton Sound, miles of frozen sea where the temperature dipped to 50 below zero. Where most mushers and dog teams made 20- to 30-mile legs on the mission, this one was 90 miles. There was no place to stop halfway.

Newspapers across the country trumpeted the story. And readers were eating up the daily drama. The last two legs were completed by musher Gunnar Kaasen and the now iconic dog, Balto. It was the dog's first time in a lead position. The team faced blizzard conditions.

Even so, they made such record time that the next musher was still asleep in his cabin. Kaasen decided against waking him and pressed on through the final leg.

The serum arrived in Nome to great acclaim and camera crews. Kaasen, Balto and the other dogs toured the U.S. and were celebrated with parades and press conferences at every stop. A larger-than-life bronze statue of Balto was unveiled in New York City's Central Park. A Hollywood producer made a short movie called "Balto's Race to Nome." Movie reels and newspapers saluted the Alaskan adventure. And the American public loved it.

Then the excitement ended. Balto faded from public view. But here's where Cleveland, and this newspaper, jumps into the story. In 1927, two years after the famous trip, Cleveland businessman George Kimble was on business in Los Angeles. He happened upon a carnival-style attraction called a "dime museum." There he found Balto and the other dogs chained to a stage and in poor condition. Kimble got the museum owner to sell him the dogs for $2,000 on the condition the money could be raised in two weeks.

The Plain Dealer got behind Kimble's campaign to raise the money. So did several local radio stations. Children gave up their allowances. The money raised by the good citizens of Cleveland overshot the goal by more than $300. Balto and the team were brought back to town and treated to yet another parade and a ceremony at city hall. They lived out the rest of their days frolicking at what is now known as the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. Balto lived to be 14 years old.

Harvey Webster is the wildlife resource director for the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. He's been at the museum now for 34 years, but he's still enthralled by the Balto story.

"There are so many elements at work here," said Webster. "Balto catalyzed the nation. From telegraph in Nome, to radio in Anchorage, to newspapers and radio across the U.S. It's so dramatic. There were hurricane-force winds. Heroic action."