1925 serum run to Nome

In the winter of 1924 and 1925, there lived a sled dog by the name of Balto. This dog was made famous by the 1995 animated Disney film, entitled Balto. However, most people do not know the true depth of Balto’s story, which rightfully includes a number of other teams that also helped in this grand adventure. In December of 1924, the first case of diphtheria appeared in a two year old Inuit boy, but it was misdiagnosed as tonsillitis because of the lack of family history, or anyone in the area that might be experiencing the same symptoms. The boy died a few days later, and the mother refused an autopsy. A few days later, more and more cases began to spring up until finally, they were correctly diagnosed. However, the only serum that Dr. Curtis…

On the first Saturday of March, the people in Anchorage, Alaska are preparing to cover 1,000 miles in the Alaskan wilderness (Brown 12; Burgman 7). These people are competing in the Iditarod, a dog race from Anchorage to Nome held every year, hoping to earn a $50,000 cash prize and a four-wheel drive truck (Brown 62). The name Iditarod comes from the name of an abandoned mining town located halfway between the start and end of the race (Doyle 14). The Iditarod race is an Alaskan tradition that…