THE ANTARCTICAN SOCIETY NEWSLETTER HONORARY PRESIDENT - RUTH J. SIPLE 7338 Wayfarer Drive, Fairfax Station, VA 22039 (703)250-7338 _______________________________________________________________________ Vol. 02-03 March No. 4 PRESIDENT John Splettstoesser P.O. Box 515, Waconia, MN 55387 Tel/fax (952) 442-2604 [email protected] BRASH ICE. This is a special edition of the newsletter, one that has no current news, but one that more or less celebrates Ruth Sipl TREASURER and myself, Paul Dalrymple, being intimately connected with the Paul C. Dalrymple Box 325, Port Clyde, ME 04855 Society for the past twenty-five years, as well as this edition, our th [email protected] 150 . I wanted to take time out and put on paper some of the things Fax:(207)372-8571 that have happened to us, the Society, and to the newsletters during Phone: (207) 372-6523 this time, most of which have been FINE, FINE, FINE, thanks to Presidents many of you. I can't help but hark back many years, however, to a Dr. Carl R. Eklund 1959-61 Society summer picnic at Stronghold when Bert and Mildred Crary Dr. Paul A. Siple 1961-62 Mr. Gordon D. Cartwright 1962-63 presented a toy trophy to Ruth and me for our work with the Society. RADM David M. Tyree (Ret.) 1963-64 As they gave it to us Bert said, "You know you have created a Mr. George R. Toney 1964-65 monster?" Bert was always right, but in this case I hope it will not Mr. Morton J. Rubin 1965-66 Dr. Albert P. Crary 1966-68 turn out that way. Dr. Henry M. Dater 1968-70 Mr. George A. Doumani 1970-71 To make this newsletter readable, we are including thumbnail Dr. William J. L. Sladen 1971-73 Mr. Peter F. Bermel 1973-75 sketches of some of the lighter sides of many famous, well-known Dr. Kenneth J. Bertrand 1975-77 Antarcticans who have contributed substantially to making our Mrs. Paul A. Siple 1977-78 newsletters worthy. In some cases they have written in our pages Dr. Paul C. Dalrymple 1978-80 about their years on the ice; in other cases we have quoted them Dr. Meredith F. Burrill 1980-82 Dr. Mort D. Turner 1982-84 extensively. Regardless, they have been a big part of our history. All Dr. Edward P. Todd 1984-86 are now dead, none is forgotten, or will they ever be. However space Mr. Robert H. T. Dodson 1986-88 does not allow us to include all, so we have more or less limited this Dr. Robert H. Rutford 1988-90 Mr. Guy G. Guthridge 1990-92 special edition to Byrd men. Dr. Polly A. Penhale 1992-94 Mr. Tony K. Meunier 1994-96 Several OAEs have passed along, and we must mention them, with Mr. Ron Naveen 1996-98 Dr. Paul C. Dalrymple 1998-00 tributes to follow in a subsequent newsletter. First, Charlie Passel of Ms. Kristin Larson 2000-02 West Base, Antarctic Service Expedition; second and third, Brig Mr. John Splettstoesser 2002-04 General Chuck Adams and Pete Peterson of the Ronne Antarctic Honorary Members Expedition; fourth, George Llano who wore many hats, including Ambassador Paul C. Daniels those from the Smithsonian, National Academy of Sciences, National Dr. Laurence McKinley Gould Science Foundation, and the International Association of Antarctica Count Emilio Pucci Sir Charles S. Wright Tour Operators; and fifth, Bob Hickerson, a veteran of the ice during Mr. Hugh Blackwell Evans the post -IGY era. Dr. Henry M. Dater Mr. August Howard We want to thank those who have renewed, especially the 80% who Mr. Amory H. "Bud" Waite, Jr. Dr. Charles W. Swithinbank renewed for multiple years. Karen Harrower and Ron McGregor Dr. Paul C. Dalrymple renewed for ten years; Michele Raney and George Doumani each sent checks for $100. Wonderful. Merci beaucoup. MILESTONE - BACKGROUND. This issue of the Peterson. There were no tree lunches, everyone paid. And newsletter is No. 150 of the so-called regime of Ruth Siple and so the ship was steered. Paul Dalrymple. Some people have referred to it as the Dalrymple Dictatorship, and we won't protest that calling, as THERE ARE OTHERS. Before we unceremoniously take there is/has been a segment of truth in that calling. But false credit for all the newsletters, let us say that they only whatever the calling, some 1337 pages of "taradiddle" have developed through the cooperation of a few real sweethearts been produced in the past twenty-five years, and been foisted who generously contribute many jewels to us. Several upon a membership that has ranged from about 150 to 650 at a newsletters were done exclusive of the household of Siple most nominal fee. The Antarctican Society actually got its start and Dalrymple. A volunteer by the name of Elle Tracey as a Good Old Boys Club, a fallout of the Antarcticans in the from Seattle, who had wintered over in Antarctica, surfaced Greater Washington Area who were involved in the ten years ago as a possible replacement. She did one International Geophysical Year, about the time of the newsletter. Kristin Larson, a very comely, well developed enactment of the Antarctic Treaty. Camaraderie ruled the day, Antarctic veteran with a decade of experience, put together at with liquid libation loosening the tongues at evening conclaves. least one, maybe two, newsletters, and contributed to many, The Society was a most fitting outgrowth of the life style of its but she went astray and became a full-time lawyer. Even first president, the fun-loving skua bird, Carl Eklund. Whatever though a close friend of Ruth's, she actually did not have the fun has happened in the past twenty-five years of the Society time required to run the Society as some of us wanted it run. has been an outgrowth of messages being sent back down to earth by the spirits of Carl. The Society, hopefully, has been RUTH IS IT. Let's get one thing straight, though, before FOR and BY Antarcticans, and this umbilical cord to real we continue, the Society exists only because of the Antarcticans has been what has separated us from some of the dedication of one person, Ruth Siple. Whatever the Society is other polar organizations that number in the teens, if not more. today, it is because of Ruth, who took it into her home, where its Nerve Center existed until a few years ago when Twenty-five years seems like a long, long time to be involved Ruth's family decided that she was aging and should be in a non-paying avocation, but compared to the tenure of farmed out to a Granny Apartment in suburban Washington. August Horowitz/August Howard, of the American Polar Ruth was and is sort of an unpolished diamond who sheds the Society, this is only a yellow hole in a snow bank. He survived limelight and the glory. She did all the legwork, typed all the a much larger membership than ours for over fifty years (52), newsletters (although Ruth is not a typist, she could type ten and his one-person dynasty produced over a hundred issues pages a day without a single typo), handled the treasury, (101), including those of the Little America Times. How many mailed out all the calendars, and kept the operations running Antarctican Society newsletters and bulletins have been smoothly and efficiently. produced altogether? About 173, starting with occasional annual bulletins in 1967. The well-known Antarctic historian, SOCIETY HEYDAY. That would have been in the late Ken Bertrand, started putting out regular newsletters in 1970's and early 1980's. The National Science Foundation November 1975, and he produced ten in the next two years. He was a block from the White House, and the National was Society president when he retired, and Ruth and I started Academy of Sciences' Polar Research Board headquarters out in the fall of 1978. were several blocks away. The old All-American football player, Lou DeGoes, was the Executive Secretary of the Harry Dater, another historian, had been more or less the Board, and he got their members active in the Society. So, at kingpin of the Society, and it is said his Board Meetings always the time of one of their twice-annual Washington meetings, started with his unlocking his liquor cabinet. But, we had a banquet followed by our annual Memorial Lecture unfortunately, he died, and the Society was pretty much in in the big hall at the National Academy of Sciences. We control by the large segment of Antarcticans at the US even got Phil "Crevasse" Smith to show up when Larry Geological Survey in Reston. They were a bunch of fun-loving Gould spoke. That night we ate in the fantastic foyer in the guys, led by Charlie Morrison, who is still active in our National Academy of Sciences! What CLASS! The next Society. I told Ruth that if we were going to get involved in an year Charlie Bentley wowed the audience with humor that no organization we had better well know who were paid up and one suspected rested within Charlie. All of our regular who weren't, as records at that time were in a terrible state. meetings were held in the 18th Street building that housed Using our official polar ice axes, our membership was reduced NSF, and we had Board meetings before each lecture. People from more than 400 to less than 200 bona fide members. We came to the meetings, perhaps in part because parking was were ruthless, even showed the door to the likes of Roger Tory safe in that area.