My story starts on board the ship The Victoria in 1921. My mother lived with the ship’s steward—and I was born on a blanket in his cabin. We steamed back and forth between Seattle and Anchorage. On one trip north, the steward befriended four young men, Allan Crawford, Milton Galle, E. Lorne Knight, and my favorite, Frederick Mauer. They got it in their heads from a famous explorer named Viljhalmur Stefansson, that they could become modern day pioneers and settle a remote island in the Arctic. They planned to live off of the land, claim the territory and get rich from the rights to the natural resources. Mr. Stefansson had them giddy with excitement but I wasn’t so sure. Seemed crazy to me—who would want to be a pioneer when it is 44 below zero? Give me a warm steward’s cabin any day.
Alas, a steward’s cabin was not in my future because as a parting gift as we approached Alaska, the steward gave me to the explorers—I was to be their “mascot.” How demeaning! I thought of myself as their leader. Still, I love that they named me after the ship, and Mr. Mauer was the best and my first companion.
In Nome, Alaska, we added Ada Blackjack to our party. She was an Iñupiat woman with a young son. They offered her good pay to accompany us and she could cook and sew clothes from all of the hides they were going to stack up living fat off the land.
Items
Memorandum of Agreement, Stefansson Arctic Exploration & Development Company and Allan Crawford, 1 July 1921.
Vilhjalmur Stefansson Papers, Mss-98, Box 9, Folder 35
Frederick Mauer, Nome, to his mother, New Philadelphia, 5 September 1921.
Mauer had a lot to tell his mother before setting out to the Island. He got married and was feeling very confident about the expedition–he even said his investment was as safe as Mr. Stefansson’s reputation (ha!). But most importantly, he tells the story of how I joined the party!
Vilhjalmur Stefansson Papers, Mss-98, Box 9, Folder 7
Allan Crawford, Nome, to Viljalmur Stefansson, 6 September 1921.
Here is Mr. Crawford (our official leader–at least I let him think so) making the final preparations with Mr. Stefansson. At the very end he mentions hiring Ada Blackjack.
Vilhjalmur Stefansson Papers, Mss-98, Box 9, Folder 7
Map of Wrangel Island Vicinity.
Vilhjalmur Stefansson Papers, Mss-98, Box 11, Folder 8
Allan Crawford, Frederick Maurer, Lorne Knight, taken in Seattle, 3 August 1921.
Vilhjalmur Stefansson Papers, Mss-98, Box 79, Folder 1
Ada Blackjack and son, taken in 1921.
Vilhjalmur Stefansson Papers, Mss-98, Box 11, Folder 5
Ada Blackjack.
Vilhjalmur Stefansson Papers, Mss-98, Box 11, Folder 5
Wrangel Island, 1922, Allen Crawford, Frederick W. Maurer, Ada Blackjack, E. Lorne Knight, Milton Galle.
And of course me, we were a party of pioneers.
Vilhjalmur Stefansson Papers, Mss-98, Box 79, Folder 1
Vilihalmur Stefansson, 1921.
Vilhjalmur Stefansson Photographic Files, Mss-238, Box 1, Folder 15