In 1925, the town itself had a mere 1400 inhabitants and about 10,000 people lived in the surrounding areas, largely native Inupiat Eskimos. Nome is remote — by flight it is 870 kms away from Alaska’s largest city, Anchorage and 3200 kms from Seattle, the nearest city in the lower 48 states.
What did the town of Nome need in 1925?
The 1925 serum run to Nome, also known as the Great Race of Mercy and The Serum Run, was a transport of diphtheria antitoxin by dog sled relay across the U.S. territory of Alaska by 20 mushers and about 150 sled dogs across 674 miles (1,085 km) in 5 ½ days, saving the small town of Nome and the surrounding communities …
How many people died in Nome 1925?
In the winter of 1925, a lone physician and four nurses in Nome, Alaska faced a crisis too terrible to imagine—an outbreak of diphtheria that could kill most of the region’s population of about 10,000 people.
What disease happened in Alaska 1925?
In January 1925, doctors realized that a potentially deadly diphtheria epidemic was poised to sweep through Nome’s young people. The only serum that could stop the outbreak was in Anchorage, nearly a thousand miles away. But the lone aircraft that could quickly deliver the medicine had been dismantled for the winter.
How many dogs died in the serum run?
A total of 20 mushers and 150 sled dogs made the trip. Four dogs died along the way. All of the drivers suffered to some degree from the conditions. Kaasen and Balto, as the driver and lead dog who arrived with the serum in Nome, got much of the attention after the fact.
Is Nome Alaska a dry town?
NOME, Alaska — Villagers from far-flung Eskimo communities where alcohol is banned regularly pour into this old Gold Rush town and its many bars and liquor stores — not just to drink, but to get plastered. “The most dangerous pattern of drinking is binge drinking and it is firmly entrenched here.
What did Balto the dog do?
BALTO was the sled dog who became a national hero, symbolizing rescue efforts to get supplies of diphtheria antitoxin serum to Nome, Alaska.
How many children died in Nome Alaska from diphtheria?
Why is there no alcohol in Alaska?
This is because most of the dozens of predominantly Yupik Eskimo villages along the river have exercised an option under current state law which allows them to ban local sale and import of alcohol. Alaska has one of the world’s highest per capita rates of alcohol consumption.
Is alcohol illegal in Nome?
What happened in 1925 Nome Alaska?
In January 1925 diphtheria an extremely contagious disease affecting the throat and lungs, was raging through the town of Nome. Heavy snow had fallen and temperatures dropped far below zero. These winter conditions proved to be beyond the technical capabilities of early airplanes with open cockpits.
What is the history of Nome Alaska?
The History of Nome. The “Three Lucky Swedes, ” Jafet Lindberg, Erik Lindblom and John Brynteson, discovered gold on Anvil Creek in 1898. News reached the gold fields of the Klondike that winter and by 1899 Anvil City, as the new camp was called, had a population of 10,000.
What happened to the 1925 Nome sled dog race?
What might have been the most important “sled dog race” that will ever be run in Alaska ended in Nome on February 2, 1925, when Gunnar Kaasen drove his tired dog team down an almost deserted First Avenue. At stake were the lives of countless Nome children who had been exposed to the dreaded disease, diphtheria.
What is the physical geography of Nome Alaska?
Nome is located at 64°30′14″N 165°23′58″W (64.503889, -165.399444). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 21.6 square miles (56 km 2 ), of which 12.5 square miles (32 km 2) is land and 9.1 square miles (23.6 km 2) (41.99%) is water. Nome has a subarctic climate ( Köppen Dfc ),…
