87

Circa 1928-1930

SCRAPBOOK OF THE FIRST ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION

Descended in the family of Dr. Francis D. Coman, the expedition medical officer. Includes newspaper and magazine clippings, typed letters from the Canadian Westinghouse Company pertaining to communication transmission plans, greetings on "Byrd Antarctic Expedition Radiogram Received by The New York Times" letterhead, a handwritten letter "Best wishes from Little America F.D. Coman Winter night 1929" on "Little America - Antarctica Byrd Antarctic Expedition" letterhead, with coordinating envelope, and an October 31, 1928 typed letter "On board barque 'City of New York' Society Islands enroute to New Zealand ... I've had a great time, like it better than anything I've done so far, but miss some of my old boon companions…" on "Byrd Antarctic Expedition" letterhead, with coordinating envelope and a small black and white photo of Admiral Byrd and Dr. Coman affixed to the upper left corner of the letter. Contained in a red "Photographs" album 11.5" x 15.25".
Condition: Toning and bug damage, only half the album is used.

  • Provenance: Naval officer and explorer Richard E. Byrd's first expedition to the Antarctic ran from 1928 to 1930. The team established a base camp, named "Little America", on the Ross Ice Shelf, and from there explorations were made by snowshoe, dog sled, airplane and snowmobile. On November 28, 1929, Byrd and his crew made the first successful flight to the South Pole and back; Byrd was promoted to the rank of rear admiral in recognition of this accomplishment. Byrd would make additional expeditions to the Antarctic in 1934, 1939, 1946 and 1955.

    Francis D. Coman was born on October 31, 1895 in Wellsville, New York. Records indicate he was part of Lincoln Ellsworth's expedition to the Antarctic in the 1930s. He died January 28, 1952 in Fort Churchill, Manitoba, Canada.

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March 17, 2022 9:30 AM EDT
East Dennis, MA, US

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