BERNT BALCHEN
A REGISTER OF HIS PAPERS
IN THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Prepared by
William Parham, 1980
Revised and expanded by
Michael Spangler
Manuscript Division
Library of Congress
Washington, D.C. 1996
***
ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
The papers of Bernt Balchen (1899-1973), aviator, explorer,
and air force officer, were given to the Library of Congress by
his wife, Audrey S. Balchen, in several installments between 1979
and 1996. Mrs. Paul Laune gave additional items in 1987.
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Bernt
Balchen is governed by the Copyright Law of the United States
(Title 17, U.S.C.).
Sound recordings have been transferred to the Library's Motion
Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division, where they
are identified as part of these papers. Most photographs have
been transferred to the Library's Prints and Photographs
Division, where they are also identified as part of the Balchen
Papers.
Restrictions apply governing the use, photoduplication, or
publication of items in this collection. Consult a reference
librarian in the Manuscript Division for information concerning
these restrictions.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Readers interested in consulting any of the division's
collections are advised to write or telephone the
Manuscript Reading Room at (202) 707-5387 before visiting.
Many processed and nearly all unprocessed collections are
stored off site, and advance notice is needed to retrieve
these items for research use.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Linear feet of shelf space occupied: 6
Approximate number of items: 2,200
***
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
1899, Oct. 23 Born, Tviet, Norway
1916 Degree in forestry engineering, Forestry School,
Moseby, Norway
1920-1921 Trained as a pilot in the Norwegian Royal Naval
Air Force, Horten, Norway
1924 Commissioned flight lieutenant, Norwegian Royal
Naval Air Force
1926 Mechanic for Roald Amundson's dirigible flight
over North Pole
Assisted Richard Evelyn Byrd in preparations for
flight over North Pole in trimotor Fokker
_Josephine Ford_
1927 Relief pilot, Richard Evelyn Byrd's transatlantic
flight in trimotor Fokker _America_; given
control of the plane when weather deteriorated
and landed successfully in waters off the French
coast
1929 Piloted first flight over the South Pole for
Richard Evelyn Byrd
1930 Granted U.S. citizenship by special act of
Congress
1933-1935 Chief pilot, Lincoln Ellsworth's antarctic
expedition
1935-1940 Chief inspector, Norwegian Airlines (Norske
luftfartselskap)
1941-1943 Appointed captain in U.S. Army Air Corps and
charged with constructing an air base in
Greenland to ferry bombers to England
1942 Promoted to colonel; awarded Distinguished Flying
Cross
1943-1945 Named chief of the Allied Air Transport Command
for Scandinavia and the USSR; actively supported
Norwegian underground resistance movement
1946-1948 President, Norwegian Airlines
1948 Returned to active duty with U.S. Air Force;
commanded the Tenth Search and Rescue Squadron,
Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska
1951-1956 Special assistant on Arctic affairs to the
secretary of the air force
1951 Project officer for construction of air base at
Thule, Greenland
1956 Retired from the U.S. Air Force
1958 Published autobiography _Come North With Me_ (New
York: E. P. Dutton and Co. 318 pp.)
1959 Consultant, General Precision Laboratory,
Pleasantville, N.Y.
1966 Consultant, Engineering and Program Development
Department, General Dynamics, New York
1973, Oct. 17 Died, Westchester County, N.Y.
***
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE
The papers of Bernt Balchen span the years 1917-1996, with
the bulk of the material concentrated in the period 1928-1980.
The collection is composed chiefly of Balchen's diaries and
logbooks, research papers of his wife, Audrey S. Balchen, and a
group of scrapbooks. Other Balchen papers are located at the
Albert F. Simpson Historical Research Center at Maxwell Air Force
Base, Montgomery, Alabama, and at the National Archives and
Records Administration, Washington, D.C. The collection is
arranged into three series: Notebooks, Research File, and
Scrapbooks. A large photograph file covering most of Balchen's
career was transferred to the Library's Prints and Photographs
Division.
Most significant in the Notebooks series are Balchen's
diaries and logbooks. The diaries date from the 1930s and 1940s
and include entries pertaining to Balchen's association with
Lincoln Ellsworth's Antarctic expedition, his work with the
Norwegian Airlines, and the construction of an air base on
Greenland during World War II. Many entries are in Norwegian.
Prominent among the logbooks is Balchen's log for the trimotor
Fokker _Josephine Ford_ for 1926. Balchen later cited his record
of the performance of the plane to dispute Richard Evelyn Byrd's
claim to have flown the same plane over the North Pole. The
Notebook series also includes autobiographical notes and writings
pertaining to his activities in support of the Norwegian
underground resistance during World War II.
The Research File contains papers generated by Audrey S.
Balchen primarily after the death of her husband. It documents
her administration of Balchen's papers and her research regarding
his career. The file includes photocopies of many of her
husband's papers and some original items scattered throughout the
file. Files relating to Richard E. Byrd's North Pole expedition
in 1926 contain correspondence with Byrd and Balchen's notes
regarding the expedition and their later relationship. Material
ancillary to the North Pole expedition is found in files
pertaining to Richard Montague and to Balchen's autobiography,
_Come North With Me_, which includes a photocopy of an early
unpublished version of his memoirs. Another important file, the
military file, contains photocopies of correspondence pertaining
to his military career.
Large scrapbooks in the collection cover the full extent of
Balchen's professional life. They are arranged in chronological
order and include newspaper clippings, printed matter, telegrams,
copies of correspondence, and memorabilia. A microfilm edition
of the scrapbooks is available at the National Archives and
Records Administration (Record Group 401).
***
DESCRIPTION OF SERIES
Container Nos. Series
1-5 Notebooks, 1917-1970, n.d.
Diaries, logbooks, notes, address books, and
technical data. Arranged alphabetically by topic
or type of material and chronologically therein.
5-11 Research File, 1926-1996, n.d.
Correspondence, notes, writings, clippings,
photographs, and printed matter. Arranged
alphabetically by topic or type of material and
chronologically thereunder.
OV 1-OV 10 Oversize, ca. 1920-1975.
Oversize scrapbooks containing clippings,
telegrams, correspondence, photographs, and
printed matter. Arranged chronologically.
***
CONTAINER LIST
Container Nos. Contents
NOTEBOOKS, 1917-1970, n.d.
Box 1 Address books, 1931-1932, 1944, n.d.
Autobiographical notes, 1925-1956, n.d.
Diaries
1922, 1932-1934 (4 folders)
Box 2 1935-1942 (7 folders)
Box 3 1944-1948 (4 folders)
Forestry notes, 1917-1923, n.d.
(1 folder)
Box 4 (1 folder)
Logbooks
_City of New York_ (bark), 1930
_Josephine Ford_ (airplane), 1926
Various airplanes, 1935-1936
Miscellaneous, 1917-1937, n.d. (2 folders)
Passports, 1933-1970
Box 5 Technical data, supply lists, and diagrams,
1928-1942, n.d.
World War II notes, operations in Scandinavia,
n.d.
RESEARCH FILE, 1926-1996, n.d.
Air Force Museum, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base,
Ohio, 1969-1981
Albert F. Simpson Historical Research Center,
Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama, 1974-1979
Apogee Intercept Defense System, 1965
Artwork by Balchen, 1952-1987, n.d.
Awards and memorials, 1953-1993, n.d. (2 folders)
"Bernt Balchen: An Outline of his Life," by Audrey
S. Balchen, 1977
Box 6 Biographical material, 1949-1973, n.d.
Byrd, Richard Evelyn
Antarctic Expedition I, 1930-1986, n.d.
North Pole flight
Clippings, 1926, 1960, 1971-1996, n.d.
(3 folders)
Correspondence and reports, 1926-1972, n.d.
(2 folders)
Printed matter, 1935-1969, n.d.
Transatlantic flight, 1927-1991, n.d.
Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame, Calgary, Alberta,
1973-1977
Center for Polar Archives, National Archives and
Records Service, Washington, D.C.
1972-1975
Box 7 1976-1981, n.d.
Clippings, 1931-1991, n.d. (3 folders)
Death
Correspondence, 1971-1980, n.d.
Encomiums, 1973-1975, n.d.
Funeral guests, 1973
Obituaries and tributes, 1973-1976, n.d.
Box 8 Disposition of Balchen's papers, 1974-1993, n.d.
Ellsworth, Lincoln, 1927-1990
General correspondence
Balchen, Audrey S., 1973-1993, n.d. (4 folders)
Balchen, Bernt, 1930-1973
Box 9 Innes-Taylor, Alan, 1972-1975, n.d.
Isakson, Evelyn Moore, 1972-1976, n.d. (2 folders)
Knight, Clayton and Katharine, re biography of
Balchen, 1949-1954, n.d.
Maps, 1932, 1963, n.d.
Memorabilia, 1954-1972, n.d.
Military file, 1927-1979, n.d. (2 folders)
Miscellany, 1931-1980, n.d.
Box 10 Montague, Richard, re his book _Oceans, Poles and
Airmen_ (1971), 1967-1981
Portrait, 1966, 1979, n.d.
Reynolds, George A., re "Carpetbaggers" mission,
1978-1982
Scandinavian Airline System, 1956, 1969-1975, n.d.
(2 folders)
Sled and tent designs, 1970-1971, n.d.
United States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs,
Colo., 1974-1979
University of Alaska, Fairbanks, Alaska,
1973-1981, n.d.
Victoria Films, Reston, Va., 1977-1983
Writings
Articles and speeches, 1946-1976, n.d.
Autobiography, _Come North With Me_ (1958)
Corrections, n.d.
Correspondence and notes, 1954-1990, n.d.
Box 11 Reviews, 1958-1980
Uncorrected galleys, 1958
Unpublished memoirs, 1926-1949 (4 folders)
OVERSIZE, ca. 1920-1975
Box OV 1 Scrapbooks
Ca. 1920-ca. 1929
Box OV 2 Ca. 1930-1947
Box OV 3 1947-1948
Box OV 4 1948-1951
Box OV 5 1951-1953
Box OV 6 1954-1957
Box OV 7 1956-1959
Box OV 8 1959-1964
Box OV 9 1965-1970
Box OV 10 1971-1975
*** Last updated 08/01/08 (mal) ***
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