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   The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Bernt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) ***