[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 29 (Wednesday, February 24, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1960-S1961]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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           TRIBUTE TO A TRUE AMERICAN HERO: MR. EDGAR NOLLNER

 Mr. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to 
Mr. Edgar Nollner Sr., a distinguished Alaskan and notable American 
hero who passed away recently at his home in Galena, Alaska at the age 
of 94.
  While Edgar Nollner is not a household name, many Americans may 
recall his heroic story of courage, teamwork and selflessness.
  In the winter of 1925, the Gold Rush town of Nome, Alaska was in the 
midst of a deadly diphtheria epidemic. Several cases of the contagious, 
bacterial disease had struck the small predominately Native population, 
some 1,400 of the towns residents.
  On January 21, an emergency Morse code message was transmitted from 
Nome pleading for a supply of diphtheria antitoxin serum. Twenty pounds 
of serum was found at an Anchorage hospital, but territorial governor 
Scot Bone would not risk flying the precious viles of serum from 
Anchorage to Fairbanks due to hazardous weather conditions. In fact, it 
is noted that the governor said he was willing to let the pilots risk 
their lives, but he would not risk the serum. Officials then determined 
that the serum would be shipped to Nenana via railroad; the serum 
arrived in the interior Alaska town six days after the initial plea was 
sent. It was from Nenana that the infamous 674 mile Serum Run Relay 
began, a race not for glory or riches, but a race to save the residents 
of Nome.
  Nome typically received most of its winter supplies by dog sled with 
deliveries taking a single musher 15 to 20 days to make a trip. Instead 
of a solo run, 20 dog-sled mushers, including Edgar Nollner, prepared 
to tackle the 70 degree below zero temperatures, frozen tundra and 
gale-force winds blowing up to 75 miles and hour. The mushers and dog 
teams were thus divided into shorter sprint segments to quicken the 
trip.
  Edgar Nollner was scheduled to run the 10th leg of the relay, 42 
miles, but his younger brother, George, begged him to let him drive the 
last 18 miles of his leg. Edgar ran at night, covering the 24 miles 
from Whiskey Point to Galena in 3 hours. He reported that winds were so 
fierce, causing so much blowing snow, that he could not see his dogs

[[Page S1961]]

or anything around him. His lead sled dog and trusted friend, Dixie, 
knew the trail and never faltered.
  The frozen serum arrived safely in Nome on February 2, 1925, in a 
mere 5 days and 7 hours; the epidemic was soon over. The brave men and 
scores of dogs were all hailed heroes. But for all the acclaim it 
received, the serum run marked the end of an era. With the increase of 
better airplanes, better schedules, and the insurgence of snow 
machines, the need for dog sleds was no longer essential. If the fear 
of diphtheria now seems antiquated, it is only because the Serum Run 
brought an end to the disease as a serious health threat in the United 
States.
  Edgar Nollner was just 20 years old when he left his trapper and 
fisherman lifestyle to selflessly join the others on the Serun Run. He 
was the son of a Missouri man who came to Alaska for the 1890's Gold 
Rush, and an Athabaskan mother, who made their home along the Yukon 
River in Galena. As the last surviving member of the serum-run relay 
mushers who risked their lives so that others may live, Edgar Nollner 
was truly a twentieth century hero.
  The townspeople in Galena are mourning Edgar's passing but his legacy 
remains. Records show that Mr. Nollner married twice, fathered 24 
children and has more than 200 grandchildren and great grandchildren. 
Mr. President, I believe there can be no greater gift.
  To honor these brave men, the famous Serum Run Relay was reenacted in 
1973, in an event know known as the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. The 
modern-day Iditarod covers more than 1,000 miles of frozen tundra from 
Anchorage to Nome and is now run annually in March.
  Edgar Nollner was both a hero and legend. I salute this rugged 
Alaskan who risked his life so that others could live--he epitomizes 
the true spirit of all Alaskans. His spirit, along with the 19 other 
brave Serum Run mushers will continue to run strong in every Iditarod. 
The final chapter of this dramatic saga is closed, but not 
forgotten.

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