Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr. (October 25, 1888 – March 11, 1957) was an American naval officer and explorer. He was a recipient of the
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...
, the highest honor for valor given by the United States, and was a pioneering American aviator, polar explorer, and organizer of polar logistics. Aircraft flights in which he served as a
navigator
A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation.Grierson, MikeAviation History—Demise of the Flight Navigator FrancoFlyers.org website, October 14, 2008. Retrieved August 31, 2014. The navigator's primar ...
and expedition leader crossed the Atlantic Ocean, a segment of the Arctic Ocean, and a segment of the
Antarctic Plateau
The Antarctic Plateau, Polar Plateau or King Haakon VII Plateau is a large area of East Antarctica which extends over a diameter of about , and includes the region of the geographic South Pole and the Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station. This h ...
. Byrd said that his expeditions had been the first to reach both the
North Pole
The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True North Pole to distinguish from the Mag ...
and the
South Pole
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole, Terrestrial South Pole or 90th Parallel South, is one of the two points where Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on Earth and lies antipod ...
by air. His belief to have reached the North Pole is disputed. He is also known for discovering
Mount Sidley
Mount Sidley is the highest dormant volcano in Antarctica, a member of the Volcanic Seven Summits, with a summit elevation of . It is a massive, mainly snow-covered shield volcano which is the highest of the five volcanic mountains that comprise t ...
, the largest dormant volcano in Antarctica.
Family
Ancestry
Byrd was born in
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is the most north western independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Frederick County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Winchester wit ...
, the son of Esther Bolling (Flood) and
Richard Evelyn Byrd Sr.
Richard Evelyn Byrd Sr. (August 13, 1860 – October 23, 1925) was a Virginia lawyer, politician and newspaperman.
Early and family life
He was the first son born to Jennie (Rivers) and her husband William Byrd, who had become an adjutant gener ...
He was a descendant of one of the
First Families of Virginia
First Families of Virginia (FFV) were those families in Colonial Virginia who were socially prominent and wealthy, but not necessarily the earliest settlers. They descended from English colonists who primarily settled at Jamestown, Williamsburg ...
. His ancestors include planter
John Rolfe
John Rolfe (1585 – March 1622) was one of the early English settlers of North America. He is credited with the first successful cultivation of tobacco as an export crop in the Colony of Virginia in 1611.
Biography
John Rolfe is believed ...
and his wife
Pocahontas
Pocahontas (, ; born Amonute, known as Matoaka, 1596 – March 1617) was a Native American woman, belonging to the Powhatan people, notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. She was the daughter of ...
,
William Byrd II
William Byrd II (March 28, 1674August 26, 1744) was an American planter, lawyer, surveyor, author, and a man of letters. Born in Colonial Virginia, he was educated in London, where he practiced law. Upon his father's death, he returned to Virgi ...
of
Westover Plantation
Westover Plantation is a historic colonial tidewater plantation located on the north bank of the James River in Charles City County, Virginia. Established in c. 1730–1750, it is the homestead of the Byrd family of Virginia. State Route 5, ...
, who established
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
, as well as
William Byrd I
William Byrd I (1652 – December 4, 1704) was an English-born Virginia colonist and politician. He came from Shadwell, London where his father John Bird (c. 1620–1677) was a goldsmith. His family's ancestral roots were in Cheshire.
Personal li ...
and
Robert "King" Carter
Robert "King" Carter (4 August 1663 – 4 August 1732) was a merchant, planter and powerful politician in colonial Virginia. Born in Lancaster County, Carter eventually became one of the richest men in the Thirteen Colonies. As President of t ...
, a colonial governor. He was also descended from
George Yeardley
Sir George Yeardley (1587 – November 13, 1627) was a planter and colonial governor of the colony of Virginia. He was also among the first slaveowners in Colonial America. A survivor of the Virginia Company of London's ill-fated Third Supply Mi ...
,
Francis Wyatt
Sir Francis Wyatt (1588–1644) was an English nobleman, knight, politician, and government official. He was the first English royal governor of Virginia. He sailed for America on 1 August 1621 on board the ''George''. He became governor shortl ...
and
Samuel Argall
Sir Samuel Argall (1572 or 1580 – 24 January 1626) was an English adventurer and naval officer.
As a sea captain, in 1609, Argall was the first to determine a shorter northern route from England across the Atlantic Ocean to the new English c ...
. He was the brother of
Virginia Governor
The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia serves as the head of government of Virginia for a four-year term. The incumbent, Glenn Youngkin, was sworn in on January 15, 2022.
Oath of office
On inauguration day, the Governor-elect takes th ...
and
U.S. Senator
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
Harry F. Byrd
Harry Flood Byrd Sr. (June 10, 1887 – October 20, 1966) was an American newspaper publisher, politician, and leader of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party in Virginia for four decades as head of a political faction that becam ...
, a dominant figure in the
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
from the 1920s until the 1960s; their father served as Speaker of the
Virginia House of Delegates
The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two parts of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...
for a time.
Marriage
On January 20, 1915, Richard married Marie Donaldson Ames (d. 1974). He would later name a region of Antarctic land he discovered "
Marie Byrd Land
Marie Byrd Land (MBL) is an unclaimed region of Antarctica. With an area of , it is the largest unclaimed territory on Earth. It was named after the wife of American naval officer Richard E. Byrd, who explored the region in the early 20th centur ...
" after her, and a mountain range, the
Ames Range
The Ames Range is an Antarctic range of snow-covered, flat-topped, steep-sided mountains, extending in a N-S direction for 32 km (20 mi) and forming a right angle with the eastern end of the Flood Range in Marie Byrd Land.
They were disc ...
, after her father. They had four children –
Richard Evelyn Byrd III
Richard Evelyn Byrd III (February 19, 1920 – c. October 3, 1988), usually referred to as Richard E. Byrd Jr., was a United States naval officer, Antarctic explorer, and the son of Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd.
Biography
Early life
Richard Evel ...
, Evelyn Bolling Byrd Clarke, Katharine Agnes Byrd Breyer, and Helen Byrd Stabler. By late 1924, the Byrd family moved into a large brownstone house at 9 Brimmer Street in Boston's fashionable Beacon Hill neighborhood that had been purchased by Marie's father, a wealthy industrialist.
Personal life
Byrd was friends with
Edsel Ford
Edsel Bryant Ford (November 6, 1893 – May 26, 1943) was an American business executive and philanthropist who was the son of pioneering industrialist Henry Ford and his wife, Clara Jane Bryant Ford. He was the president of Ford Motor Company f ...
and his father
Henry Ford
Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American industrialist, business magnate, founder of the Ford Motor Company, and chief developer of the assembly line technique of mass production. By creating the first automobile that mi ...
, whose admiration of his polar exploits helped to gain Byrd sponsorship and financing for his various polar expeditions from the Ford Motor Company.
Education and early naval career
Byrd attended the
Virginia Military Institute
la, Consilio et Animis (on seal)
, mottoeng = "In peace a glorious asset, In war a tower of strength""By courage and wisdom" (on seal)
, established =
, type = Public senior military college
, accreditation = SACS
, endowment = $696.8 mill ...
for two years and transferred to the
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
, before financial circumstances inspired his starting over and taking an appointment to the
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...
, where he was appointed as a
midshipman
A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...
on May 28, 1908. While at the Naval Academy, he suffered two injuries to his right ankle (one was by playing football and the other was while dismounting gymnastic rings during a competition). Although he was allowed to remain at the academy, his injuries eventually led to his forced retirement from the Navy in 1916.
On June 8, 1912, Byrd graduated from the Naval Academy and was commissioned an
ensign
An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...
in the United States Navy. On July 14, 1912, he was assigned to the
battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of large caliber guns. It dominated naval warfare in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The term ''battleship'' came into use in the late 1880s to describe a type of ...
USS ''Wyoming''. During service in the Caribbean Sea, Byrd received his first letter of commendation, and later a
Silver Lifesaving Medal
The Gold Lifesaving Medal and Silver Lifesaving Medal are U.S. decorations issued by the United States Coast Guard. The awards were established by Act of Congress, 20 June 1874; later authorized by . These decorations are two of the oldest med ...
, for twice plunging fully clothed to the rescue of a sailor who had fallen overboard. In April 1914, he transferred to the
armored cruiser
The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was designed like other types of cruisers to operate as a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a battleship and fast eno ...
gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.
History Pre-steam ...
USS ''Dolphin'', which also served as the yacht of the Secretary of the Navy. This assignment brought Byrd into contact with high-ranking officials and dignitaries, including then
Assistant Secretary of the Navy
Assistant Secretary of the Navy (ASN) is the title given to certain civilian senior officials in the United States Department of the Navy.
From 1861 to 1954, the Assistant Secretary of the Navy was the second-highest civilian office in the Depar ...
Franklin Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
. He was promoted to the rank of
lieutenant (junior grade)
Lieutenant junior grade is a junior commissioned officer rank used in a number of navies.
United States
Lieutenant (junior grade), commonly abbreviated as LTJG or, historically, Lt. (j.g.) (as well as variants of both abbreviations), is ...
on June 8, 1915. During Byrd's assignment to ''Dolphin'', she was commanded by future Fleet Admiral
William D. Leahy
William Daniel Leahy () (May 6, 1875 – July 20, 1959) was an American naval officer who served as the most senior United States military officer on active duty during World War II. He held multiple titles and was at the center of all major ...
, who served as chief of staff to President
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. Byrd's last assignment before forced retirement was to the presidential yacht USS ''Mayflower''.
On March 15, 1916, Byrd, much to his frustration, was medically retired on three-quarters pay for an ankle injury he suffered on board ''Mayflower''. Shortly thereafter, on December 14, 1916, he was assigned as the inspector and instructor for the
Rhode Island Naval Militia The Rhode Island Naval Militia is the inactive naval militia of Rhode Island. Along with the Rhode Island National Guard and the Rhode Island State Guard, it is one of the military forces available to the Governor of Rhode Island.
History
The Rhode ...
in
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...
. While serving in this position, he was commended by Brigadier General Charles W. Abbot, the adjutant general of Rhode Island, for making great strides in improving the efficiency of the militia, and on April 25, 1928, was promoted to captain by act of the Rhode Island General Assembly in recognition of his flight to the North Pole in 1926.
First World War
Shortly after the entry of the United States into the First World War in April 1917, Byrd oversaw the mobilization of the Rhode Island Naval Militia. He was then recalled to active duty and was assigned to the Office of Naval Operations and served in a desk job as secretary and organizer of the Navy Department Commission on Training Camps. In the autumn of 1917, he was sent to naval aviation school at
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal ...
. He qualified as a naval aviator (number 608) in June 1918. He then commanded naval air forces at
Naval Air Station Halifax Naval Air Station Halifax, also NAS Halifax, was a United States Navy Naval Air Station located in Eastern Passage, Nova Scotia, Canada.
History
NAS Halifax was established in August 1918 by Richard E. Byrd in the months following the United Sta ...
in
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
, Canada, from July 1918 until the armistice in November. In that assignment, he was promoted to the permanent rank of lieutenant and the temporary rank of lieutenant commander.
For his services during the war, he received a letter of commendation from Secretary of the Navy
Josephus Daniels
Josephus Daniels (May 18, 1862 – January 15, 1948) was an American newspaper editor and publisher from the 1880s until his death, who controlled Raleigh's ''News & Observer'', at the time North Carolina's largest newspaper, for decades. A D ...
, which was after World War II converted to a
Navy Commendation Medal
The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fifth ...
.
After the war
After the war, Byrd volunteered to be a crew member in the U.S. Navy's 1919 aerial
transatlantic
Transatlantic, Trans-Atlantic or TransAtlantic may refer to:
Film
* Transatlantic Pictures, a film production company from 1948 to 1950
* Transatlantic Enterprises, an American production company in the late 1970s
* ''Transatlantic'' (1931 film), ...
crossing. This mission was historic, as it was the first time the Atlantic Ocean was crossed by an aircraft. It was decided that only men who had not served overseas would be allowed on the mission. Unfortunately for Byrd, his tour of duty in Newfoundland was considered overseas service. Byrd was, however, able to make a valuable contribution, as his expertise in aerial navigation resulted in his appointment to plan the flight path of the mission. Of the three
flying boats
A flying boat is a type of fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in that a flying boat's fuselage is purpose-designed for floatation and contains a hull, while floatplanes rely on fusela ...
(NC-1, NC-3, and NC-4) that started from Newfoundland, only Lieutenant Commander Albert Read's
NC-4
The NC-4 was a Curtiss NC flying boat that was the first aircraft to fly across the Atlantic Ocean, albeit not non-stop. The NC designation was derived from the collaborative efforts of the Navy (N) and Curtiss (C). The NC series flying boats w ...
completed the trip on May 18, 1919, achieving the first transatlantic flight.
In 1921, Byrd volunteered to attempt a solo nonstop crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, prefiguring
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
's historic flight by six years. Byrd's ambition was dashed by then acting
Secretary of the Navy
The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense.
By law, the se ...
Theodore Roosevelt, Jr.
Theodore Roosevelt III ( ), often known as Theodore Jr.Morris, Edmund (1979). ''The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt''. index.While it was President Theodore Roosevelt who was legally named Theodore Roosevelt Jr., the President's fame made it simple ...
, who felt the risks outweighed the potential rewards. Byrd was then assigned to the ill-fated dirigible ''
ZR-2
The ''R.38'' class (also known as the ''A'' class) of rigid airships was designed for Britain's Royal Navy during the final months of the First World War, intended for long-range patrol duties over the North Sea. Four similar airships were o ...
'' (formerly known by the British designation of ''R-38''). As fate would have it, Byrd missed his train to take him to the airship on August 24, 1921. The airship broke apart in midair, killing 44 of 49 crew members on board. Byrd lost several friends in the accident, and was involved in the subsequent recovery operations and investigation. The accident affected him deeply and inspired him to make safety a top priority in all of his future expeditions.
Due to reductions in the Navy after the First World War, Byrd reverted to the rank of lieutenant at the end of 1921. During the summer of 1923, then-Lieutenant Byrd and a group of volunteer Navy veterans of the First World War helped found the Naval Reserve Air Station (NRAS) at Squantum Point near Boston, using an unused First World War seaplane hangar which had remained more-or-less intact after the
Victory Destroyer Plant
The Victory Destroyer Plant was a United States Naval Shipbuilding yard operational from 1918 to 1920 in Quincy, Massachusetts. It was then reused as a civil airport, and later Naval Air Station Squantum. It was owned by the Bethlehem Shipbuildin ...
shipyard was built on the site. NRAS Squantum was commissioned on August 15, 1923, and is considered to have been the first air base in the Naval Reserve program.
Byrd commanded the aviation unit of the arctic expedition to North Greenland led by
Donald B. MacMillan
Donald Baxter MacMillan (November 10, 1874 – September 7, 1970) was an American explorer, sailor, researcher and lecturer who made over 30 expeditions to the Arctic during his 46-year career.
He pioneered the use of radios, airplanes, an ...
from June to October 1925. During this expedition, Byrd made the acquaintance of Navy Chief Aviation Pilot
Floyd Bennett
Floyd Bennett (October 25, 1890 – April 25, 1928) was a United States Naval Aviator, along with then USN Commander Richard E. Byrd, to have made the first flight to the North Pole in May 1926. However, their claim to have reached the pole is di ...
and Norwegian pilot
Bernt Balchen
Bernt Balchen (23 October 1899 – 17 October 1973) was a Norwegian pioneer polar aviator, navigator, aircraft mechanical engineer and military leader. A Norwegian native, he later became an American citizen and was a recipient of the Distingu ...
. Bennett served as his pilot in his flight to the North Pole the next year. Balchen, whose knowledge of Arctic flight operations proved invaluable, was the primary pilot on Byrd's flight to the South Pole in 1929.
Floyd Bennett
Floyd Bennett (October 25, 1890 – April 25, 1928) was a United States Naval Aviator, along with then USN Commander Richard E. Byrd, to have made the first flight to the North Pole in May 1926. However, their claim to have reached the pole is di ...
attempted a flight over the North Pole in a Fokker F.VIIa/3m tri-motor monoplane named ''Josephine Ford'' after the daughter of
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...
president
Edsel Ford
Edsel Bryant Ford (November 6, 1893 – May 26, 1943) was an American business executive and philanthropist who was the son of pioneering industrialist Henry Ford and his wife, Clara Jane Bryant Ford. He was the president of Ford Motor Company f ...
, who helped finance the expedition. The flight left from
Spitsbergen
Spitsbergen (; formerly known as West Spitsbergen; Norwegian: ''Vest Spitsbergen'' or ''Vestspitsbergen'' , also sometimes spelled Spitzbergen) is the largest and the only permanently populated island of the Svalbard archipelago in northern Norw ...
(Svalbard) and returned to its takeoff airfield, lasting 15 hours and 57 minutes, including 13 minutes spent circling at their
Farthest North
Farthest North describes the most northerly latitude reached by explorers, before the first successful expedition to the North Pole rendered the expression obsolete. The Arctic polar regions are much more accessible than those of the Antarctic, as ...
. Byrd and Bennett said they reached the North Pole, a distance of 1,535 miles (1,335
nautical mile
A nautical mile is a unit of length used in air, marine, and space navigation, and for the definition of territorial waters. Historically, it was defined as the meridian arc length corresponding to one minute ( of a degree) of latitude. Today ...
s).
When he returned to the United States from the Arctic, Byrd became a national hero. Congress passed a special act on December 21, 1926, promoting him to the rank of commander and awarding both Floyd Bennett and him the
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...
. Bennett was promoted to the
warrant officer
Warrant officer (WO) is a rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ranks, the mos ...
rank of machinist. Byrd and Bennett were presented with
Tiffany Cross
Tiffany D. Cross (born February 6, 1979) is an American television personality, political analyst, and author. From 2020 to 2022, she was the host of ''The Cross Connection'', a Saturday morning MSNBC show.
Early life and education
Cross was ...
versions of the Medal of Honor on March 5, 1927, at the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
by President
Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States from 1923 to 1929. Born in Vermont, Coolidge was a History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer ...
.
Controversy
Since 1926, doubts have been raised, defenses made, and heated controversy arose over whether or not Byrd actually reached the North Pole. In 1958,
Norwegian-American
Norwegian Americans ( nb, Norskamerikanere, nn, Norskamerikanarar) are Americans with ancestral roots in Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the latter half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the ...
aviator and explorer
Bernt Balchen
Bernt Balchen (23 October 1899 – 17 October 1973) was a Norwegian pioneer polar aviator, navigator, aircraft mechanical engineer and military leader. A Norwegian native, he later became an American citizen and was a recipient of the Distingu ...
cast doubt on Byrd's statement on the basis of his knowledge of the airplane's speed. Balchen said that Bennett had confessed to him months after the flight that Byrd and he had not reached the pole. Bennett died on April 25, 1928, during a flight to rescue downed aviators in Greenland. Bennett, though, had started a memoir, given numerous interviews, and wrote an article for an aviation magazine about the flight before his death that all confirmed Byrd's version of the flight.
The 1996 release of Byrd's diary of the May 9, 1926, flight revealed erased (but still legible) sextant sights that sharply differ from Byrd's later June 22 typewritten official report to the National Geographic Society. Byrd took a sextant reading of the Sun at 7:07:10 GCT. His erased diary record shows the apparent (observed) solar altitude to have been 19°25'30", while his later official typescript reports the same 7:07:10 apparent solar altitude to have been 18°18'18". On the basis of this and other data in the diary,
Dennis Rawlins
Dennis Rawlins (born 1937) is an American astronomer and historian who has acquired the reputation of skeptic primarily with respect to historical claims connected to astronomical considerations. He is known to the public mostly from media cover ...
concluded that Byrd steered accurately, and flew about 80% of the distance to the pole before turning back because of an engine oil leak, but later falsified his official report to support his statement of reaching the pole.
Accepting that the conflicting data in the typed report's flight times indeed require both northward and southward
ground speed
Ground speed is the horizontal speed of an aircraft relative to the Earth’s surface. It is vital for accurate navigation that the pilot has an estimate of the ground speed that will be achieved during each leg of a flight.
An aircraft diving ve ...
s greater than the flight's 85-mph
airspeed
In aviation, airspeed is the speed of an aircraft relative to the air. Among the common conventions for qualifying airspeed are:
* Indicated airspeed ("IAS"), what is read on an airspeed gauge connected to a Pitot-static system;
* Calibrated a ...
, a Byrd defender posits a westerly-moving
anticyclone
An anticyclone is a weather phenomenon defined as a large-scale circulation of winds around a central region of high atmospheric pressure, clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and counterclockwise in the Southern Hemisphere as viewed from abov ...
that tailwind-boosted Byrd's ground speed on both outward and inward legs, allowing the distance said to be covered in the time stated (the theory is based on rejecting handwritten sextant data in favor of typewritten alleged dead-reckoning data). This suggestion has been challenged by Dennis Rawlins, who adds that the sextant data in the long-unavailable original official typewritten report are all expressed to 1 second, a precision not possible on Navy sextants of 1926 and not the precision of the sextant data in Byrd's diary for 1925 or the 1926 flight, which was normal (half or quarter of a minute of arc).
If Byrd and Bennett did not reach the North Pole, then the first flight over the pole occurred a few days later, on May 12, 1926, with the flight of the
airship
An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air.
In early ...
''
Norge
Norge is Norwegian (bokmål), Danish and Swedish for Norway.
It may also refer to:
People
* Kaare Norge (born 1963), Danish guitarist
* Norge Luis Vera (born 1971), Cuban baseball player
Places
* 11871 Norge, asteroid
Toponyms:
*Norge, Oklah ...
'' that flew from Spitsbergen (Svalbard) to
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
nonstop with a crew including
Roald Amundsen
Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen (, ; ; 16 July 1872 – ) was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He was a key figure of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.
Born in Borge, Østfold, Norway, Amundsen bega ...
,
Umberto Nobile
Umberto Nobile (; 21 January 1885 – 30 July 1978) was an Italian aviator, aeronautical engineer and Arctic explorer.
Nobile was a developer and promoter of semi-rigid airships in the years between the two World Wars. He is primarily remembe ...
,
Oscar Wisting
Oscar Adolf Wisting (6 June 1871 – 5 December 1936) was a Norwegian Naval officer and polar explorer. Together with Roald Amundsen he was the first person to reach both the North and South Poles.
Biography
Oscar Wisting was born in ...
, and
Lincoln Ellsworth
Lincoln Ellsworth (May 12, 1880 – May 26, 1951) was a polar explorer from the United States and a major benefactor of the American Museum of Natural History.
Biography
Lincoln Ellsworth was born on May 12, 1880, to James Ellsworth and Eva F ...
.
1927 Trans-Atlantic flight
In 1927, Byrd announced he had the backing of the
American Trans-Oceanic Company
American Trans-Oceanic Company was an airline based in the United States.
History
Rodman Wanamaker published a letter in 1916 stating the founding of the American Trans-Oceanic Company to capitalize on the 1914 effort to fly across the Atlan ...
, which had been established in 1914 by department-store magnate
Rodman Wanamaker
Lewis Rodman Wanamaker (February 13, 1863 – March 9, 1928) was an American businessman and heir to the Wanamaker's department store fortune. In addition to operating stores in Philadelphia, New York City, and Paris, he was a patron of the arts ...
for the purpose of building aircraft to complete nonstop flights across the Atlantic Ocean. Byrd was one of several aviators who attempted to win the
Orteig Prize
The Orteig Prize was a reward offered to the first Allied aviator(s) to fly non-stop from New York City to Paris or vice versa.Bak. Pages 28 and 29.
Several famous aviators made unsuccessful attempts at the New York–Paris flight before the rela ...
in 1927 for making the first nonstop flight between the United States and France.
Once again, Byrd named Floyd Bennett as his chief pilot, with Norwegian Bernt Balchen,
Bert Acosta
Bertrand Blanchard Acosta (January 1, 1895 – September 1, 1954) was a record-setting aviator and test pilot. He and Clarence D. Chamberlin set an endurance record of 51 hours, 11 minutes, and 25 seconds in the air. He later flew in the Spa ...
, and Lieutenant George Noville as other crewmembers. During a practice takeoff with
Anthony Fokker
Anton Herman Gerard "Anthony" Fokker (6 April 1890 – 23 December 1939) was a Dutch aviation pioneer, aviation entrepreneur, aircraft designer, and aircraft manufacturer. He produced fighter aircraft in Germany during the First World War such ...
at the controls and Bennett in the co-pilot seat, the
Fokker Trimotor
The Fokker F.VII, also known as the Fokker Trimotor, was an airliner produced in the 1920s by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker, Fokker's American subsidiary Atlantic Aircraft Corporation, and other companies under licence.
Design and dev ...
airplane, ''
America
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
'', crashed, severely injuring Bennett and slightly injuring Byrd. As the plane was being repaired,
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
won the prize by completing his historic flight on May 21, 1927. (Coincidentally, in 1925, then Army Air Service Reserve Corps Lieutenant Charles Lindbergh had applied to serve as a pilot on Byrd's North Pole expedition, but apparently, his bid came too late.)
Byrd continued with his quest to cross the Atlantic nonstop, naming Balchen to replace Bennett, who had not yet fully recovered from his injuries, as chief pilot. Byrd, Balchen, Acosta, and Noville flew from Roosevelt Field,
East Garden City, New York
East Garden City is a hamlet and former census-designated place (CDP) in the northeast part of the Town of Hempstead, in the central part of Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States, along the Hempstead/North Hempstead town line. ...
, in the ''America'' on June 29, 1927. On board was mail from the US Postal Service to demonstrate the practicality of aircraft. Arriving over France the next day, they were prevented from landing in Paris by cloud cover; they returned to the coast of
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
and crash-landed near the beach at Ver-sur-Mer (known as
Gold Beach
Gold, commonly known as Gold Beach, was the code name for one of the five areas of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during the Second World War. Gold, the central of the five areas, was lo ...
during the
Normandy Invasion
Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norma ...
on June 6, 1944) without fatalities on July 1, 1927. In France, Byrd and his crew were received as heroes and Byrd was invested as an Officer of the French
Legion of Honor
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...
by Prime Minister
Raymond Poincare
Raymond is a male given name. It was borrowed into English from French (older French spellings were Reimund and Raimund, whereas the modern English and French spellings are identical). It originated as the Germanic ᚱᚨᚷᛁᚾᛗᚢᚾᛞ ( ...
on July 6.
After their return to the United States, an elaborate dinner in their honor was held in New York City on July 19. Byrd and Noville were awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross by Secretary of the Navy
Curtis D. Wilbur
Curtis Dwight Wilbur (May 10, 1867 – September 8, 1954) was an American lawyer, California state judge, 43rd United States Secretary of the Navy and a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Ear ...
at the dinner. Acosta and Balchen did not receive the Distinguished Flying Cross because, at that time, it could only be awarded to members of the armed services and not to civilians.
Byrd wrote an article for the August 1927 edition of ''Popular Science Monthly'' in which he accurately predicted that while specially modified aircraft with one to three crewmen would fly the Atlantic nonstop, another 20 years were needed before it would be realized on a commercial scale.
Antarctic
The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and other ...
involving two ships and three airplanes: Byrd's flagship was the ''City of New York'' (a Norwegian sealing ship previously named ''Samson'' that had come into fame as a ship some said was in the vicinity of the ''Titanic'' when the latter was sinking) and the ''Eleanor Bolling'' (named after Byrd's mother); a
Ford Trimotor
The Ford Trimotor (also called the "Tri-Motor", and nicknamed the "Tin Goose") is an American three-engined transport aircraft. Production started in 1925 by the companies of Henry Ford and ended on June 7, 1933, after 199 had been made. It w ...
airplane called the ''
Floyd Bennett
Floyd Bennett (October 25, 1890 – April 25, 1928) was a United States Naval Aviator, along with then USN Commander Richard E. Byrd, to have made the first flight to the North Pole in May 1926. However, their claim to have reached the pole is di ...
'' (named after the recently deceased pilot of Byrd's previous expeditions) flown by
Dean Smith
Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hi ...
; a
Fairchild Fairchild may refer to:
Organizations
* Fairchild Aerial Surveys, operated in cooperation with a subsidiary of Fairey Aviation Company
* Fairchild Camera and Instrument
* List of Sherman Fairchild companies, "Fairchild" companies
* Fairchild Fash ...
FC-2W2, NX8006, built 1928, named ''Stars And Stripes'' (now displayed at the
National Air and Space Museum
The National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, also called the Air and Space Museum, is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States.
Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, it opened its main building on the Nat ...
's
Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center
The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, also called the Udvar-Hazy Center, is the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (NASM)'s annex at Washington Dulles International Airport in the Chantilly area of Fairfax County, Virginia. It holds numerous e ...
); and a
Fokker Super Universal
]
The Fokker Super Universal was an airliner produced in the United States in the late 1920s, an enlarged and improved version of the Fokker Universal, fitted with cantilever wings and an enclosed cockpit. It was subsequently also manufactured und ...
Ross Ice Shelf
The Ross Ice Shelf is the largest ice shelf of Antarctica (, an area of roughly and about across: about the size of France). It is several hundred metres thick. The nearly vertical ice front to the open sea is more than long, and between hi ...
, and scientific expeditions by
snowshoe
Snowshoes are specialized outdoor gear for walking over snow. Their large footprint spreads the user's weight out and allows them to travel largely on top of rather than through snow. Adjustable bindings attach them to appropriate winter footwe ...
,
dog sled
A dog sled or dog sleigh is a sled pulled by one or more sled dogs used to travel over ice and through snow. Numerous types of sleds are used, depending on their function. They can be used for dog sled racing. Traditionally in Greenland and the e ...
,
snowmobile
A snowmobile, also known as a Ski-Doo, snowmachine, sled, motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, or snow scooter, is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. It is designed to be operated on snow and ice and does not ...
, and
airplane
An airplane or aeroplane (informally plane) is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and wing configurations. The broad spe ...
began. To increase the interest of youth in arctic exploration, a 19-year-old American
Boy Scout
A Scout (in some countries a Boy Scout, Girl Scout, or Pathfinder) is a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement. Because of the large age and development span, many Scouting associations have split ...
,
Paul Allman Siple Paul Allman Siple (December 18, 1908 – November 25, 1968) was an American Antarctic explorer and geographer who took part in six Antarctic expeditions, including the two Byrd expeditions of 1928–1930 and 1933–1935, representing the Boy Scouts ...
, was chosen to accompany the expedition. Siple went on to earn an doctorate and was probably the only person, other than Byrd himself, to participate in all five of Byrd's Antarctic expeditions.
Photographic expeditions and geological surveys were undertaken for the duration of that summer, and constant radio communications were maintained with the outside world. After their first winter, their expeditions were resumed, and on November 28, 1929, the first flight to the South Pole and back was launched. Byrd, along with pilot
Bernt Balchen
Bernt Balchen (23 October 1899 – 17 October 1973) was a Norwegian pioneer polar aviator, navigator, aircraft mechanical engineer and military leader. A Norwegian native, he later became an American citizen and was a recipient of the Distingu ...
, co-pilot/radioman
Harold June
Harold Irving June (1895–1962) was a machinist, an aviator, a test pilot, and an explorer in Antarctica. He is best known for his 1928–1930 service in the first Antarctic expedition of Admiral Richard E. Byrd. Sitting in the co-pilot's seat ...
, and photographer
Ashley McKinley
Ashley Chadbourne McKinley (June 23, 1896 – February 11, 1970) was an accomplished United States, American Aerial photography, aerial photographer and Colonel (United States), colonel in the U.S. Army Air Corps who helped pioneer aviation at subz ...
, flew the ''Floyd Bennett'' to the South Pole and back in 18 hours, 41 minutes. They had difficulty gaining enough altitude, and they had to dump empty gas tanks, as well as their emergency supplies, to achieve the altitude of the Polar Plateau, but they were ultimately successful.
As a result of his achievement, Byrd was promoted to the rank of
rear admiral
Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...
by a special act of Congress on December 21, 1929. As he was only 41 years old at the time, this promotion made Byrd the youngest admiral in the history of the United States Navy. By way of comparison, none of his Annapolis classmates became admirals until 1942, after 30 years of commissioned service. He is one of only three persons, one being Admiral
David Dixon Porter
David Dixon Porter (June 8, 1813 – February 13, 1891) was a United States Navy admiral and a member of one of the most distinguished families in the history of the U.S. Navy. Promoted as the second U.S. Navy officer ever to attain the rank o ...
and the other being Arctic explorer
Donald Baxter MacMillan
Donald Baxter MacMillan (November 10, 1874 – September 7, 1970) was an American explorer, sailor, researcher and lecturer who made over 30 expeditions to the Arctic during his 46-year career.
He pioneered the use of radios, airplanes, a ...
, to have been promoted to the rank of rear admiral in the United States Navy without having first held the rank of captain.
After a further summer of exploration, the expedition returned to North America on June 18, 1930. Unlike the 1926 flight, this expedition was honored with the gold medal of the
American Geographical Society
The American Geographical Society (AGS) is an organization of professional geographers, founded in 1851 in New York City. Most fellows of the society are Americans, but among them have always been a significant number of fellows from around the ...
. This was also seen in the film ''
With Byrd at the South Pole
''With Byrd at the South Pole'' (1930) is a documentary film about Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd and his 1st quest to the South Pole beginning at the Little America-Exploration Base. The film's soundtrack consists mostly of music and sound effect ...
'' (1930), which covered his trip there.
Byrd, by then an internationally recognized, pioneering American polar explorer and aviator, served for a time as Honorary National President (1931–1935) of
Pi Gamma Mu
Pi Gamma Mu or (from Πολιτικές Γνώσεως Μάθεται) is the oldest and preeminent honor society in the social sciences. It is also the only interdisciplinary social science honor society. It serves the various social science di ...
, the international honor society in the social sciences. He carried the society's flag during his first Antarctic expedition to dramatize the spirit of adventure into the unknown, characterizing both the natural and social sciences.
To finance and gain both political and public support for his expeditions, Byrd actively cultivated relationships with many powerful individuals, including President Franklin Roosevelt, Henry Ford, Edsel Ford,
John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
John Davison Rockefeller Jr. (January 29, 1874 – May 11, 1960) was an American financier and philanthropist, and the only son of Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller.
He was involved in the development of the vast office complex in ...
, and
Vincent Astor
William Vincent Astor (November 15, 1891 – February 3, 1959) was an American businessman, philanthropist, and member of the prominent Astor family.
Early life
Called Vincent, he was born in New York City on November 15, 1891. Astor was the eld ...
. As a token of his gratitude, Byrd named geographic features in the Antarctic after his supporters.
Second Antarctic expedition (1934)
On his second expedition in 1934, Byrd spent five winter months alone operating a
meteorological
Meteorology is a branch of the atmospheric sciences (which include atmospheric chemistry and physics) with a major focus on weather forecasting. The study of meteorology dates back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not ...
station, Advance Base, from which he narrowly escaped with his life after suffering
carbon monoxide
Carbon monoxide (chemical formula CO) is a colorless, poisonous, odorless, tasteless, flammable gas that is slightly less dense than air. Carbon monoxide consists of one carbon atom and one oxygen atom connected by a triple bond. It is the simple ...
poisoning from a poorly ventilated stove. Unusual radio transmissions from Byrd finally began to alarm the men at the base camp, who then attempted to go to Advance Base. The first two trips were failures due to darkness, snow, and mechanical troubles. Finally,
Thomas Poulter
Thomas Charles Poulter (March 3, 1897 – June 4, 1978) was an American scientist and antarctic explorer who worked at the Armour Institute of Technology and SRI International, where he was an associate director.
Early career
Poulter taught p ...
,
E. J. Demas
E is the fifth letter of the Latin alphabet.
E or e may also refer to:
Commerce and transportation
* €, the symbol for the euro, the European Union's standard currency unit
* ℮, the estimated sign, an EU symbol indicating that the weigh ...
, and Amory Waite arrived at Advance Base, where they found Byrd in poor physical health. The men remained at Advance Base until October 12. when an airplane from the base camp picked up Dr. Poulter and Byrd. The rest of the men returned to base camp with the tractor. This expedition is described by Byrd in his autobiography ''Alone''. It is also commemorated in a U.S. postage stamp issued at the time, and a considerable amount of mail using it was sent from Byrd's base at Little America (exploration base), Little America.
A CBS radio station, KFZ, was set up on the base camp ship, the ''Bear of Oakland'' and ''The Adventures of Admiral Byrd'' program was short-waved to Buenos Aires, then relayed to New York.
In late 1938, Byrd visited Hamburg, and was invited to participate in the 1938/1939 German " Neuschwabenland" Antarctic Expedition, but declined. (Although Germany was not at war with the United States at this time, Adolf Hitler had been serving as Führer of the German Reich since 1934, and invaded Poland the next year.)
Antarctic Service Expedition (1939–1940)
Byrd's third expedition was the first one financed and conducted by the United States government. The project included extensive studies of geology, biology, meteorology, and exploration. The innovative
Antarctic Snow Cruiser
The Antarctic Snow Cruiser was a vehicle designed from 1937 to 1939 under the direction of Thomas Poulter, intended to facilitate transport in Antarctica during the United States Antarctic Service Expedition (1939–41). The Snow Cruiser was a ...
was brought with the expedition, but broke down shortly after arriving.
Within a few months, in March 1940, Byrd was recalled to active duty in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations. The expedition continued in Antarctica without him until the last of its participants left Antarctica on March 22, 1941.
World War II
As a senior officer in the United States Navy, Byrd was recalled on active duty on March 26, 1942, and served as the confidential advisor to Admiral
Ernest J. King
Ernest Joseph King (23 November 1878 – 25 June 1956) was an American naval officer who served as Commander in Chief, United States Fleet (COMINCH) and Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) during World War II. As COMINCH-CNO, he directed the Un ...
. From 1942 to 1945 he served on the South Pacific Island Base Inspection Board, which toured bases in the South Pacific in May and June 1942. The report submitted by the Board describes conditions found at each base and analyses, lessons learned in planning and equipping these bases. The report contains recommendations applicable to the individual bases and others designed to be helpful in the planning of future advanced bases. On 1 September 1943, in compliance with a series of letters from the President to the Secretary of the Navy, the Commander-in-Chief United States Fleet and Chief of Naval Operations ordered Byrd to assume direction of a survey and "investigation of certain islands in the East and South Pacific in connection with national defense and commercial air bases and routes." The members of the Special Navy Mission sailed from Balboa, Canal Zone, on
USS Concord (CL-10)
USS ''Concord'' (CL-10) was an light cruiser, originally classified as a scout cruiser, of the United States Navy. She was the fourth Navy ship named for the town of Concord, Massachusetts, the site of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, fi ...
, Captain Irving Reynold Chambers, commanding, in September 1943. A large explosion at sea on October 7, 1943 took the lives of 24 Concord crewmen, including the executive officer, Commander Rogers Elliott. Caused by ignition of gasoline fumes at the stern of the ship, the explosion threw some men overboard, while others were killed from concussion, burns, fractured skulls and broken necks. Several sailors died while trying to save their shipmates. The dead were buried at sea on October 8. On October 23, 1943, Byrd wrote a letter from
Nuku Hiva
Nuku Hiva (sometimes spelled Nukahiva or Nukuhiva) is the largest of the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas country of France in the Pacific Ocean. It was formerly also known as ''Île Marchand'' and ''Madison Island''.
Herman M ...
(the largest of the
Marquesas Islands
The Marquesas Islands (; french: Îles Marquises or ' or '; Marquesan: ' ( North Marquesan) and ' ( South Marquesan), both meaning "the land of men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in th ...
in
French Polynesia
)Territorial motto: ( en, "Great Tahiti of the Golden Haze")
, anthem =
, song_type = Regional anthem
, song = " Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui"
, image_map = French Polynesia on the globe (French Polynesia centered).svg
, map_alt = Location of Frenc ...
) to Chambers, the ship's commanding officer, commending him and his crew "for the courage and efficiency" displayed following the explosion that made Byrd "feel proud to be an American. Great heroism was displayed, especially by the men who lost their lives rescuing the wounded." Byrd completed the Special Mission in December and participated in the
United States Strategic Bombing Survey
The United States Strategic Bombing Survey (USSBS) was a written report created by a board of experts assembled to produce an impartial assessment of the effects of the Anglo-American strategic bombing of Nazi Germany during the European theatre o ...
(USSBS) in 1944-1945.
On February 10, 1945, Byrd received the
Order of Christopher Columbus
The Order of Christopher Columbus ( es, Orden Heráldica de Cristóbal Colón) is an order of the Dominican Republic. It was established on 21 July 1937. The Head of State confers the order, by advice of the council of the order, both to civilia ...
from the government of the
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...
. Byrd was present at the
Japanese surrender
The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally signed on 2 September 1945, bringing the war's hostilities to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy ...
in
Tokyo Bay
is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan, and spans the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. The Tokyo Bay region is both the most populous a ...
on September 2, 1945. He was released from active duty on October 1, 1945. In recognition of his service during World War II, Byrd received two awards of the
Legion of Merit
The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...
.
Later Antarctic expeditions
Operation Highjump (1946–1947)
In 1946, Secretary of the Navy
James Forrestal
James Vincent Forrestal (February 15, 1892 – May 22, 1949) was the last Cabinet-level United States Secretary of the Navy and the first United States Secretary of Defense.
Forrestal came from a very strict middle-class Irish Catholic fami ...
appointed Byrd as officer in charge of Antarctic Developments Project. Byrd's fourth Antarctic expedition was code-named
Operation Highjump
Operation HIGHJUMP, officially titled The United States Navy Antarctic Developments Program, 1946–1947, (also called Task Force 68), was a United States Navy (USN) operation to establish the Antarctic research base Little America IV. The opera ...
. It was the largest Antarctic expedition to date and was expected to last 6–8 months.
The expedition was supported by a large naval force (designated Task Force 68), commanded by Rear Admiral
Richard H. Cruzen
Richard Harold Cruzen (April 28, 1897 – April 15, 1970) was a decorated United States Navy officer with the rank of Vice admiral (United States), Vice Admiral. A veteran of both World Wars, he is best known for his participation and leadership ...
. Thirteen US Navy support ships (besides the flagship and the aircraft carrier ), six helicopters, six flying boats, two seaplane tenders, and 15 other aircraft were used. The total number of personnel involved was over 4,000.
The armada arrived in the Ross Sea on December 31, 1946, and made aerial explorations of an area half the size of the United States, recording 10 new mountain ranges. The major area covered was the eastern coastline of Antarctica from 150°E to the Greenwich meridian.
Admiral Byrd was interviewed by Lee van Atta of
International News Service
The International News Service (INS) was a U.S.-based news agency (newswire) founded by newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1909.
aboard the expedition's command ship USS ''Mount Olympus'', in which he discussed the lessons learned from the operation. The interview appeared in the Wednesday, March 5, 1947, edition of the Chilean newspaper ''
El Mercurio
''El Mercurio'' (known online as ''El Mercurio On-Line'', ''EMOL'') is a Chilean newspaper with editions in Valparaíso and Santiago. Its Santiago edition is considered the country's newspaper of record and it is considered the oldest daily in t ...
'', and read in part:
Admiral Richard E. Byrd warned today that the United States should adopt measures of protection against the possibility of an invasion of the country by hostile planes coming from the polar regions. The admiral explained that he was not trying to scare anyone, but the cruel reality is that in case of a new war, the United States could be attacked by planes flying over one or both poles. This statement was made as part of a recapitulation of his own polar experience, in an exclusive interview with International News Service. Talking about the recently completed expedition, Byrd said that the most important result of his observations and discoveries is the potential effect that they have in relation to the security of the United States. The fantastic speed with which the world is shrinking – recalled the admiral – is one of the most important lessons learned during his recent Antarctic exploration. I have to warn my compatriots that the time has ended when we were able to take refuge in our isolation and rely on the certainty that the distances, the oceans, and the poles were a guarantee of safety.
In 1948, the U.S. Navy produced a documentary about Operation Highjump named ''
The Secret Land
''The Secret Land'' is a feature-length 1948 documentary film about the United States Navy expedition code-named "Operation Highjump" to Antarctica in 1946. The film, which was shot entirely by USN and US Army military photographers, focuses on ...
''. The film shows live-action footage of the operation, along with a few re-enacted scenes. It won the
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
for Best Documentary.
On December 8, 1954, Byrd appeared on the television show ''Longines Chronoscope''. He was interviewed by Larry LeSueur and Kenneth Crawford about his Antarctic voyages, and said that Antarctica, in the future, would become the most important place in the world for science.
Operation Deep Freeze I (1955–1956)
As part of the multinational collaboration for the
International Geophysical Year
The International Geophysical Year (IGY; french: Année géophysique internationale) was an international scientific project that lasted from 1 July 1957 to 31 December 1958. It marked the end of a long period during the Cold War when scientific ...
(IGY) 1957–58, Byrd was appointed as officer in charge of the U.S. Navy Operation Deep Freeze I in 1955–56, which established permanent Antarctic bases at
McMurdo Sound
McMurdo Sound is a sound in Antarctica. It is the southernmost navigable body of water in the world, and is about from the South Pole.
Captain James Clark Ross discovered the sound in February 1841, and named it after Lt. Archibald McMurdo o ...
, the
Bay of Whales
The Bay of Whales was a natural ice harbour, or iceport, indenting the front of the Ross Ice Shelf just north of Roosevelt Island, Antarctica. It is the southernmost point of open ocean not only of the Ross Sea, but worldwide. The Ross Sea ...
, and the
South Pole
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole, Terrestrial South Pole or 90th Parallel South, is one of the two points where Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on Earth and lies antipod ...
. This was Byrd's last trip to Antarctica, and marked the beginning of a permanent U.S. military presence in Antarctica. Byrd spent only one week in the Antarctic, and started his return to the United States on February 3, 1956.
Death
Admiral Byrd died in his sleep of a heart ailment at the age of 68 on March 11, 1957, at his home at 7 Brimmer Street in the Beacon Hill neighborhood in Boston. He was buried in
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...
.
Memberships
Byrd was an active
Freemason
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
. He was raised (became a Master Mason) in Federal Lodge No. 1, Washington, DC, on March 19, 1921, and affiliated with Kane Lodge No. 454, New York City, September 18, 1928. He was a member of
National Sojourners
National Sojourners is an American patriotic organization of Freemasons who have served in the United States Armed Forces. Members are organized and meet in ''Chapters''.
Purpose
The stated purpose of the organization is "''to organize active dut ...
Chapter No. 3 at Washington. In 1930, Byrd was awarded a gold medal by Kane Lodge.
In 1931, Byrd became a compatriot of the Tennessee Society of the
Sons of the American Revolution
The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR or NSSAR) is an American Congressional charter, congressionally chartered organization, founded in 1889 and headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, Louisville, Kentucky. A non-prof ...
. He was assigned state membership number 605 and national membership number 50430. He received the society's War Service Medal for his service during the First World War.
He was also a member of numerous other patriotic, scientific, and charitable organizations, including the
Explorers Club
The Explorers Club is an American-based international multidisciplinary professional society with the goal of promoting scientific exploration and field study. The club was founded in New York City in 1904, and has served as a meeting point fo ...
, the
American Legion
The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war
War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...
, and the
National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society (NGS), headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational organizations in the world.
Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, and ...
.
Honors
By the time he died, Byrd had amassed 22 citations and special commendations, nine of which were for bravery and two for extraordinary heroism in saving the lives of others. In addition, he received the Medal of Honor, the Silver Lifesaving Medal, the
Navy Distinguished Service Medal
The Navy Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps which was first created in 1919 and is presented to sailors and Marines to recognize distinguished and exceptionally meritoriou ...
, the Distinguished Flying Cross, and the Navy Cross.
Admiral Byrd is the only person to have three ticker-tape parades in New York City (in 1926, 1927, and 1930) given in his honor.
Byrd was one of only four American military officers in history entitled to wear a medal with his own image on it. The others were Admiral
George Dewey
George Dewey (December 26, 1837January 16, 1917) was Admiral of the Navy, the only person in United States history to have attained that rank. He is best known for his victory at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish–American War, with ...
, General
John J. Pershing
General of the Armies John Joseph Pershing (September 13, 1860 – July 15, 1948), nicknamed "Black Jack", was a senior United States Army officer. He served most famously as the commander of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) on the Wes ...
, and Admiral
William T. Sampson
William Thomas Sampson (February 9, 1840 – May 6, 1902) was a United States Navy Rear Admiral (United States), rear admiral known for his victory in the Battle of Santiago de Cuba during the Spanish–American War.
Biography
He was born in P ...
. As Byrd's image is on both the first and second
Byrd Antarctic Expedition Medal
The Byrd Antarctic Expedition Medal is a Congressional medal established by an Act of Congress in 1930 to commemorate the Byrd Antarctic Expedition of 1928–1930. Presented in gold, silver and bronze, the medals were awarded to 81 individuals a ...
s, he was the only American entitled to wear two medals with his own image on them.
He was one of the recipients of the
Langley Gold Medal
The Langley Gold Medal, or Samuel P. Langley Medal for Aerodromics, is an award given by the Smithsonian Institution for outstanding contributions to the sciences of aeronautics and astronautics. Named in honor of Samuel P. Langley, the Smithsonia ...
, which is awarded by the
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
for outstanding achievement in aviation.
He was the seventh recipient of the prestigious
Hubbard Medal
The Hubbard Medal is awarded by the National Geographic Society for distinction in exploration, discovery, and research. The medal is named for Gardiner Greene Hubbard
Gardiner Greene Hubbard (August 25, 1822 – December 11, 1897) was an A ...
awarded by the National Geographic Society for his flight to the North Pole. Other recipients include
Robert Peary
Robert Edwin Peary Sr. (; May 6, 1856 – February 20, 1920) was an American explorer and officer in the United States Navy who made several expeditions to the Arctic in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He is best known for, in Apri ...
,
Roald Amundsen
Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen (, ; ; 16 July 1872 – ) was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He was a key figure of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.
Born in Borge, Østfold, Norway, Amundsen bega ...
, and Charles Lindbergh.
Byrd received numerous medals from nongovernmental organizations in honor of his achievements. These included the David Livingstone Centenary Medal of the
American Geographical Society
The American Geographical Society (AGS) is an organization of professional geographers, founded in 1851 in New York City. Most fellows of the society are Americans, but among them have always been a significant number of fellows from around the ...
, the Loczy Medal of the Hungarian Geographical Society, the Vega Medal of the Swedish Geographical Society, and the
Elisha Kent Kane
Elisha Kent Kane (February 3, 1820 – February 16, 1857) was a United States Navy medical officer and Arctic explorer. He served as assistant surgeon during Caleb Cushing's journey to China to negotiate the Treaty of Wangxia and in the Af ...
Medal of the Philadelphia Geographical Society.
In 1927, the
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded i ...
made Byrd an
Honorary Scout
An honorary position is one given as an honor, with no duties attached, and without payment. Other uses include:
* Honorary Academy Award, by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, United States
* Honorary Aryan, a status in Nazi Germany ...
, a new category of scout created that same year. This distinction was given to "American citizens whose achievements in outdoor activity, exploration, and worthwhile adventure are of such an exceptional character as to capture the imagination of boys ...".
Also in 1927 the
City of Richmond
The City of Richmond was a local government area about east of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The city covered an area of , and existed from 1855 until 1994.
History
Richmond was incorporated as a municipality on 24 Ap ...
dedicated the Richard Evelyn Byrd Flying Field, now
Richmond International Airport
Richmond International Airport is a joint civil-military airport in Sandston, Virginia, United States, an unincorporated community (in Henrico County). The airport is about 7 miles (11 km) southeast of downtown Richmond, the capital of t ...
, in
Henrico County, Virginia
Henrico County , officially the County of Henrico, is located in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 334,389 making it the fifth-most populous county in Virginia. Henrico County is incl ...
. Byrd's
Fairchild Fairchild may refer to:
Organizations
* Fairchild Aerial Surveys, operated in cooperation with a subsidiary of Fairey Aviation Company
* Fairchild Camera and Instrument
* List of Sherman Fairchild companies, "Fairchild" companies
* Fairchild Fash ...
FC-2W2, NX8006, ''Stars And Stripes'', is on display at the Virginia Aviation Museum located on the north side of the airport, on loan from the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC.
In 1929, Byrd received the
Silver Buffalo Award
The Silver Buffalo Award is the national-level distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America. It is presented for noteworthy and extraordinary service to youth on a national basis, either as part of, or independent of the Scouting pro ...
from the Boy Scouts of America. Also in 1929, he received the
Langley Gold Medal
The Langley Gold Medal, or Samuel P. Langley Medal for Aerodromics, is an award given by the Smithsonian Institution for outstanding contributions to the sciences of aeronautics and astronautics. Named in honor of Samuel P. Langley, the Smithsonia ...
from the
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
.
Lunar crater
Lunar craters are impact craters on Earth's Moon. The Moon's surface has many craters, all of which were formed by impacts. The International Astronomical Union currently recognizes 9,137 craters, of which 1,675 have been dated.
History
The wor ...
Byrd Byrd commonly refers to:
* William Byrd (c. 1540 – 1623), an English composer of the Renaissance
* Richard E. Byrd (1888–1957), an American naval officer and explorer
Byrd or Byrds may also refer to:
Other people
* Byrd (surname), includin ...
is named after him, as was the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
guided missile destroyer
A guided-missile destroyer (DDG) is a destroyer whose primary armament is guided missiles so they can provide anti-aircraft warfare screening for the fleet. The NATO standard designation for these vessels is DDG, while destroyers who have a prim ...
.
In
Glen Rock, New Jersey
Glen Rock is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 12,133, reflecting an increase of 532 (+4.6%) from the 11,601 counted in the 2010 census,
The Institute of Polar Studies at the Ohio State University officially changed its name to the Byrd Polar Research Center (BPRC) on January 21, 1987, after it acquired Byrd's expeditionary records, personal papers, and other memorabilia in 1985 from the estate of Marie A. Byrd, the late wife of Admiral Byrd. His papers served as the nucleus for establishment of the BPRC Polar Archival Program in 1990. In 1958. the Richard Byrd library, part of the
Fairfax County Public Library
The Fairfax County Public Library (FCPL) is a public library system headquartered in Suite 324 of The Fairfax County Government Center in unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia, United States.
Hennen's American Public Library Ratings ...
system opened in
Springfield, Virginia
Springfield is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The Springfield CDP is recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau with a population of 30,484 as of the 2010 census. Homes and businesses in bordering CDPs includ ...
.
Richard E. Byrd Elementary School, a Department of Defense school located in Negishi (Yokohama, Japan) opened on September 20, 1948. The name was changed to R.E. Byrd Elementary School on April 5, 1960.
Memorials to Byrd can be found in two cities in New Zealand (
Wellington
Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...
and
Dunedin
Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...
). Byrd used New Zealand as his departure point for several of his Antarctic expeditions.
The 50th anniversary of Byrd's first flight over the South Pole was commemorated in a set of two postage stamps by
Australian Antarctic Territory
The Australian Antarctic Territory (AAT) is a part of East Antarctica claimed by Australia as an external territory. It is administered by the Australian Antarctic Division, an agency of the federal Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Env ...
in 1979, and a commemorative flag was designed.
The long-range short-wave voice transmissions from Byrd's Antarctic expedition in 1934 were named an IEEE Milestone in 2001.
Admiral Richard E. Byrd Middle School, located in
Frederick County, Virginia
Frederick County is located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 91,419. Its county seat is Winchester. The county was formed in 1743 by the splitting of Orange County. It is Virginia's northernmost county. ...
, was opened in 2005, and is decorated with pictures and letters from Byrd's life and career.
He was inducted into
Phi Beta Kappa
The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...
as an honorary member at the University of Virginia.
Byrd was inducted into the International Air and Space Hall of Fame at the
San Diego Air and Space Museum
San Diego Air & Space Museum (SDASM, formerly the San Diego Aerospace Museum) is an aviation and space exploration museum in San Diego, California, United States. The museum is located in Balboa Park and is housed in the former Ford Building, ...
in 1968.
Richard E. Byrd Middle School in Sun Valley, California, is named after Admiral Byrd. The school opened in its present location in 2008 after its original location was converted to Sun Valley High School.
Popular culture
Jacques Vallée
Jacques Fabrice Vallée (; born September 24, 1939) is an Internet pioneer, computer scientist, venture capitalist, author, ufologist and astronomer currently residing in San Francisco, California and Paris, France.
His scientific career began ...
in his book ''Confrontations'' mentions a "spurious story" about "'holes in the pole' allegedly found by Admiral Byrd", when he quotes Clint Chapin of the ''Copper Medic'' case as believing the UFOs came from inside the earth.
In ''
Great Circle
In mathematics, a great circle or orthodrome is the circular intersection of a sphere and a plane passing through the sphere's center point.
Any arc of a great circle is a geodesic of the sphere, so that great circles in spherical geomet ...
'' by
Maggie Shipstead
Maggie Shipstead (born 1983) is an American novelist, short story author, essayist, and travel writer. She is the author of ''Seating Arrangements'' (2012) ''Astonish Me'' (2014), ''Great Circle'' (2021), and the short story collection ''You Ha ...
, Byrd and the Little America bases are the final stop in Marian Graves' journey to circle the globe by flight over the North and South Poles.
Military awards
Admiral Byrd was one of the most highly decorated officers in the history of the United States Navy. He is, probably, the only individual to receive the Medal of Honor, Navy Cross, Distinguished Flying Cross, and the Silver Life Saving Medal. He also was one of a very few individuals to receive all three Antarctic expedition medals issued for expeditions prior to the Second World War.
Decorations and medals
Note – The dates on the table below are the year the award was received and not necessarily the year of the actions the award recognizes.
Byrd was posthumously eligible for the
Antarctic Service Medal
The Antarctica Service Medal (ASM) was established by the United States Congress on July 7, 1960, under s:Public Law 86-600, Public Law 600 of the 86th United States Congress, 86th Congress. The medal was intended as a awards and decorations of ...
, established in 1960, for his participation in the Antarctic expeditions Operation Highjump (1946 to 1947) and
Operation Deep Freeze
Operation Deep Freeze (OpDFrz or ODF) is codename for a series of United States missions to Antarctica, beginning with "Operation Deep Freeze I" in 1955–56, followed by "Operation Deep Freeze II", "Operation Deep Freeze III", and so on. (There w ...
(1955 to 1956).
Byrd also received numerous other awards from governmental and private entities in the United States.
Medal of Honor citation
Rank and organization: Commander, United States Navy. Born: October 25, 1888, Winchester, Va. Appointed from: Virginia.
;Citation:
For distinguishing himself conspicuously by courage and intrepidity at the risk of his life, in demonstrating that it is possible for aircraft to travel in continuous flight from a now inhabited portion of the earth over the North Pole and return.
Byrd, along with Machinist Floyd Bennett, was presented with the Medal of Honor by President Calvin Coolidge on March 5, 1927.
Navy Cross citation
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Rear Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr. (NSN: 0–7918), United States Navy, for extraordinary heroism in the line of his profession as Commanding Officer of the Byrd Antarctic Expedition I, in that on November 28, 1929 he took off in his "Floyd Bennett" from the Expedition's base at Little America, Antarctica and, after a flight made under the most difficult conditions he reached the South Pole on November 29, 1929. After flying some distance beyond this point he returned to his base at Little America. This hazardous flight was made under extreme conditions of cold, over ranges and plateaus extending nine to ten thousand feet above sea level and beyond probable rescue of personnel had a forced landing occurred. Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd, U.S.N, Retired, was in command of this flight, navigated the airplane, made the mandatory preparations for the flight, and through his untiring energy, superior leadership, and excellent judgment the flight was brought to a successful conclusion.
First Distinguished Service Medal citation
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Distinguished Service Medal to Commander Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr. (NSN: 0–7918), United States Navy, for exceptionally meritorious and distinguished service in a position of great responsibility to the Government of the United States, in demonstrating, by his courage and professional ability that heavier-than-air craft could in continuous flight travel to the North Pole and return.
General Orders: Letter Dated August 6, 1926
Second Distinguished Service Medal citation
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting a Gold Star in lieu of a Second Award of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal to Rear Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr. (NSN: 0–7918), United States Navy, for exceptionally meritorious and distinguished service in a position of great responsibility to the Government of the United States as Commanding Officer of the U.S. Antarctic Service. Rear Admiral Byrd did much toward the difficult task of organizing the expedition, which was accomplished in one fourth of the time generally necessary for such undertakings. In spite of a short operating season, he established two Antarctic bases 1,500 miles apart, where valuable scientific and economic investigations are now being carried on. With the , he penetrated unknown and dangerous seas where important discoveries were made; in addition to which he made four noteworthy flights, resulting in the discovery of new mountain ranges, islands, more than a hundred thousand square miles of area, a peninsula and 700 miles of hitherto unknown stretches of the Antarctic coast. The operations of the Antarctic Service have been a credit to the Government of the United States. His qualities of leadership and unselfish devotion to duty are in accordance with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.
First Legion of Merit citation
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Legion of Merit to Rear Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr. (NSN: 0–7918), United States Navy, for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services to the Government of the United States while in command of a Special Navy Mission to the Pacific from August 27, 1943, to December 5, 1943, when thirty-three islands of the Pacific were surveyed or investigated for the purpose of recommending air base sites of value to the United States for its defense or for the development of post-war civil aviation. In this service Admiral Byrd exercised fine leadership in gaining the united effort of civilian, Army, and Navy experts. He displayed courage, initiative, vision, and a high order of ability in obtain data and in submitting reports which will be of great present and future value to the National Defense and to the Government of the United States in the post-war period.
Action Date: August 27 – December 5, 1943
Second Legion of Merit citation
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting a Gold Star in lieu of a Second Award of the Legion of Merit to Rear Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr. (NSN: 0–7918), United States Navy, for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services to the Government of the United States as Confidential Advisor to the Commander in Chief, United States Fleet and Chief of Naval Operations from March 26, 1942 to May 10, 1942, August 14, 1942 to August 26, 1943, and from December 6, 1943 to October 1, 1945. In the performance of his duty Rear Admiral Byrd served in the Navy Department and in various areas outside the continental limits of the United States, employed on special missions on the fighting fronts in Europe and the Pacific. In all assignments his thoroughness, attention to detail, keen discernment, professional judgment and zeal produced highly successful results. His wise counsel, sound advice and foresight in planning constituted a material contribution to the war effort and to the success of the United States Navy. The performance of duty of Rear Admiral Byrd was at all times in keeping with the highest traditions and reflected credit upon himself and the United States Naval Service.
General Orders: Board Serial 176P00 (February 4, 1946)
Action Date: March 26, 1942 – October 1, 1945
Distinguished Flying Cross citation
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to Commander Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr. (NSN: 0–7918), United States Navy, for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight; in recognition of his courage, resourcefulness and skill as Commander of the expedition which flew the airplane "America" from New York City to France from June 29 to July 1, 1927, across the Atlantic Ocean under extremely adverse weather conditions which made a landing in Paris impossible; and finally for his discernment and courage in directing his plane to a landing at Ver sur Mer, France, without serious injury to his personnel, after a flight of 39 hours and 56 minutes.
Action Date: June 29 – July 1, 1927
Letter of Commendation
Dates of rank
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...
Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...
– May 28, 1908 (Class of 1912)
See also
*
Adventurers' Club of New York The Adventurers' Club of New York was an adventure-oriented private men's club founded in New York City in 1912 by Arthur Sullivant Hoffman, editor of the popular pulp magazine ''Adventure''. There were 34 members at the first meeting. In its seco ...
Ford Ranges
The Ford Ranges () are a grouping of mountain ranges standing east of Sulzberger Ice Shelf and Block Bay in the northwest part of Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica. Discovered by the Byrd Antarctic Expedition on December 5, 1929, they were named by By ...
*
Laurence McKinley Gould
Laurence McKinley Gould (August 22, 1896 – June 21, 1995) was an American geologist, educator, and polar explorer. He made expeditions to both the Arctic and Antarctic, and was chief scientist on Richard Evelyn Byrd's first Antarctic expeditio ...
*
List of Antarctic expeditions
This list of Antarctic expeditions is a chronological list of expeditions involving Antarctica. Although the existence of a southern continent had been hypothesized as early as the writings of Ptolemy in the 1st century AD, the South Pole was no ...
* List of Freemasons
* List of Medal of Honor recipients during peacetime
* List of members of the American Legion
* ''Little America: Aerial Exploration in the Antarctic The Flight to the South Pole'' (1930)
* ''Discovery: The Story of the Second Byrd Antarctic Expedition'' (1935)
External links
Richard Evelyn Byrd letter, MSS 420 at L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University
Byrd's Decorations at Military Times via Internet Archive.
*
* and from Archived a Ghostarchive and th Wayback Machine on YouTube.
*
The Papers of Richard E. Byrd at Dartmouth College Library
Philip White Scrapbooks and Correspondence on Admiral Richard Byrd and the Byrd Antarctic Expedition of 1928–1933 at Dartmouth College Library
Frederick G. Dustin logbook of Second Byrd Antarctic Expedition at Dartmouth College Library
The Papers of Thomas B. Mulroy on Richard E. Byrd's Antarctic Expedition at Dartmouth College
{{DEFAULTSORT:Byrd, Richard Evelyn
1888 births
1957 deaths
20th-century explorers
American Episcopalians
American navigators
American oceanographers
American people of English descent
American polar explorers
American Polar Society honorary members
Aviators from Virginia
Burials at Arlington National Cemetery
Byrd family of Virginia, Richard E. Byrd
Congressional Gold Medal recipients
Explorers of Antarctica
Marie Byrd Land explorers and scientists
Flight navigators
Military personnel from Virginia
National Aviation Hall of Fame inductees
Non-combat recipients of the Medal of Honor
North Pole
People from Beacon Hill, Boston
People from Winchester, Virginia
Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)
Recipients of the Legion of Merit
Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States)
Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Service Medal
Rolfe family of Virginia
Scientists from Virginia
Sons of the American Revolution
United States and the Antarctic
United States Naval Academy alumni
United States Naval Aviators
United States Navy Medal of Honor recipients
United States Navy rear admirals (upper half)
United States Navy World War II admirals
University of Virginia alumni
University of Virginia people
Virginia Military Institute alumni