Alone~Richard E. Byrd~SIGNED~Leather & Gilt~Harvard Club 1938 Antarctic Explorer

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Alone~Richard E. Byrd~SIGNED~Leather & Gilt~Harvard Club 1938 Antarctic Explorer:
$150.00

Alone
Richard E. Byrd
Decorations by Richard E. Harrison
This is an antique Hardcover with 1/3 leather spine and tips over red cloth boards with Harvard insignia in gilt on center of front cover. Five raised bands on leather spine with gilt decorations and top page edges gilded. Headings of each chapter illustrated with drawings. Signed by Author-Explorer Richard E. Byrd directly on 3rd blank fep. This is a special edition presented by The Harvard Club of Michigan to a local student. Published by G. P. Putnam’s Sons; copyright 1938; the stated 4th Impression. Book designed by Paul Johnson.

Rear Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr., USN (October 25, 1888 – March 11, 1957) was an American naval officer who specialized in feats of exploration. He was a recipient of the Medal of Honor, 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 and expedition leader crossed the Atlantic Ocean, a segment of the Arctic Ocean, and a segment of the Antarctic Plateau. Byrd claimed that his expeditions were the first to reach both the North Pole and the South Pole by air. His direct ancestors include planter John Rolfe and his wife Pocahontas. Admiral Byrd was one of the most highly decorated officers in the history of the United States Navy. He is possibly 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. Alone is the autobiography of Admiral Richard E. Byrd when he set out on his second Antarctic expedition in 1934. He was already an International hero for having piloted the first flights over the North and South Poles. His plan for this latest adventure was to spend six months alone near the bottom of the world, gathering weather data and indulging his desire “to taste peace and quiet long enough to know how good they really are.” But early on things went terribly wrong. Isolated in the pervasive polar night with no hope of release until spring, Byrd began suffering inexplicable symptoms of mental and physical illness. By the time he discovered that carbon monoxide from a defective stovepipe was poisoning him, Byrd was already engaged in a monumental struggle to save his life and preserve his sanity. When Alone was first published in 1938, it became an enormous bestseller. In very good condition with bright gilt on covers, and well-preserved leather. Mild wear along spine edge & corner tips. Endpapers age-toned with presentation bookplate having cast a shadow on 1st fep. Otherwise, NO internal scribbles or tears. From a smoke-free home. Questions welcome!

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