Louise Arner Boyd Calendar Blog, June 19, 1935 / "All For Roosevelt Here!"

Along with her eight Arctic expeditions and numerous international tours, Louise took many cross-country tours in her chauffeured touring car starting in 1919! Always a diligent observer, Louise kept diaries and journals from all her trips. The following entry is from a stop in Iowa during the "Great Depression" where she and her chauffeur, Cameron, received some unvarnished 'Hawkeye" sentiment!

1935 US Motor Tour – June 19, 1935
Iowa Sunny and clear! Cold. Windshield wiper fixed. Garage man told Cameron all for Pres. Roosevelt here! If Hoover or a ‘Yellow Dog’, they’d vote for the dog! Under Hoover they got 7 cents for wheat and Roosevelt 52 cents and as high as 70 cents. To grow and harvest cost 42 cents so now have a good profit!

Louise's 1935 Cross-Country Tour Journal

Louise Arner Boyd 2013 Calendar Entry / June 25, 1937

On board the expedition vessel, Veslekari, Louise writes home to her secretary, Mrs. Roche, about her recent undersea discovery. Using early echo-sounding technology, Louise and her crew discover a previously unknown undersea mountain range NE of Jan Mayen Islands between the Norwegian and Barents Seas. The letter, written in a palpably excited tone, describes Louise's plan to immediately contact the American Geographical Society (her sponsoring scientific organization) and the press in Tromso, Norway to the discovery as she fears the crew members will not remain silent for long. This discovery along with her many other expedition accomplishments would result in the mountain range being officially named the Louise A. Boyd Bank and her being honored by the American Geographical Society as the 1938 recipient of the Society's prestigious Collum Medal. The hand-written letter (seen below) is in the Marin History Museum's Louise Arner Boyd collection.

First page of letter dated June 25, 1937

The Veslekari