BERNT BALCHEN - AUTOGRAPH CO-SIGNED BY: ALTON N. PARKER, LUCIUS R. EASTMAN - HFSID 17655

BERNT BALCHEN, ALTON N. PARKER, LUCIUS R. EASTMAN
Signatures of the Antarctic pilots and the New York philanthropist
Signatures: "Bernt Balchen", "Alton N. Parker",andon verso, "Lucis R. Eastman". 7¾x5 album leaf. Norwegian pilot-engineer BERNT BALCHEN (1899-1973) was on the 1926 Amundsen/Ellsworth/Nobile Norge expedition in Spitsbergen when Commander Richard E. Byrd attempted to fly to the North Pole, the pilot on Byrd's 1927 transatlantic flight and chief pilot on Byrd's flight to the South Pole in 1929. Before becoming a pilot, Balchen had fought in the Finnish Civil War, left for dead on the battlefield after a cavalry charge; and boxed for Norway in the 1920 Olympics! In 1930, ALTON N. PARKER (1895-1942), a Marine pilot in World War I, was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for his part in the Byrd Antarctic Expedition. For flying over King Edward VII Land in Antarctica, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Parker was an air mail pilot before and after his Antarctic expedition, initiating the Washington, D. C. to Philadelphia route in 1925. His widow lost a lawsuit claiming that she was eligible for survivor benefits because Parker's death resulted from injuries suffered while flying for Western Air. LUCIUS R. EASTMAN (1913-1991) was a philanthropist and businessman, serving as President of the Lucius and Eva Eastman Fund from 1961 to 1988. During World War II, Eastman served in the Office of Strategic Services in North Africa and Europe and was awarded a bronze star for his service. Lightly shaded. Light diagonal folds at blank corners. File nicks at left edge. Unknown signature beneath parker. Otherwise, fine condition.