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Dora Keen

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Dora Keen (June 24, 1871 – January 31, 1963) was an American traveler, Alpinist in Europe and North America, photographer, explorer, lecturer, writer, social worker, philanthropist, and women's rights activist. After a failed first attempt with Reuben Frederick McClellan and three other men (but without George William Handy) in 1911, she and George W. Handy became in 1912 the first two people to reach the top of Mount Blackburn. (In the Ahtna language, Mount Blackburn is called K’ats’ił Ta’aene.) Dora Keen and George W. Handy married in 1916 in McCarthy, Alaska and for many years operated a farm in West Hartford, Vermont, but eventually divorced after 16 years of marriage. In 1914 she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

Quotes

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  • I climb for pleasure, for the wonderful views and the vigorous exertion, for the relaxation of a complete change for mind and body, and because of the inspiration to the spirit. To combine exploration with mountaineering must, no doubt, so increase the interest as to well repay the augmented difficulties. All I would emphasize is that to climb anywhere repays the effort, even if it must be within reach of civilization and where others have gone before. To me there is ample reward in the uplift of the spirit; in the moral discipline, the keen interest, and the training to think, of a hard battle carefully planned, in the satisfaction of a love of adventure, and in the invigorating physical exercise.
  • Mt. Blackburn, 16,140 ft., and latitude 61º 44', is within 60 ft. of the highest of the Wrangell Mountains. The completion of the Copper River Railway, 196 miles long, from Cordova to the famous Bonanza Copper Mine of the Morgan-Guggenheim syndicate, in April, 1911, brought Mt. Blackburn tow within 35 miles of civilization. I had gone to Alaska merely to see the wonderful scenery, of the southwest coast, by boat and train, and because I wished to see the only remaining pioneer region of America. Knowing that I should find no Swiss guides in Alaska, I had no idea of doing any serious mountain climbing. Indeed, it was late in July that I first read of Mt. Blackburn, by chance, in a prospector's cabin, in the wilds of the Kenai Peninsula, where I was hunting for a big brown bear. There, in a Report of the United States Geological Survey, Mt. Blackburn was mentioned as never having been ascended, and as "worthy of the hardiest mountaineer."

Quotes about Dora Keen

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  • ... my mother got a phone call from Dora one day. And it was in 1948. And she said to my mother, "Have you decided who you are going to vote for in the Republican primary for U. S. Senate?" And my mother said, "No, I haven't." "Well," she said, "I'll be up to talk to you about it." And my mother was one vote. And she drove from West Hartford all the way to Woodstock for one vote.
    • Roy Black, (April 25, 2018)"The Life of Dora Keen Handy". Junction Arts & Media, YouTube. (quote at 32:01 of 45:10 in video; presentation by Judy Roberts & Roy Black to the Hartford Historical Society)
  • April, 1912, found her back again at Cordova, where she met George W. Handy, in whom she had confidence, and invited him to join the party. With six other men and dog sledges they started up Kennicott Glacier on the 22nd. This time she was determined and would not be stopped if it were humanly possible to succeed. Thirty-three days altogether were spent on the snow and ice, 22 without tents and 10 almost without food. Caves dug in the snow provided shelter up to 12,000 feet. From there, in weather clearing after a succession of severe storms, she and Handy reached the summit on May 19, 8:30 a.m. It had taken four weeks. The view was perfect in every direction for up to 200 miles. The return took three days to Base Camp and two more to Kennicott.
  • On May 19, 1912, after 27 days of climbing, Dora (one month shy of her 41st birthday) became the first person to reach the top of Mount Blackburn. When she got home, people flocked to her lectures and photo presentations about her climb. She used her platform to advocate for women’s rights and philanthropic causes. ...
    END NOTE: In the 1960’s, USGS determined that the highest summit of Mount Blackburn wasn’t actually the eastern side that Dora (and George) climbed but the Western peak which is taller by 200 feet. However, the eastern route is much longer and harder, so many guides today still give her credit for this first ascent.
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