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North Star Sled Dog Club, Inc. records

 Collection — Box: 1
Identifier: S6018

Scope and Contents

The collection contains: rules and regulations; membership and mushers; contracts; board meeting minutes; financial information; correspondence; 1978 St. Paul Winter Carnival finances; races and race schedules; essays on ISDRA sanctioning, Timing, The History of Racing, Winter is for the Dogs, Trails in the Future, Interval Training, Mush (Rolling Stone article March 1984); newspaper clippings 1973–1983; publications:

Alaskan Gangline January 1983–1986 October

Husky Fever  1980 April–1981 October

International Sled Dog Racing 1972 (vol. 2 no. 2) summer-1981 (vol. 11 no. 2) November

Association Newsletter

Paw Prints 1975 October–1979 November

Sled Dog Action 1985 November–1986 September

Team & Trail 1972 August–1990 February

Dates

  • circa 1960-1990

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Open for use in the Kathryn A. Martin Library, Archives and Special Collections.

Conditions Governing Use

This collection may be protected by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S. Code). It is the user's responsibility to verify copyright ownership and to obtain all necessary permissions prior to the reproduction, publication, or other use of any portion of these materials. Researchers may quote from the collection under the fair use provision of the copyright law.

Biographical / Historical

The North Star Sled Dog Club, Inc. was founded in the early 1960s by an enterprising group of avid mushers, spearheaded by Mabell Hill, who is often referred to as the "Godmother of Minnesota Mushing." In those early days most Minnesota mushers had teams of Siberian huskies, and many of their weekends were spent at Hill's farm in rural St. Paul. In 1963 this elite group helped stage the first St. Paul Winter Carnival sled dog races. The object and purpose of the North Star Sled Club is to promote the sport of sled dog racing and the welfare of the sled dog, and to familiarize the public with the work of the sled dog.

North Star was formally incorporated by Minnesota state statutes in 1965 with Don Gale as its first president. Since then it has grown from a membership of around 20 to almost 200.

North Star Sled Dog Club (NSSDC) sanctions several sled dog races during the winter months in Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and Manitoba and Ontario in Canada. During the summer months they promote the local Dryland events, including the Byllesby Dryland Classic.

NSSDC is a member of the International Sled Dog Racing Association (ISDRA) and Mushing USA, the United States governing body of sled dog sports. ISDRA is an international organization which serves to promote sled dog racing and the welfare of sled dogs.

NSSDC holds at least three meetings a year: in April, July, and October. The July meeting is usually in conjunction with the annual summer seminar, and the October meeting is held at a northern Minnesota home where training trails are available so that members can also participate in a training session and luncheon prior to the meeting. Other special meetings are occasionally called at the request of the executive committee.

NSSDC has accomplished many projects over the years. Most recently, it developed a program for kennel certification, called CHAMP (Canine Health and Maintenance Program).

NSSDC has two standing committees: the RGO Committee (Race Giving Organization Committee), which works with the various organizations that are hosting races; and the Junior Committee.

NSSDC also has several ad hoc committees, currently including the history, race giving manual, and championship program committees.

The serial “The TUGLINE” was begun in 1969 with Joyce Lillie as its first editor, the TUGLINE is the official newspaper of the North Star Sled Dog Club. It is published six times a year and is issued in January, March, June, August, October, and December. Originally done on a mimeograph machine, it is now designed on computer and serves to keep members informed about mushing news and views.

Extent

3.00 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The collection contains: rules and regulations; membership and mushers; contracts; board meeting minutes; financial information; correspondence; 1978 St. Paul Winter Carnival finances; races and race schedules; essays on ISDRA sanctioning, Timing, The History of Racing, Winter is for the Dogs, Trails in the Future, Interval Training, Mush (Rolling Stone article March 1984); newspaper clippings 1973–1983; and publications.

Physical Location

This collection is located at the University of Minnesota Duluth Archives. For more information about this collection or to make an appointment, contact us at libarchives@d.umn.edu or 218-726-8526.

General

This collection is part of the Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections, which are housed in the University of Minnesota Duluth Archives at the Kathryn A. Martin Library.

Title
Guide to the North Star Sled Dog Club, Inc. records
Author
Finding Aid Authors: P. Maus.
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Collecting Area Details

Contact The University of Minnesota Duluth Archives and Special Collections Collecting Area

Contact:
Kathryn A. Martin Library
University of Minnesota Duluth
416 Library Drive
Duluth MN 55812-3001
(218) 726-8526