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News
Article published Mar 12, 2006 in Fosters Citizen
Chinook Kennels Museum to celebrate birthplace of N.H. sled dog racing
WONALANCET - "Build it and they will come" is what George Cook
believes will happen someday when he and a dedicated group of
volunteers create the country's first sled dog museum at the historic
site of the Chinook Kennels.
What is now a quiet complex of six buildings on 15 acres of land that
is regarded as the birthplace of New Hampshire sled dog racing could
one day be transformed into a museum and education center to promote
the sport, said Cook, a New Hampton resident who serves as the
foundation's president.
"Sled dog history and sled dog activities are inherently fascinating
to people even if they do not participate in the sport," said Cook, a
former sled dog racer who also serves as first vice president of the
New Hampshire Mushers Association and as secretary of the
International Sled Dog Racing Association.
Cook is so confident in his vision, shared by fellow Chinook Kennels
Heritage Foundation members, that he even bought the property at
auction six years ago to keep it out of private hands.
He recalled how he had to scramble that weekend to get a certified
cashier's check of $1,000 from his bank to bid on the property just
two days after learning it was on the auction block.
"I had a lot of people say they were interested, but were in no
position to give me a firm answer in 48 hours," Cook said.
Five primary bidders were whittled down to Cook and the owner of the
Tamworth Inn, who wanted to turn the property into a private
residence, he said.
"As I put in my bid, there was a collective inhale, and when he did
his counter bid, there was a collective exhale," Cook said.
He said his biggest concern was that the price not exceed the
property's assessed value of $120,000. Fortunately, the other bidder
dropped out, and Cook was able to buy the buildings and land for that
price.
Cook said the land is owned by a partnership. A nonprofit charitable
foundation was created to collect donations and carry out an
educational mission. Neither the state nor the federal government is
involved in the project, he said.
Since his group acquired the property six years ago, Cook said five of
the six buildings have been renovated. They include the main house,
garage, puppy house, feed room and office. But the log cabin located
at the front entrance off Route 113-A that would house the museum is
"barely hanging on," Cook said.
He estimates it will take at least $250,000 just to cover the
construction costs, then another $50,000- to $100,000 a year for
operating costs and exhibit acquisitions.
The foundation is using its website, www.chinookkennel.org, to reach
out to sled dog enthusiasts and the public to solicit donations and
Chinook Kennel memorabilia such as photographs, newspaper articles,
sledding equipment, post cards and any other items that are linked to
the property, Cook said.
"There is no other museum of sled dog history anywhere in the
country," Cook said.
He said there is a small museum in Alaska devoted to the Iditarod
race. The Chinook Kennels would be the first museum of its kind ever
created, Cook said.
Cook said he knows there are many people in New Hampshire and
elsewhere who have memorabilia connected to the kennels' past. He
feels it is just a matter of getting the word out that the proposed
museum needs help.
The foundation has a five-member board of directors, and less than 100
people have donated money or items so far, Cook said. Preliminary
discussions have been held with the New Hampshire Historical Society
and the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation in Concord about having
the kennels declared a state historic site, Cook said. He added the
kennels also meet many criteria to be on the National Register of
Historic Places.
If the foundation can obtain those designations for the kennels, Cook
said, the group could reach out to many new grant sources to help
reach their financial goals.
Members of the New England and international sled dog racing
communities also are watching the Chinook Kennels project with great
interest.
David Steele, executive director of the International Sled Dog Racing
Association in Merrifield, Minn., said Chinook Kennels' contributions
to the sport and its rich history are well known by his group's 600
members in the U.S. and Canada.
Steele believes a sled dog museum in New Hampshire would help generate
more support for the sport and preserve its place in U.S. history.
Chris Hayes, first vice president of the New England Sled Dog Racing
Association in Andover, Vt., said his group's 175 members also "want
to see it happen."
His group just held the Tamworth Sled Dog Races near the historic site
on March 4 and March 5. The annual event began in 1919. The races drew
55 teams who participated in different classes of sprint racing. Hayes
said some teams competed with four-dog sleds in three- to four-mile
races and some teams competed with 8-dog sleds for a 7- to 11-mile race.
Hayes said people contact him all the time to donate material and
money to the Chinook Kennels Heritage Foundation.
He believes some members of the public have attached a negative stigma
to the sport because of the use of whips and the practice of forcing
Siberian Huskies, Alaskan Malamutes and mixed breed dogs to race over
miles of snow-covered terrain. Others embrace the more romantic side
of the sport, seeing man and dog successfully navigate their way
through nature to reach a goal.
He said the proposed museum to could enable people to learn more about
the positive aspects of the sport.
"Pound for pound, they can't be matched," Hayes said of sled dogs.
"They are the premier athlete of the world in terms of endurance."
Cook said the front entrance of Chinook Kennels has two of sled dog
racing's most historic markers. The first was dedicated by Admiral
Richard Byrd in 1938. The inscription reads, "To all the noble dogs
that had given their lives in the service of exploration."
Cook said two of Byrd's explorations of Antarctica, which provided the
world with so much knowledge about that continent, used dozens of sled
dogs bred at Chinook Kennels.
"We have one Army expedition sled in our collection," Cook said.
The second memorial is dedicated to Richard Moulton of Meredith who
passed away in 2000. He was known as one of the best sled dog drivers
in New England and raced teams in the Laconia World Championship Sled
Dog Derby and other races, Cook said.
He also trained the sled dogs used in the Byrd expeditions, Cook said.
As soon as visitors see those markers, Cook said they realize why
Chinook Kennel holds a prominent place in sled dog history. But the
kennels' current site is really not where sled dog racing began in New
Hampshire, he said.
The story actually began when Arthur Walden went to Alaska in 1899 and
discovered the sport, Cook said. When he returned to New Hampshire in
1909, Cook said Walden settled in the Wonalancet area and married Kate
Sleeper, who ran the Inn at Wonalancet Farm.
In 1917, Walden bred a litter of sled dogs that became known as the
Chinook breed, Cook said. He named the breed after his former lead
dog, Chinook, from his racing days in Alaska. In 1921, the first
International Sled Dog Race, a 25-mile event that ran from Berlin to
Dixville Notch, Groveton, Jefferson, Gorham and then back to Berlin
was held, Cook said.
In 1930, Milton and Eva "Short" Seeley took over the breeding
operation from Walden and built the Chinook Kennels at the current
site, Cook said.
During World War II, he added, the Seeleys bred and trained sled dogs
for U.S. Army search and rescue missions.
"At the peak of the war years, there were 150 dogs in residence at
Chinook," Cook said.
There was even a separate "Army Dog Yard" at the bottom of the hill
near the stream behind the buildings, Cook said. After her husband
passed away, Eva Seeley operated the kennels until her death in 1983,
Cook said.
"In the summer, she would charge people 25 cents and 50 cents to view
photos of the Byrd expedition, and she would charge people $3 or $4 to
help her feed her own dogs - the ultimate tourist racket," Cook said.
In 1983, James Wall purchased the property. Though he was aware of its
historical significance, Cook said he had no intention of promoting
it. Wall's purchase marked the first and only time Chinook Kennel was
lost to the sled dog community, Cook said.
George Cook is not related to Robert M. Cook. Robert Cook can be
reached by calling 742-4455, ext. 5396 or via e-mail at bcookfosters.com.
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