2025-12-2 Guide to the Richard W. Konter Correspondence Sent During Byrd Antarctic Expedition I, 1929-1930s SPEC.PA.56.0247 Finding aid prepared by Audrey Wimbiscus Ohio State University Libraries Special Collections
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2025 November This finding aid was produced using the Archivists' Toolkit 2026-03-11T10:37-0400 English Describing Archives: A Content Standard Richard W. Konter Correspondence Sent During Byrd Antarctic Expedition I SPEC.PA.56.0247 Ohio State University Libraries Special Collections 0.3 Cubic feet 1929-1930s Richard "Dick" W. Konter (1882-1979) was a member of the United States Navy who joined Admiral Richard E. Byrd on the Arctic expedition for his North Pole flight in 1926, and on Byrd Antarctic Expedition I from 1928-1930. The Richard W. Konter Correspondence Sent During Byrd Antarctic Expedition I consists of correspondence sent by Konter to various correspondents while he was in Antarctica from 1929-1930, as well as a published photo book of images from the expedition. Materials are dated 1929-1930s. (1) 2.5" letter document box; (1) oversize folder English Konter, Dick Arrangement of Materials

Materials are arranged in chronological order; materials with the same date are further arranged in alphabetical order by title.

 Acquisitions Information

Accession No. PA.1998.0001: Peter Anderson, 1998; Accession No. PA.2000.0009: Robert M. and Ruth Murray, 2000 October; Accession No. PA.2006.0013: Barrett Taylor, 2006 August; Accession No. PA.2012.0016: Glenn Selzer, 2012 September

 Preferred Citation

[identification of item], Richard W. Konter Correspondence Sent During Byrd Antarctic Expedition I, SPEC.PA.56.0247, Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center Archival Program, Ohio State University

 Access to Materials

Materials in this collection are available for use, but may be used in the University Archives reading room only. Contact the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center Archival Program at polararchives@osu.edu for more information.

 Use of Materials

Materials in this collection may be protected by copyright, and are made available for research and educational purposes. In general, the OSU Libraries do not own the copyright for materials from our collections and cannot grant copyright permissions for these materials. The user is responsible for making a final determination of copyright status. If copyright protection applies, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder to reuse, publish, or reproduce the work beyond the bounds of fair use or other exceptions to the law. Works in the public domain are not protected by copyright and do not require permission to use.

 Processing Information

Processed by: Audrey Wimbiscus. 2025 November; Finding aid written by: Audrey Wimbiscus, 2025 November

 Biographical Note

Richard "Dick" W. Konter (1882-1979) was a member of the United States Navy who served in the Spanish Civil War, and retired from the Navy in 1926 as a Chief Radioman. He then joined Admiral Richard E. Byrd on the Arctic expedition for his North Pole flight in 1926, and also on Byrd Antarctic Expedition I from 1928-1930. During Byrd Antarctic Expedition I, Konter served aboard the United States Ship (USS) City of New York. He was not chosen to winter over in Antarctica, but his knowledge of sailing on wooden ships helped ensure the USS City of New York made it to New Zealand and back over the course of the winters. Konter was a busy correspondent during the expeditions, sending out hundreds of Christmas cards.

Konter also was known as a ukulele player; he learned how to play while stationed in Hawaii during his Navy days, and became a ukulele arranger for sheet music publishers, including for the song "Yes, We Have No Bananas." With the help of pilot Floyd Bennett, Konter smuggled a ukulele and harmonica onboard the plane used for Byrd's North Pole Flight, which was then signed by most members of the expedition. Konter also had one of his ukuleles flown over the South Pole during Byrd Antarctic Expedition I. The Konter Cliffs in Antarctica are named after him.

 Scope and Contents

The Richard W. Konter Correspondence Sent During Byrd Antarctic Expedition I consists of correspondence sent by Konter to various correspondents while he was in Antarctica from 1929-1930. Konter was a busy correspondent during the expedition, and was known to have sent hundreds of Christmas greetings while he was there, some of which did not arrive until over a year after being sent. The collection also includes a published photo book of images from the expedition. Materials are dated 1929-1930s.

 Related Materials Elaine Whiteford Collection on Richard W. Konter Byrd Antarctic Expedition (1st: 1928-1930) Konter, Dick Antarctica--Discovery and exploration--American--20th century Correspondence Music--Performance--Antarctica--20th century Radio engineers--Antarctica--20th century Radio--Antarctica--20th century Sailing--Antarctica--20th century Sailors--Antarctica--20th century Ukulele players--Antarctica--20th century Sent to Gertrude McNichol 1 1 1929-1930 Sent to the Byrons 1 2 1929-1930 Sent to Ruth Traff 1 3 1929 December 28 Sent to Glenn Selzer 1 5 1930 February Byrd Antarctic plane drawing Polar Flat Items 1 1 1930s Paramount Newsreel Men with Admiral Byrd in Little America book 1 4 1934