Last Week I gave a talk here at IMAS about the (now famous) Antarctic Cows. When I headed over to Wisconsin, dairy capital of the USA, I had no idea that I would find such an Antarctic treasure with milky connections. My supervisor and I are currently working on a paper on the topic, but I gave an informal presentation to my peers here at IMAS to introduce them to the weird and wonderful tale. Apparently there is wider interest in the topic, as I also got a call from the local ABC radio, asking if I would like to come down to chat about my project on-air. So it was that the American Geographical Society Library got a mention on the Hobart airwaves, and the tale of Iceberg, the most southerly born dairy cow, was spread throughout the city. A recording of the interview is available here (at 1 hour 4 minutes), and the tweets below outline part of that presentation. As for the rest of the details? Well, watch this space!
Here’s short a roundup of the #Antarcticow project… We start in the dairy capital of the USA… #Wisconsin pic.twitter.com/EeInus8Dls
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
Why #Wisconsin? The @AGSLib is based at the @UWM, & I was there on a research fellowship when I found #Antarcticow pic.twitter.com/tqHftnW9on
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
This is what the @AGSLib looks like inside. So many #maps! I was looking at #Antarctica & #sponsorship #Antarcticow pic.twitter.com/vCfI3vO5D8
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
…when I came across images & articles like these. #Byrd‘s #Antarctic #cows? I had to know more… #Antarcticow pic.twitter.com/6IEx1rrTYj
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
These are the 3 stars of the story: All lovely Golden Guernseys, & all #SouthwardBound in 1933. #moo #Antarcticow pic.twitter.com/7luFVR5v4n
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
#Antarcticow the cows were going to “solve the #milk problem” – but they also garnered #publicity & #sponsorship pic.twitter.com/A7ODSpLhPP
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
#Byrd‘s men must’ve been thirsty! 45 quarts of #milk per day is quite a bit for 55 men… #Antarcticow pic.twitter.com/q9IRN4HyHV
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
First there were 3, then along came #Iceberg the calf. Claimed title of fastest #south birth of a dairy animal! #Antarcticow
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
3 came home too, just not the same 3…Unfortunately #Iceberg‘s mother succumbed to #frostbite shortly before the return voyage #Antarcticow
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
Once back in the USA the #Antarcticow(s) were celebrities! Barnstorming tours, fancy luncheons, even a film “Guernseys Discover #Antarctica”
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
There’s more to the story of #Antarcticow though – there’s the #publicity angle, animal #celebrity, + issues of #colonisation & #claims
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
Lesson learnt? You never find exactly what you expect in #Archives, but sometimes the sidetracks can be v fruitful! #Antarcticow @AGSLib
— Hanne Nielsen (@WideWhiteStage) September 10, 2015
