“The picture was taken by my brother in the spring of 1961. We flew out of Fairbanks to a place called Herman the German’s at Beaver Creek,” says Ken Kellogg. “Herman was a trapper on Beaver Creek and my brother flew supplies to him throughout the year. Herman had a shortwave radio and he would call Fairbanks when he needed supplies. My brother flew for a small bush operator out of Fairbanks called Frontier Flying Service.”
“It was spring and the ice was starting to break up. We took a couple of fishing rods and hopped in the Super Cub. Beaver Creek was about 75 miles out of Fairbanks and the runway was a gravel bar.
“What was interesting was that Herman had ordered a mail order bride from Germany the year before. She arrived in San Francisco and Herman flew to San Francisco and they were married there. She couldn’t speak any English and Herman’s English wasn’t much better. They were great people. Their cabin was pretty rustic and had a 55-gallon drum cut almost in half for a stove. The stove had a heavy iron lid.
“Herman used his short wave radio to keep in contact with the outside world and for emergencies. He also built a cache for storing his pelts.
“That day we fished some open water for white fish and later punched a hole in the ice and caught a lot of grayling. What a day we had. We loaded about 30 pounds of fish in a duffle bag and I sat on the bag in the back seat of the Super Cub. In Fairbanks we took the fish to a super market and Herman was credited for the weight of the fish.”
Enjoyed the back story for the pic but I do have a couple of questions: (1) How often did Herman have to be supplied with replacement batteries for his only life line, his radio, in such a remote location and (2) how long did he and his mail order bride remain hitched?
I really don’t know what kind of radio he had or how often he needed to replace the batteries. As to how long he and his mail order bride stayed married, I left Fairbanks two years later and never heard from Herman again.
I always enjoy hearing the back story of a photo. I relished every word of this one. Thanks
Great story – thanks for sharing!