"Keeping Physically Fit" - Admiral Byrd Expedition Article by C. Ward Crampton, Sept. 1935

Item Information

Title:
"Keeping Physically Fit" - Admiral Byrd Expedition Article by C. Ward Crampton, Sept. 1935
Description:
A "Keeping Physically Fit" article appearing in the September, 1935 Boy's Life Magazine written by C. Ward Crampton about the Admiral Byrd Arctic Expedition. The center image of the column shows Admiral Byrd greeting Paul Siple. They are standing with a small group of men near their sleds and skis. A few sled dogs lie in foreground in the bottom left corner. Although the date of this column's publication suggest the article chronicles a portion of Admiral Byrd's second arctic voyage, the article describes Byrd as "rejoining his first Antarctic Expedition at Panama." C. Ward Crampton's account starts as an adventure story, describing the crew as having explored "every wild corner of the world," before segueing into praising Byrd as the first to "have his personnel given a thorough medical examination and overhauling before they engaged in the grueling labors." In the following sections he endorses his philosophy of preventative care by first describing a man they disqualified and then describing future illness he was able to predict and address it. In the final section, Crampton describes the tests he used to assess the explorers' physical aptitude so that readers could assess their own.
Creator:
Crampton, C. Ward (Charles Ward), 1877-1964
Date:
September 1935
Format:
Documents
Location:
Springfield College Archives and Special Collections
Collection (local):
College Archives Digital Collections
Series:
C. Ward Crampton Papers > b
Subjects:
Boy Scouts
Byrd, Richard Evelyn, 1888-1957
Crampton, C. Ward (Charles Ward), 1877-1964
Boy Scouts of America
Antarctica
Physical fitness
Expeditions & surveys
Extent:
2 pages
Link to Item:
http://cdm16122.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15370coll2/id/10236
Terms of Use:
Text and images are owned, held, or licensed by Springfield College and are available for personal, non-commercial, and educational use, provided that ownership is properly cited. A credit line is required and should read: Courtesy of Springfield College, Babson Library, Archives and Special Collections. Any commercial use without written permission from Springfield College is strictly prohibited. Other individuals or entities other than, and in addition to, Springfield College may also own copyrights and other propriety rights. The publishing, exhibiting, or broadcasting party assumes all responsibility for clearing reproduction rights and for any infringement of United States copyright law.
Contact host institution for more information.
Publisher:
Boy Scouts of America
Language:
English
Notes:
Charles Ward Crampton (May 26, 1877- 1964) was a physician, medical researcher, and teacher. Born in New York City, he attended the College of the City of New York, New York University, and in 1900 graduated from the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York. His major contributions to the medical field include work with geriatrics and gerontology, adolescent hygiene and physical fitness, posture, and blood pressure and circulatory systems. He created what is today known as the Crampton Test for Fatal Shock, which measures the physical condition and resistance of one’s pulse and blood pressure in the resting and standing positions. Crampton was a major in the U.S. Army Medical Reserve and acted as Special Adviser to the U.S. Department of the East during World War I. Crampton was a vocal advocate of preventative medicine and the maintenance of a personal medical record by individuals, and served as Chairman of the Committee on Physical Fitness through the Federal Security Agency, Chairman of the Committee on the Health of Adolescents, and the chairman for the sub-committee on Geriatrics and Gerontology through the medical society of New York County. In addition, he founded the Aristogenic Association, which he describes as: “While Eugenics and Kakogenics are generally understood to refer respectively to consideration of good and evil in the sphere of Genetics, Aristogenics refers to the best." For his regular Boys' Life column, boy scouts from across the country wrote to Crampton with questions about physical fitness (e.g. diet, exercise, stretching, sport strategies and techniques, growth and development). Crampton’s vast knowledge of adolescent life and health contributed to his column's success, and in 1941 he received the Silver Buffalo reward for his distinguished service to youth. Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd, Jr. (October 25, 1888 – March 11, 1957) was a naval officer, pioneering American aviator, polar explorer, and recipient of the Medal of Honor. Byrd explored the Antarctic on four separate expeditions, of which the United States government official backed the last two. His fourth trip in 1946 is still the largest Antarctic expedition to date. Boys' Life magazine, founded by George S. Barton of Somerville, Massachusetts in 1911, still circulates today. The following year, the Boy Scouts of America purchased the magazine for $6,000 (one dollar per subscriber). Boys' Life was marketed toward older boys, providing purchasing guides for cars, MP3 players, digital cameras, sunglasses, and more. Along with a regular fitness section added in 2005, they feature video game reviews, technology, book reviews, adventure stories, environmental issues, sports, history, and comics.
The documents are fragile. There is some writing in blue ink in three places on the front page. There are two large indents at the top left and top right edge of both pages from paperclips. There is a crease across the center of both pages from being folded in half.
Identifier:
ms510-01-b-01-10-016