Alaskan Dog Team Wows Tulare County

Alaskan Dog Team Wows Tulare County

Words and Photos Provided by Terry Ommen

Rarely has Tulare County seen a real live Alaskan dog sled team, complete with musher. But a century ago, a fully professional, working seven-dogsled team led by their famous musher Jeremiah “Jerry” Dwyer traveled through town. So how did this well-known celebrity dog master and his special canines get to Tulare County? Let’s start at the beginning.

In the late 1880s, a group of entrepreneurs, water experts, and dreamers gazed up into the peaks of the Sierra above Fresno and began imagining how San Joaquin River water could be harnessed to generate electricity. That vision became reality and is known as the Big Creek Project. Today, the water that drops over 6,000 feet in elevation and rushes through a series of tunnels and dams and is called the “hardest working water in the world.”

This world-class hydroelectric project, owned and operated by Southern California Edison, is an impressive engineering marvel as it cuts through solid granite and traverses steep mountain terrain.

In 1920, Edison experienced construction delays, so they added winter camps between Florence and Huntington lakes in order to keep crews working year-round. But these high-altitude, deep snow locations posed a big problem. No road access in the winter meant

workers were isolated for months and unable to communicate with the outside world, including their loved ones. Some necessary provisions would also be cut off, and no newspapers, mail, or any other comforts would get to the workers.

Edison knew their employees needed contact and supplies, but the difficult terrain, packed deep with snow, made normal transportation options impossible. So the company looked north to Alaska for their answer: the dogsled.

They sent a hiring team north, where they found an old Klondike (Canadian frontiersman) named Jeremiah “Jerry” Dwyer and his dogsled team. He was a quiet man who came with high recommendations. Soon Edison employees learned why he was known as “silent Jerry Dwyer.” Even though he had little to say about himself, he always had plenty to say about the members of his dog team. His animals meant the world to him, especially his lead dog, Babe, a three-quarter wolf mix. And he was proud of his other dogs, too, which included Patsy, a cross between a malamute and Gordon setter; Dooley, a cross between a malamute and a shepherd; Riley, half-wolf and half-St. Bernard; and Barney, Whiskey and Trim, all crossed between staghound, wolf and Airedale.

The building on the far right, located on the southwest corner of Church and Center streets, belonged to the S. Sweet Co. at the time of the dogsled exhibition. The building was believed to be demolished in the 1960s to make way for a parking lot. Circa 1965.

A deal was struck and Dwyer and his dog team became employees of Southern California Edison. But more importantly, the team became the winter lifeline to the intentionally marooned 600700 workers at the high elevation Edison snow camps. The team made the 13-mile one-way trip from the Huntington Lake Post Office to the snow camps over Kaiser Pass. The next day they made a return trip.

Harry Beidleman, Secretary of the Visalia Chamber of Commerce, heard about Edison’s team and their unique assignment. He contacted the company asking if they could come to Visalia as an educational exhibit. He knew it was a long shot, as the team was rarely put on display, but surprisingly, the power company agreed.

Dwyer and his dog team began their exhibition on Monday, October 1, 1923, using the available S. Sweet Co. building at the southwest corner of Church and Center streets in Visalia. The building had most recently been used as the temporary quarters of the Bank of Italy while their new bank building was being constructed. Additional electrical wiring was added to the building as a precaution in case portable fans were needed if the weather became too warm. The animals could not tolerate heat, so the plan was that, if needed, blocks of ice and additional fans would be brought in to blow cool air onto the canines.

Every day from 10:00 am to 10:00 pm, Jerry and his dogs were on display, free of charge, to the public. Day after day, adults and school children were dazzled as Dwyer talked about his dogs, their pedigree, and their habits, but as expected, he shared very little about himself. He loved to talk about Babe, his famous lead dog, who had died a year earlier. Emotions gripped him as he described the impact of her loss. Her death hurt him more than he could have ever imagined, he said. The wolf mix had died in his arms, but thankfully did not suffer. Patsy had then taken over as lead dog. Babe, who died in September 1922, was buried on Kaiser Pass with an appropriately marked grave placed by the U.S. Forest Service.

In addition to the living exhibits, the exhibition included a dogsled and equipment along with a collection of photographs.

J.E. Buckman, Tulare County Superintendent of Schools, publicized the event widely, encouraging children and parents to come and see the exhibit. By Wednesday, almost 5,000 had attended, and by Sunday, the number had grown to nearly 12,000. The “silent man of the North” and his dogs were obviously a big hit. On Monday morning, October 8, 1923, after adding one additional exhibition day to the schedule, Dwyer and his team left Visalia bound for Huntington Lake to prepare for another winter season. Tulare County was awestruck by Jerry and his team.

Jeremiah “Jerry” Dwyer and one of his dogs as it appeared in the Visalia Morning Delta, September 29, 1923.

Jeremiah “Jerry” Dwyer and one of his dogs as it appeared in the Visalia Morning Delta, September 29, 1923.