In the harsh winter of 1925, the remote Alaskan town of Nome faced a terrifying diphtheria outbreak. With over 10,000 lives hanging in the balance, particularly children, the town’s isolation turned into a critical vulnerability. An essential antitoxin was available, but the closest point reachable by train was Nenana, a daunting 674 miles away. Impending blizzard conditions made air delivery impossible. The only viable option: a relay of sled dog teams. This desperate situation set the stage for the “Great Race of Mercy,” and at its heart is the Togo Dog Real Story, an account of incredible endurance often overshadowed by popular narratives.
Twenty mushers and their teams were assembled for the relay, including Leonhard Seppala, Alaska’s most respected musher. In an astonishing feat, the serum reached Nome in just five and a half days. While Balto, the lead dog of the final 53-mile leg, gained widespread fame, many knowledgeable insiders argue that the true heroics belonged to Seppala and his lead Siberian Husky, Togo. At 12 years old, Togo led Seppala’s team across an unbelievable 264 miles of the most treacherous terrain, far exceeding the average 31 miles covered by other teams. For years, Balto was celebrated, even receiving a statue in New York’s Central Park. However, the real story, championed by historians and those present, points to Togo as the serum run’s pivotal figure. Recognition grew over time, leading to Togo’s own statue in NYC’s Seward Park in 2001, the 2019 Disney+ film Togo (starring his descendant, Diesel), and features in museum exhibitions like the AKC Museum of the Dog’s “Mush! A Tribute to Sled Dogs From Arctic Exploration to the Iditarod.”
From Rambunctious Pup To Legendary Lead
Black and white photo of Togo the Siberian Husky leading a sled dog team alone on a snowy trail in 1921
Leonhard Seppala, originally from Norway, arrived in Alaska in 1900. At that time, sled dogs were predominantly larger Alaskan Malamutes or mixed breeds. Working for the Pioneer Mining Company, Seppala quickly gained a reputation as a formidable musher. Around this period, the first Siberian Huskies arrived in Nome via Russian fur trader William Goosak. These smaller dogs, weighing around 50 pounds, surprisingly secured third place in the 1909 All-Alaska Sweepstakes race.
Inspired by this, English musher Fox Ramsay imported 60 top Siberian specimens in the summer of 1909. In the 1910 All-Alaska Sweepstakes, a team composed entirely of these Siberians, led by musher “Iron Man” Johnson, claimed first place, setting a course record that still stands. This solidified the reputation of the smaller, tenacious Siberians as exceptional sled dogs.
Though breeding records from the era are incomplete, Togo is believed to have been born in 1913 to a dam named Dolly, considered a foundational bitch for the breed. Seppala’s kennel housed many of Nome’s best sled dogs. As a puppy, Togo was plagued by health issues, appearing undersized and unfit for the demanding work. Seppala initially saw little potential in him and gave him away. However, demonstrating remarkable determination, Togo broke through a glass window and journeyed back to Seppala’s kennel. It seemed Seppala was destined to keep the persistent pup.
As Togo matured, he became intensely focused on the working sled dogs. Though too young for a harness, he frequently escaped to run alongside Seppala’s training teams, causing his owner considerable frustration. His mischievous nature once led to a severe mauling when he approached a team of much larger Malamutes. Fed up, Seppala decided to harness the unruly 8-month-old Togo and put him in the team line. Remarkably, Togo ran 75 miles that first day, instinctively working his way up to the lead position. Seppala had inadvertently discovered the extraordinary lead dog he had always sought.
Togo & the 1925 Nome Serum Run
Leonhard Seppala kneeling with six Siberian Huskies including Togo on the far left before the 1925 serum run
Through the years, Togo became renowned throughout Alaska for his intelligence, strength, endurance, and unwavering spirit as Seppala’s lead dog. He led the team on countless races and expeditions, forging an unbreakable bond with Seppala. During this period, Seppala himself achieved victory in the All-Alaska Sweepstakes in 1915, 1916, and 1917.
When the diphtheria crisis erupted in 1925, Togo was 12 and Seppala 47. Both were considered past their peak years. Yet, with Nome’s fate uncertain, the community recognized that this experienced pair represented their best chance. As the death toll climbed, the decision for the relay was finalized. The plan involved multiple teams transporting 300,000 units of serum from Nenana, where it would arrive by train, across the remaining 674 miles to Nome. On January 29th, Seppala, with Togo leading his 20 best Siberians, departed Nome eastward to intercept the serum from the relay heading west. Notably, Seppala did not select Balto for his team, deeming him not yet ready for such a critical lead role.
Battling temperatures around -30 degrees Fahrenheit, Seppala and his dogs covered over 170 miles eastward in an incredible three days. Meanwhile, the situation in Nome grew more desperate. Officials decided to add more teams to the relay, a decision made without Seppala’s knowledge. Taking a perilous shortcut across the frozen Norton Sound to save vital time and distance, Seppala had a near-miraculous encounter with Henry Ivanoff’s team – one of the late additions carrying the serum westward. They almost passed each other in the whiteout conditions, but thanks partly to the dogs’ instincts, the crucial handover occurred. Now, the immense responsibility of returning the serum towards Nome fell upon Seppala and Togo.
The return journey across the Sound proved even more treacherous. The team became stranded on a breaking ice floe. In a moment of quick thinking, Seppala attached a line to Togo and threw the dog across five feet of open, freezing water. Togo tried to pull the ice floe carrying the sled and Seppala, but the line snapped. In an astonishing display of intelligence and courage, Togo retrieved the broken line from the water, wrapped it around his shoulders like a makeshift harness, and pulled his team and the precious cargo to safety.
After covering an almost unbelievable distance back on land, Seppala and his exhausted team finally handed the serum off in Golovin, 78 miles from Nome. Among the mushers assigned to these final legs was Gunnar Kaasen who, contrary to Seppala’s assessment, had chosen Balto to lead his team. On February 3rd, 1925, Kaasen and Balto arrived in Nome to public acclaim. The serum had arrived, and the town was saved.
The Legacy of Togo
Leonhard Seppala affectionately petting his aging lead dog Togo in Maine circa 1929 marking their final years together
While Kaasen and Balto initially received most of the public adoration, those involved in the serum run knew the monumental effort undertaken by Seppala and Togo. In the years following the Great Race of Mercy, Seppala toured the contiguous United States with his heroic dogs. During a trip to New England, Seppala accepted a friendly challenge race against a local team of Chinooks. With Togo leading his final race, the smaller Siberian team emerged victorious.
Eventually, Seppala partnered with New England musher Elizabeth Ricker to establish a Siberian Husky kennel in Poland Spring, Maine. Togo lived out his remaining years there peacefully, receiving the dignified retirement he deserved. The legendary dog was laid to rest in 1929 at the age of 16. Seppala returned to Alaska in 1932, and the kennel’s dogs were transferred to his friend Harry Wheeler. According to the Siberian Husky Club of America, virtually all registered Siberian Huskies today trace their lineage back to the dogs from the Seppala-Ricker or Wheeler kennels.
Mounted body of Togo the hero sled dog displayed prominently at Iditarod Race Headquarters in Wasilla Alaska
Over time, the true narrative gained traction, and Togo began receiving the recognition he merited as the serum run’s central canine figure. In 1983, his preserved body was given a place of honor at the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Headquarters in Wasilla, Alaska. The Iditarod, the most famous modern sled dog race, follows parts of the historic 1925 serum run trail each March.
Leonhard Seppala passed away in 1967 at 89. The Leonhard Seppala Humanitarian Award, presented annually at the Iditarod to the musher demonstrating the best dog care, serves as a lasting tribute. Seppala himself reflected on the incredible journey and his remarkable lead dog in his unpublished autobiography:
“Afterwards, I thought of the ice and the darkness and the terrible wind and the irony that men could build planes and ships. But when Nome needed life in little packages of serum, it took the dogs to bring it through.”
References & Further Reading On Togo:
- Leonhard Seppala: The Siberian Dog and The Golden Age of Sleddog Racing 1908-1941 by Bob & Pam Thomas
- The Cruelest Miles: The Heroic Story of Dogs and Men in a Race Against An Epidemic by Gay & Laney Salisbury
- Togo’s Fireside Reflections by Elizabeth M. Ricker
