MPR’s Ellen Finn put together this look at Ann Bancroft’s legacy to celebrate Women’s History Month.
“Ann Bancroft, first woman to finish a number of expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic
Ann Bancroft was an adventurer from a young age growing up in St. Paul. She attributes her curiosity about the outdoors to her parents.
‘I took canoe trips with my mother and father,’ she said. ‘They always let me camp out, they never told me I couldn’t do it, so they were quite encouraging.’
When Bancroft was 30, she joined an international north pole expedition. She became the first woman to ever make her way to the North Pole on foot and by sled. Later, she became the first woman to cross both polar ice caps to reach the North and South Poles.
In 1995, Ann was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame.”
— Ellen Finn
Transcripts
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[MUSIC PLAYING] ELLEN FINN: For Women's History Month, MPR News is highlighting influential women in Minnesota. I'm Ellen Finn. Ann Bancroft was an adventurer from a young age, growing up in Saint Paul. She started leading wilderness expeditions around Minnesota as a teenager, and in her 20s, she climbed Mount McKinley. But she wanted more. When Ann was 30, she actualized her dream to join an international North Pole expedition. She became the first woman to ever make her way to the North Pole on foot and by sled.
ANN BANCROFT: And that was extraordinarily fun and hard and wonderful.
ELLEN FINN: But that wasn't enough.
ANN BANCROFT: I came back from that and put together a team of women, and we went across Greenland pulling sleds. And then we went down to the South Pole. And after that, I still didn't have enough of Antarctica. So I went for 97 days all the way across Antarctica, and we dragged each 270 pounds sled.
ELLEN FINN: That made her the first woman to cross both polar ice caps to reach the North and South Poles, and one of the first women to ski across Antarctica.
ANN BANCROFT: It scares people to be out in this frigid weather, but winter is an absolute gas.
ELLEN FINN: Time and time again, Ann has bravely risked hypothermia, frostbite, and death, all to explore new winter landscapes.
ANN BANCROFT: I was pretty nervous. What am I getting into? I'm not a dog sledder. But once you get on the ice and start doing what you're supposed to be doing, that feeling initially just vanishes.
ELLEN FINN: She's used her expedition career to draw attention to global warming. And in 1991, she founded the Ann Bancroft Foundation to support girls and women in the outdoors. In 1995, Ann was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame. Today, Ann is still known for sharing her love of nature, especially Minnesota winters, with the world.
ANN BANCROFT: As soon as I walk out-- I don't know-- my energy rises. I don't know. It's hard for me to describe how much it just lifts my spirit.
ELLEN FINN: Celebrate women in Minnesota all month long with MPR News.
SPEAKER: And you're listening to All Things Considered at 20 minutes after 3:00.