Mail delivery quickly became an important service for prospectors arriving in Alaska for the Gold Rush. During the winter, dogsleds delivered first class mail to Nome once a month. Magazines and newspapers had to wait for the steamers which ran after the ice melted. Dogsled mail carriers generally worked in relay, each carrying the mail along a particular section of the route. Their dogs and sleds had to be kept in excellent condition.

This photo, taken sometime between 1902 and 1908 by B.B. Dobbs, shows the sled and dogteam belonging to a mail carrier identified as Bob Griffis who delivered mail in the Nome area. This involved crossing the ice of the Bering Sea.

Written on photo: Bob Griffis U.S. mail carrier one mile in front of Nome on Bering Sea Alaska
Photographer's number: 657