Balch, Edwin Swift, 1856-1927

Variant names

Dates:

Birth 1856

Death 1927

Biographical notes:

Amateur artist.

From the description of Paintings of Edwin Swift Balch [manuscript], 1871-1891. (University of Virginia). WorldCat record id: 647818232

Edwin Swift Balch was born in 1856 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, son of the distinguished lawyer Thomas Balch. He was educated in France and Germany and studied at Harvard University. Although qualified as a lawyer, Balch chose to travel around the world and became an authority on polar history and exploration. Between 1909 and 1910, Balch served as chairman of the Committee on South Polar Exploration. He was appointed president of the Philadelphia Geographical Society and was a fellow of the American Geographical Society. He died in 1927.

Published work, The North Pole and Bradley Land by Edwin Swift Balch, Campion and Co. Philadelphia (1913) (3)91(08)[1907-1909] and Antarctica by Edwin Swift Balch, Allen, Lane & Scott, Philadelphia (1902) SPRI Library Shelf (7)91(091)[1902]

From the guide to the Edwin Balch collection, 1909-1913, (Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge)