WILLOUGHBY, Florence Barrett

Born 1900; died 29 July 1959, Berkeley, California

Wrote under: Barrett Willoughby

Daughter of Martin Barrett; married Robert Prosser

Florence Barrett Willoughby, daughter of a riverboat captain, was, as she comments in Gentlemen Unafraid (1928), literally raised on Alaska's waters. Some of her earliest Alaskan experiences are recounted in her first novel, Where the Sun Swings North (1922). She grew to love Alaska, its land, history, and people—and all but one of her novels have an Alaska setting. Many of her male protagonists are, like her father, riverboat captains, and all of her female protagonists share her love of the state. In addition to her novels, she wrote short stories, travel books, and character sketches of significant Alaskan pioneers.

Where the Sun Swings North centers on two sisters, Jean and Ellen. After giving Ellen's husband false information about the presence of gold on a deserted island, the evil and lecherous "White Chief" of Katleen, Paul Kilbuck, abandons them there, not returning with the winter provisions he had promised. He gives Ellen, whom he wishes to seduce, a homing pigeon, which she is to release when she decides she wants him. Meanwhile, his drunken bookkeeper, Gregg Harlan, attempts to warn the family but becomes a castaway too. Thanks to foraging, they all survive the winter; Harlan "dries out" and falls in love with Jean; Jean discovers a rich vein of gold, and Kilbuck gets his just desserts.

As in this first novel, all her others feature romance and outdoor adventure. Rocking Moon (1925) is about the independent, strong-minded Sasha Larianoff—who, to keep her Russian Orthodox father out of debt, sets up a successful fox farm on the island of Rocking Moon—and the men who are interested in her. The Trail Eater (1929) is loosely based on the adventures of Scotty Allen, which Willoughby had already described the year before in Gentlemen Unafraid. It traces Kerry Wayne's eventful and successful bid to win the All-Alaska Sweepstakes, a 400-mile dogsled race from Nome to the Arctic Sea and back, and, incidentally, the heart of Barbee Neilan, spunky ex-fiancée of his major opponent.

The title of Spawn of the North (1932) refers to both salmon and first generation Alaskans. Dian Turlon is the daughter of a canning king and has returned to Alaska for a nostalgic vacation before her marriage to a "Southerner." After many adventures and not much of a vacation, she discovers the vigorous North is preferable to the materialistic South and that she has opportunities in Alaska for independence, adventure, and accomplishment that she could never have "Outside."

Sondra O'Moore (1939) alternates between the adventurous seafaring days of Sondra's grandfather, Dynamite Danny, and contemporary Alaska. One of Sondra's suitors, Jean, tries to warn her that the other is illicitly involved with Japanese imperialists. Sondra is kidnapped, Jean rescues her, and all the protagonists are reconciled.

Willoughby writes Alaska potboilers bubbling with romance (at least three potential lovers per novel) and fast-paced adventure (usually on the high seas). She also celebrates Alaska—the land, the lifestyle, the traditions—so much so that all of her Alaska-born protagonists are fiercely loyal to the land and all of her Outside protagonists succumb to Alaska's lure. Most interesting in Willoughby's work are her portraits of almost mythic Alaskan women. All of her heroines are physically dauntless; they sail boats, ride horses, and drive dogsleds superbly. They are intensely interested in the work of Alaska, whether it be fishing or mining, and occasionally run their own businesses (Rocking Moon) or take over their father's (Spawn of the North). And they always marry the man who possesses the same physical attributes and interests. Willoughby has created the ideal "Daughter of Alaska"—independent, self-sufficient, intelligent, and devoted to her homeland.

Other Works:

Sitka, Portal to Romance (1930). Sitka: To Know Alaska One Must First Know Sitka (1930). Alaskans All (1933). River House (1936). Alaska Holiday (1940). The Golden Totem (1945). Pioneer of Alaska Skies: The Story of Ben Eielson (with E. W. Chandler, 1959).