Henry Peter "Harry" Karstens (1878November 28, 1955) was the first superintendent of Mount McKinley National Park (now known as Denali National Park), from 1921 to 1928. He was the guide and climbing leader of the first complete ascent of Mount McKinley

Mount McKinley

Mount McKinley or Denali in Alaska, United States is the highest mountain peak in North America and the United States, with a summit elevation of above sea level. It is the centerpiece of Denali National Park and Preserve.- Geology and features :Mount McKinley is a granitic pluton...

 in 1913, with expedition members Hudson Stuck

Hudson Stuck

Hudson Stuck with Harry P. Karstens co-led the first expedition to successfully climb the South Peak of Mount McKinley.Stuck, an Episcopal Archdeacon, was born in London and graduated from King's College London...

, Walter Harper

Walter Harper

Walter Harper was the first person to reach the summit of Mount McKinley/Denali, the highest mountain in North America. Harper, an Alaska Native, was part of the mountaineering team of Hudson Stuck...

, and Robert Tatum.

Harry Karstens was born in Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 and went north during the Klondike gold rush

Klondike Gold Rush

The Klondike Gold Rush, also called the Yukon Gold Rush, the Alaska Gold Rush and the Last Great Gold Rush, was an attempt by an estimated 100,000 people to travel to the Klondike region the Yukon in north-western Canada between 1897 and 1899 in the hope of successfully prospecting for gold...

 in 1897. As a packer, he hauled miner's supplies over the Chilkoot Pass

Chilkoot Pass

Chilkoot Pass is a high mountain pass through the Boundary Ranges of the Coast Mountains in the U.S. state of Alaska and British Columbia, Canada. It is the highest point along the Chilkoot Trail that leads from Dyea, Alaska to Bennett Lake, British Columbia...

 on his back. Unsuccessful as a miner, he started a freight business, hauling freight with dog teams. As a contract mail carrier he was paid $75 per month. With freighter and mail carrier Charles McGonagall he pioneered portions of the Valdez

Valdez, Alaska

Valdez is a city in Valdez-Cordova Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 4,020. The city is one of the most important ports in Alaska. The port of Valdez was named in 1790 after the Spanish naval officer Antonio Valdés y...

 to Fairbanks

Fairbanks, Alaska

Fairbanks is a home rule city in and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska.Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, and second largest in the state behind Anchorage...

 mail route. In addition to dog teams, he also ran riverboats.

In 1907, Karstens accompanied hunter, conservationist, and naturalist Charles Sheldon, on hunting trips into the Toklat River region. Sheldon, the chairman of the Boone and Crockett Club

Boone and Crockett Club

The Boone and Crockett Club conservationist organization, founded in the United States in 1887 by Theodore Roosevelt. The club was named in honor of Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett, whom the club's founders viewed as ethical hunters and honest men who loved the outdoors and earthly pursuits...

, then successfully campaigned to have the area set aside as a national park.