In conjunction with a memorial service for Robert H. Bates (1911-2007), the exhibit case in the entrance area of the library featured an exhibit about Mr. Bates’ career at Exeter and in the world beyond.

After graduation from Exeter in 1929, Mr. Bates attended Harvard, where he earned a B.A. degree in 1933 and a master’s degree in 1935. At Harvard, he became interested in mountaineering, along with four close friends, including Bradford Washburn, who photographed many of their expeditions together. The exhibit lays out different phases of his life, including a 1937 National Geographic Society expedition to Mount Lucania in the Yukon territory, the highest unclimbed peak in North America, and numerous other mountaineering expeditions. In 1939, Bates joined the Academy as an instructor in the English department, embarking on years that divided his time between expeditions and teaching. He left in 1941 to become a consultant to the United States Army to help test and improve winter clothing and equipment. Returning to Exeter, in 1948 he started the Exeter Mountaineering Club, which had a profound influence on a number of graduates.

In September 1953, Bates again left the Academy to join an expedition to K2, which at that time had never been successfully ascended. Although the ascent was unsuccessful, with the climbers turned back by a massive storm and the serious illness of a fellow climber, the attempt led to the publication of K2: The Savage Mountain (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1954), which was co-authored with other members of the expedition. Following his return to the Academy later that year, Bates continued to inspire students with his love of the mountains and climbing. In 1962, he was asked by the Peace Corps to take another leave to direct the first Peace Corps volunteers in Nepal. In 1985, he was awarded the Academy’s highest honor, the John Phillips Award. The award recognizes and honors an Exeter graduate whose life and contributions to the welfare of community, country and humanity exemplify the nobility of character and usefulness to humanity that John Phillips sought to promote in establishing the Academy.

Several of Bates’ books are on display in the cases: Five Miles High: The Story of an Attack on the Second Highest Mountain in the World by the Members of the First American Karakoram Expedition (New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1939); Mystery, Beauty and Danger (Portsmouth, NH: Peter E. Randall Publisher, 2000); Mountain Man: The Story of Belmore Browne (Clinton, NJ: Amwell Press, 1988); and his autobiography, The Love of Mountains is Best (Portsmouth, NH: P.E. Randall, 1994).

In addition to the exhibit, many more items are displayed on floor 2M in the Robert H. Bates Room, which was established in 1996 to house part of Mr. Bates’ spectacular collection of mountaineering books. Mr. Bates collected books about mountains and mountaineering from the time he began climbing them. His collection represents many aspects of mountaineering, such as its history, famous expeditions, and pioneer men and women climbers. The collection also includes books presented by John Wharton in honor of Mr. Bates. A selection of Mr. Bates’ books is already in the room, along with a case of materials about Mr. Bates and mountaineering equipment belonging to him. In addition to the books and equipment on display, the Bates Room also has several photographs by Bradford Washburn, presented in 1997 by Peter Wilson ’66.

The exhibit is on display in the entrance lobby, outside the Kaplanoff Periodicals Room, through November 16, 2007. For further information, please contact Academy Librarian Jacquelyn Thomas at (603) 777-3328.