American Alpine Club

The American Alpine Club (AAC ) is an alpine club was established in 1902 with headquarters in Golden, Colorado, USA. He is the greatest American Climbing Association. Core activity is mountain expeditions, research and conservation. He is the editor of the American Alpine Journal ( AAJ ) and maintains a large mountain sports library. Around the year 2006, the AAC had about 7000 members. The AAC is a member of the UIAA.

History

In May 1901, the naturalist Angelo Heilprin and twelve companions met in Philadelphia to determine the future objectives of the Association. Finally, the AAC was founded in March 1902. The founding members included the mountaineers Annie Smith Peck and Fanny Bullock Workman. Its first president was Charles Ernest Fay, which the scientist and writer John Muir followed.

Since 1929, the American Alpine Journal is published.

The AAC was involved in several important expeditions, such as the unsuccessful Bestigungsversuchs of K2 in 1939, the first American ascent of Mount Everest and the first ascent of Mount Vinson in Antarctica in 1966.

Since 1976, is given annually to individuals who have rendered outstanding services to the AAC, which gave Angelo Heilprin Citation.

New people added only at the invitation and proposal of two members of the AAC - In the first decades were - quite in the tradition of the British Alpine Club. In the 1980s and again in 1995 the accession conditions were relaxed. Since then, the membership numbers have multiplied.