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Glenn Balch

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Born: December 10 1902

Died: 1515 09 19891989

Born December 11, 1902 in Venus, TX, Glenn Balch was a talented essayist who published many articles in Field & Stream and other outdoor magazines. He was also known for his many juvenile novels. His love for dogs, horses, and the great outdoors marked his life from very early on.

His earliest life memories involved being put on the back of a horse, and first dog, Trix. Early on, his love of reading was fostered and encouraged by his family. After going to college at the age of 16, he wrote for the collegiate newspaper and was involved in athletics. After graduation, he wanted a career outdoors, so he applied to the Forest Service as a fire guard. One reason was that a career as a forest ranger seemed like steadier work than the life of a cowboy. Eventually he received an offer to be a fire guard in Garden Valley, Idaho and in 1925 he moved to the Gem State, together with his new bride.

After that first fire season, he rode horseback from Garden Valley to Boise to apply for a newspaper job and was hired by the Idaho Statesman. He spent the next five years as a roving reporter, traveling about the state, combining hunting and fishing expeditions with his newspaper work. He wanted to spend more time doing his own writing, so resigned from the Statesman after his divorce and relocated to Boise. The Statesman did not want Balch to resign, so they offered him a position as a night telegraph editor, leaving his days free. Balch found it still prevented him from doing his own writing and also interfered with a newly found passion for polo, which was popular in Boise in the 1920s and 30s. With his love of horses, horseback riding, and athletic competition, Glenn Balch wanted to be part of the polo scene. In the Spring of 1931 he enlisted in the Idaho National Guard and became a member of its Boise polo squad. In 1932, he began to get his articles published in both Field & Stream and The American Boy. In 1937 he enrolled in a writing class as Columbia University in New York, where he met Elise Kendall, a fellow student from Florida. She became his second wife. On their return to Boise in 1938, they bought a house, settled down, and began raising a family. Balch had one daughter, Betty, from his first marriage to Faula Mashburn, and three more children-daughters Mary and Nikki and son Olin-with his wife Elise. His first novel was published in 1937.

When the United States entered World War II, he entered active duty as a captain in the U.S. Army Air Corps. He was commanding officer of the 10th Combat Camera Unit in the China-Burma-India campaign and was awarded the Bronze Star.

After the war was over, he resumed his career as a writer of juveniles, writing many. Several of his books were translated into foreign languages, and two were illustrated by acclaimed illustrator Ezra Jack Keats. In 1965 his novel Indian Paint was made into a motion picture starring Johnny Crawford and Jay Silverheels.

His 34th and last book was published in 1976. He died in September of 1989 from injuries after an automobile accident on August 29. The following year, two of his novels were republished as part of Idaho's statehood centennial commemoration.

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Glenn Balch

Glenn Balch

Books from Glenn Balch

White Ruff

Buck, Wild

Christmas Horse

The Wild Mare

Tiger Roan

The Midnight Colt

Horse of Two Colors

Spotted Horse

Grass Greed / Cimarron Territory

Indian Paint

Keeping Horse

Lost Horse

Little Hawk and the Free Horses

The Book of Horses

The Brave Riders

Horse in Danger: A Tack Ranch Story

The Stallion King

Viking Dog