Ed Webster Climbing Archives and Daughter

Hi, my name is Henry Barber, a long-time friend of Ed Webster. I'm raising funds for Ed's daughter and preserving his vast climbing archive of photos, manuscripts, recorded interviews, and other research material.

Ed Webster, a prolific rock climber and mountaineer passed away of natural causes at age 66 at his home in Maine on November 22, 2022. Ed, always looking for new climbs in improbable places, pioneered new routes across North America on his home crags in New England, the red rock country around Moab, Utah, including Indian Creek, Colorado’s mountains and Black Canyon, as well as on Mount Everest and other high peaks in the Asian ranges.

Ed authored exceptional guidebooks rich in climbing details and history, including his classic Rock Climbs in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. His autobiographical memoir Snow in the Kingdom chronicles the first ascent of the Kangshung Face on Mt Everest in 1988 by a four-person, self-supported alpine team. Reinhold Messner called this ascent, done without oxygen, radios, Sherpas, or other support, “The best ascent of Everest in terms and style of pure adventure.”

Besides being one of the best climbers of his generation, Ed was a masterful writer, lecturer, photographer, and historical researcher of the climbers and polar explorers of generations gone by. At the time of his passing, he was writing a comprehensive biography of the great German and American climber Fritz Weissner. His archival material includes Ed’s worldwide photography and interviews of Weissner, Bob Bates, Bill House, Paul Petzoldt, Charlie Houston, Andrel Heckmair, Norman Dyhrenfurth, Heinrich Harrer, John Turner, and others.

Here is a video with more about Ed’s climbing history and Mount Everest adventures.

Ed stepped back from climbing in the last 25 years, turning to research for his books, teaching, and lecturing. He spent much of his time with his family—his wife Lisa and daughter Joyelle— and giving back to his community in southern Maine by working with local schools, inspiring students and adults with photo shows taken on his worldwide adventures, and sharing fresh produce from his vegetable garden.

This Go Fund Me drive has two main purposes.

The first purpose is to ensure that Ed’s historical archives can live in perpetuity at a location that allows the interested public to research his treasure trove of interviews with famed climbers, his comprehensive archive of historical photographs, films, and the first-person research he has done on long-silenced historic voices.

The second is to offer ongoing support to Ed Webster’s family, particularly his daughter Joyelle, who has finished her first year of college.

Money raised will be used to protect Ed's archival material for future researchers to access. A portion of the money will be to give support to his daughter for her future education and goals.

Ed, through his generosity of spirit, always paid it forward. His research, writing, and lecturing entertained thousands of fellow adventurers and armchair mountaineers. With your help and donations, we can reach a modest $50,000 goal for Ed’s daughter and the preservation of Ed Webster’s valuable climbing archives.

Thank you!