Celebrating and Preserving the History and Heritage of Maine Skiing • Spring 2015 SKI MUSEUM OF MAINE Oxford County Historic Skiing Sites: Interpretive map being developed by Ski Museum By Scott Andrews Editor, Snow Trail Oxford County has been a hotbed of Maine skiing for more than a century, a geographic theme that’s visually underscored by a new interpretive map that’s being developed by the Ski Museum of Maine. Oxford County’s claim to historical fame dates from the 1890s, when Finnish immigrants first settled in West Paris and surrounding towns. Skiing was one of the Finns’ many contributions to Maine’s culture. In 1895 a lone “skee-man” vistied Fryeburg. He was with a group of snowshoe enthusiasts from the Boston-based Appalachian Mountain Club. About the turn of the 20th century, the Paris Manufacturing Company began making skis. Most of the workers in the ski department were local Finns. Rumford’s long and distinguished ski history began about the time of World War I, when a Norwegian immigrant named Mat Liz Chenard and Leslie Miller were two of 37 junior athletes from Nilsen arrived in town and began to amaze Rumford’s Chisholm Ski Club who competed at the national level during local folks with his prowess on skis. A few years the 1970s. The Chisholm Ski Club, founded in 1924, is Maine’s oldest, and it boasts a long and proud history that continues to the present. later, he co-founded the Chisholm Ski Club, (Courtesy Wendall “Chummy” Broomhall) which remains active to the present. Please turn to page1 7 Upcoming Ski Museum Events Monday, June 8 Third Annual Ski Maine Golf Classic Ski Museum of Maine (to benefit Ski Museum of Maine) Snow Trail Nonesuch River Golf Course Scott Andrews, Editor Scarborough Spring 2015 www.skimuseumofmaine.org Friday, June 26 [email protected] Kingfield Pops Weekend P.O. Box 359 Kingfield, ME 04947 (Ski Museum open until 8 p.m.) (207) 265-2023 Kingfield Founded in 1995, the Ski Museum of Maine is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization established Saturday, July 18 with the mission to celebrate and preserve the MollyOckett Day history and heritage of Maine skiing. The Ski Museum exhibits artifacts, photographs, Bethel Common artwork and documents at its location in Bethel Kingfield, conducts educational programs to ski clubs, schools, libraries, historical and civic organizations, and hosts social events and Friday, August 7 activities throughout the year. Kingfield First Friday Art Walk OFFICERS (Ski Museum open until 8 p.m.) President: Wende Gray, Bethel Kingfield Secretary: Russ Murley, Po w n a l Treasurer: Vito Courtney, Freeport Saturday, October 24 BOARD MEmbERS Scott Andrews, historian, Po r tl an d Maine Ski Hall of Fame Banquet Leigh Breidenbach, Turner Grand Summit Hotel Cooper Friend, Ellsworth Dave Irons, We s t b r o o k Sunday River Mountain Resort Glenn Parkinson, Freeport Newry Megan Roberts, Farmington Phil Savignano, Auburn Greg Sweetser, Cumberland Saturday, February 13, 2016 Gerry Thompson, Falmouth Michele Varuolo Cole, Bethel Maine Ski Heritage Classic Karla Wolters, Madawaska Lake Sugarloaf Mountain Resort STAFF Carrabassett Valley Executive director: Bruce Miles, Carrabassett Valley 2 From the president ... As I reflect on the contributions of the Ski establishment of a Museum’s past presidents, I will be honored to satellite museum officially become president of the Museum’s board in the Bethel. of directors this June. I hope that I can bring to the During the presidency even a small amount of the vision of Don Hayes, the work ethic of Jean Luce, the enthusiasm past year, The Ski of John Christie, the historical knowledge of Glenn Museum’s Bethel Parkinson and the writing and organizational skills Project has made of Jill Ducharme. I look forward to leading our great strides in board and staff in fulfilling the Museum’s mission raising awareness of celebrating and preserving the history and and funds in heritage of skiing in Maine. the western Wende Gray, president Since coming to Maine in the early 1970s, my career has centered around the skiing industry. Maine region. We have staffed our booth at Arriving in Maine fresh out of college, I secured Bethel’s MollyOckett Day in July, Harvest Fest in a position in public relations with the Maine September, Ski Depot Open House in October and Department of Economic Development and was Heritage Day at Mount Abram in December. The lucky to be assigned the promotion and publicity of Ski Museum has joined the Bethel Area Chamber tourism and skiing. of Commerce and the Bethel Area Non-Profit Soon I was off to the mountains every weekend. Collaborative. In 1972 Sugarloaf’s general manager Harry Baxter offered me a job as marketing coordinator. We hosted several first time fund-raising events: Harry was a wonderful mentor! After Harry left The Sunri Ski Fashion Show at the Bethel Inn Sugarloaf, I moved to the coast as general manager Resort in November, a Celebration of Nordic Skiing of the Camden Snow Bowl. I can now say that along at Carter’s Cross Country Ski Center on New Year’s with marketing I can shake hay, grease sheaves, Day and the First Annual Skee Spree and Auction load T-bars and make a wicked good fish chowder. at White Cap Lodge at Sunday River over Martin In 1980, my good friend and Ski Maine colleague, Luther King weekend in January. Les Otten, purchased Sunday River. He offered me a position as Sunday River’s marketing manager, More than 40 individuals and businesses in the and I moved to Bethel, where I live today. In 1989, Oxford County region have become members of I left Sunday River and formed my own marketing the Ski Museum and are invested in establishing a and public relations business. The Maine Nordic Ski satellite museum in the community. Council was one of my first clients and I served as As the Ski Museum of Maine celebrates its 20th its executive director from 1991-2004. anniversary, we can proudly look back to see how For the past decade I’ve been skiing just for fun far we have come from our humble beginnings. and had the pleasure of serving as the coordinator for the Road Scholar alpine and nordic ski weeks at At first we were simply storing the Sugarloaf Ski the Bethel Inn Resort. In 2013 I was a elected to the Club’s archives in a Carrabassett barn. Nowadays board of the Ski Museum, became vice president we maintain an exhibit at a prominent Kingfield in 2014 and am now performing the duties of the location that displays artifacts, photos, documents president after Jill’s resignation. and other memorabilia. I hope you will join me in My goal for the Ski Museum is to expand the fulfilling the Ski Museum’s mission in the years to museum’s presence throughout the state of Maine come. with the development of exhibits and displays at local ski areas and historical societies, expanded schedule of skiing history presentations to civic and We n de Gr ay cultural organizations, schools and colleges and the President, Ski Museum of Maine 3 From the executive director... Nothing portrays history like first-hand club members) of a corporation to raise capital to documents. This past winter Cate Gilbane, build lifts and other infrastructure. a museum supporter and a member of the The Ski Museum is grateful to Cate Gilbane Sugarloaf Mountain Ski Club, contacted me to for sharing these artifacts with us. We pledge to ask if the Ski Museum was interested in some preserve them and make available for all to see. documents from her dad’s possessions. While hard artifacts like skis, boots and other I immediately replied with an emphatic “yes.” items are valuable to the collections on display, Her dad is Phineas Sprague of Cape Elizabeth, these types of documents are also invaluable to a charter member of the Sugarloaf Ski Club and our mission to “celebrate and preserve the history one of the people instrumental in the development of the mountain. Fortunately for us he saved much of his correspondence with his fellow club members. In this collection -- numbering more than 200 scanned documents, photos and news clippings -- a good picture emerges of the challenges that faced this group of visionaries. Many of the documents are handwritten letters sent by Phineas to Bob Scully, Robert Bass, Horace Chapman and other club members involved in the endeavor. The letters tell of the steps taken by members of this group as they tackle the many issues of building a ski area. The role of the Maine Ski Council, which had been formed in 1949, is shown to have played a major role in getting support from the state government. The letters describe the strategy of selling 400 memberships to the newly formed Sugarloaf Amos Winter, one of the driving forces behind the Mountain Ski Club. The Club was incorporated development of skiing at Sugarloaf, greets an unidentified customer at the ticket window about 1960. This photo is one in July of 1950, and its very ambitious agenda of many from the collection of Phineas Sprague, another key required the participation of many people. figure. A digital copy was shared with the Ski Museum of The letters describe how landowners would be Maine. (Courtesy Cate Gilbane) approached. Since money was an issue, leasing was the preferred option. and heritage of Maine skiing.” The letters convey a sense of excitement. We are fortunate that the founders of These were young businessmen who were all Sugarloaf kept good records of the early days.