Traveling the Old Ski Tracks of New England [Paperback]

For over a century New Englanders have taken to the slopes in search of ways to enjoy the coldest months, and skiing has deep roots in the region. In the late nineteenth century Scandinavian immigrants worked to educate snowbound locals on how to ski, make equipment, and prepare trails. Soon thereafter, colleges across the Northeast built world-class ski programs, massive jumps were constructed in Brattleboro and Berlin, and dozens of ski areas—big and small—cropped up from the 1930s through the 1960s.

Traveling the Old Ski Tracks of New Englandoffers a fascinating history of downhill, cross-country, and backcountry skiing across the region and its leading personalities. Moving from popular destinations like Stowe, Cannon, Bromley, and Mount Washington to the less intimidating hills surrounding Boston, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, E. John B. Allen also recovers the forgotten stories of ski areas that have been abandoned in the face of changing tastes and a warming climate.

E. JOHN B. ALLENis professor emeritus of history at Plymouth State University and author ofThe Culture and Sport of Skiing: From Antiquity to World War II.

Acknowledgements

Introduction
1. “Millions of Flakes of Fun in Massachusetts": Boston and the Berkshires, 1870–1940
2. Immigrants and Their Skis for a Maine Winter
3. Berlin and the Big Nansen
4. Fred Harris of Darmouth College
5. The Lure and Lore of Mount Washington
6. Cannon Mountain: The State of New Hampshire in Action
7. The Schneider Phenomenon: Austria—Germany—New Hampshire
8. America's Holmenkollen? Ski Jumping at Brattleboro
9. Vermont Ski Towns: Woodstock and Manchester
10. Stowe: Ski Capital of the East
11. Southern New England: “I Know How to Make Snow!”
12. The Modernization of New England Skilcš