Ski Museum Directory
HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE
The Ski Museums of the World guidebook is organized alphabetically first by country, and then by city/town. (For example, within the United States, you will find the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame listed under Ishpeming, rather than Michigan.) Within each nation’s listing, the dedicated ski museums appear in the first section, followed by other museums, collections and libraries that contain ski-history material. Museums or collections that are in storage, or have recently closed, are listed at the end of the guide.
Click here to read an overview of this guide by author and ski historian E. John B. Allen
Publication of this guidebook was partially supported by a generous grant from the Marc Hodler Foundation in Switzerland.
Vaz/Obervaz, Grisons
Obervaz MuseumAddress:Vaz/Obervaz, Grisons 7082 Switzerland Contact: Birgit Parpan Email: museum.vaz@bluewin.ch Telephone: (41) 81 385 21 59 Website: www.vazobervaz.ch/sportmuseum Local museum displaying importance of tourism and holding late 19th century skis. |
Saas-Fee, Wallis
Saaser MuseumAddress:Saas-Fee, Wallis 3906 Switzerland Contact: Damian Bumann Email: museum@3906.ch Telephone: (41) 792 202 853 Website: www.3906.ch/de/leben/kultur/saasermuseum Local museum with some ski-related material. |
Münchenstein, Basel
Sport Museum of SwitzerlandAddress:Münchenstein, Basel 442 Switzerland Contact: Email: info@sportmuseum.ch Telephone: () Website: As of 2019, closed and in liquidation. |
Bern, Berne
Swiss Alpine MuseumAddress:Bern, Berne 3005 Switzerland Contact: Email: info@alpinesmuseum.ch Telephone: (41) 3135 004 40 Website: www.alpinesmuseum.ch Includes skis of Hermann Hesse. Good library. |
Swiss Ski LiftsAddress:Switzerland Contact: Jakob Schuler Email: via website Telephone: (41) 79 894 51 01 Website: www.skilift-nostalgic.ch A virtual museum; comprehensive on-line depiction of ski lifts in Switzerland. |
Swiss Ski MuseumAddress:Switzerland Contact: Pierre Schneider Email: info@swissskimuseum.com Telephone: (41) 79 736 6947 Website: swissskimuseum.com A virtual museum; the most comprehensive online depiction and explanation of skiing development in Switzerland, launched by the late Luzi Hitz with Pierre Schneider. |
Magglingen, Berne
Swiss Sports UniversityAddress:Magglingen, Berne 2532 Switzerland Contact: Email: via internet at 'media library' Telephone: (41) 323 276 226 Website: www.ehsm.ch No ski exhibits but very good library. Essential to call ahead. |
Luzern, Lucerne
Swiss Transport MuseumAddress:Luzern, Lucerne 6006 Switzerland Contact: Email: mail@verkehrshaus.ch Telephone: (41) 413 704 444 Website: www.verkehrshaus.ch Includes a replica of the Davos-Bolgen ski lift, and much on aerial tramways and their inspection. Good library. |
Lauterbrunnen, Berne
Talmuseum LauterbrunnenAddress:Lauterbrunnen, Berne 3822 Switzerland Contact: Esther Graf Email: info@talmuseumlauterbrunnen.ch Telephone: (41) 338 553 586 Website: www.talmuseumlauterbrunnen.ch One of 12 sections is a small display of skis. |
Oberwald, Wallis
Toni Hischier's Ski MuseumAddress:Oberwald, Wallis 3999 Switzerland Contact: Email: Telephone: (41) 793 299 400 Website: www.obergoms.ch/activities/for-mind-soul/museums Private collection of over 1000 skis. |
Davos, Grisons
Wintersport MuseumAddress:Davos, Grisons 7270 Switzerland Contact: Email: andresguler@bluewin.ch Telephone: (41) 814 132 484 Website: www.wintersportmuseum.ch Skiing displays are one part of the museum. |
Leicester, Leicestershire
The Ski Club of Great Britain Archives Special Collections of De Montfort UniversityAddress:Leicester, Leicestershire LE1 9BH United Kingdom Contact: Katharine Short Email: kshort@dmu.ac.uk Telephone: (44) 116 250 6392 Website: www.dmu.ac.uk Includes archives of Ski Club of Great Britain. |
Denver, Colorado
10th Mountain Division Resource Center Denver Public LibraryAddress:10 W. 14th Ave Parkway Denver, Colorado 80204 United States Contact: Keli Schmid Email: kschmid@denverplibrary.org Telephone: (720) 865 1812 Website: history.denverlibrary.org/research/western-history/10th-mountain-division-resource-center Archives of letters, diaries, photos, films with emphasis on World War II. |
Park City, Utah
Alf Engen Ski Museum & Eccles 2002 Winter Olympic Games MuseumAddress:3419 Olympic Pkwy Park City, Utah 84098 United States Contact: Annie Bommer Email: engenmuseum@uolf.org Telephone: (435) 658-4240 Website: engenmuseum.org Emphasis on Alf Engen and skiing in the Intermountain Region, plus the 2002 Olympics. Open seven days a week, free admission. Mailing address: PO Box 980187, Park City UT 84098 |
Aspen, Colorado
Aspen Historical SocietyAddress:620 West Bleeker St Aspen, Colorado 81611 United States Contact: Lisa Hancock Email: curator@aspenhistory.org Telephone: (970) 925 3721 Website: aspenhistory.org Documents relating to Aspen's skiing history. |
Soda Springs, California
Auburn Ski ClubAddress:Boreal Ridge Rd (location closed) Soda Springs, California 95728 United States Contact: Bill Clark Email: bclark@inc.auburnskiclub.org Telephone: (530) 386.2054 Website: asctrainingcenter.org/about/ Western Ski Sport Museum is closed. Mailing address: Box 729, Soda Springs CA 95728. Displays of Western skiing and Squaw Olympics. Strong on "longboards." Library and documents. Note: The Museum of Sierra Ski History and the Olympic Museum are presently fundraising and obtaining land permits. If all goes as planned, the Olympic artifacts from the Western SkiSport Museum will go to the Olympic Museum, and the other artifacts will go to the Museum of Sierra Ski History. Eventually, the hope is to combine all three in the Olympic Museum (www.olympicskimuseum.org) planned for Squaw Valley opening in 2023. |
Westminster, Colorado
Beekley International Collection of Art and LibraryAddress:Westminster, Colorado United States Contact: Natale Messina Email: nmessina@legacyfws.com Telephone: (860) 240 6027 Website: In storage in Westminster, Colorado while searching for a new venue. Open to research by appointment only. |
Norco, California
California Ski LibraryAddress:3321 Aryana Ave Norco, California 92860 United States Contact: Ingrid P. Wicken Email: ingrid@skilibrary.com Telephone: (951 ) 207 9218 Website: skilibrary.com One of the finest ski libraries in the USA. Documentation on Western US skiing. Open by appointment. Call ahead. |
Vail, Colorado
Colorado Snowsports Museum and Hall of FameAddress:231 S Frontage Rd Vail, Colorado 81657 United States Contact: Dana Zapfel Email: dana@snowsportsmuseum.org Telephone: () 970 476 1876 Website: www.snowsportsmuseum.org Extensive 10th Mountain collection. Located in the Vail Transportation Center. |
California
Far West Ski AssociationAddress:California United States Contact: Jane Wyckoff Email: fwsajane@gmail.com Telephone: () 949.933.9706 Website: fwsa.org The Far West Ski Association has a long-running history project. Its collection resided at the now-closed Western Ski Sport Museum at Boreal Ridge. The collection will be moved to the new Sierra Nevada Olympic Wintersports Museum when it opens. |
Lake Placid, New York
Lake Placid Olympic MuseumAddress:2634 Main Street Lake Placid, New York 12946 United States Contact: Courtney Bastian Email: cbastian@orda.org Telephone: (518) 302.5326 Website: lakeplacidolympicmuseum.org/ As a two-time Winter Olympic Host City, we are the home to North America’s second-largest Winter Olympic artifact collection. |
Kingfield, Maine
Maine Ski and Snowboard MuseumAddress:256 Main St Kingfield, Maine 04947 United States Contact: Aaron Damon Email: info@maineskiandsnowboardmuseum.org Telephone: (207) 265 2023 Website: maineskiandsnowboardmuseum.org Emphasis on Maine skiing, with special reference to Sugarloaf and manufacturers. |
McCall, Idaho
McCall Ski Heritage FoundationAddress:Box 669 McCall, Idaho 83621 United States Contact: Patty Hovdey Email: phovdey@hometownsportsmccall.com Telephone: (207) 265.2023 Website: mccallskiheritagefoundation.org/ The Foundation is raising money to build a dedicated museum. In the meantime, see the website for a history of skiing in the McCall area. |
Government Camp, Oregon
Mount Hood Cultural Center and MuseumAddress:88900 Government Camp Loop Government Camp, Oregon 97028 United States Contact: Lloyd Musser or Cheryl Maki Email: info@mthoodmuseum.org Telephone: (503) 272 3301 Website: www.mthoodmuseum.org Local museum with ski documents and artifacts from local clubs on second floor. |
Boulder, Colorado
Neptune Mountaineering and Ski MuseumAddress:Boulder, Colorado United States Contact: Email: Telephone: () Website: In storage until further notice. |
About the Author
E. John B. Allen is an emeritus professor of history at Plymouth State University and the historian for the New England Ski Museum, both located in New Hampshire, USA. Allen has had an interest in ski history since 1976. He’s an active member of the editorial review board for Skiing History, the bimonthly journal of the nonprofit International Skiing History Association (ISHA), helping to vet all articles for historical accuracy prior to publication. In writing his ten books on skiing, he has traveled to many of the museums listed in this guide. His leading books include From Skisport to Skiing: 100 Years of an American Sport (1993), The Culture and Sport of Skiing from Antiquity to World War II (2008), and FIS: 100 Years of International Skiing (2010), coauthored with Egon Theiner. He’s also the junior partner in a 2019 translation by William Frank of a Russian ski book by K.B.E.E. Eimelius, Skis in the Art of War. In 2020, his short book on 35 skiing artworks and artists will be published in Vienna.
Allen has edited two books of conference papers, International Ski History Congress Collected Papers (2002) and The Spirit of Skiing (2009). He has also published more than 60 articles and book chapters in regional, national and international journals, and written 13 encyclopedia entries. He has consulted on ten films, including Legends of American Skiing, which has appeared on the the U.S. Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) from time to time since the early 1980s. He is a frequent lecturer in the United States and Europe and has been keynote speaker at academic conferences in Norway, France, Finland and in Austria, and a seminar leader in Switzerland in 2018. In 2009, he made an eight-lecture tour of Slovenia. He has received the Ullr award from the International Skiing History Association (ISHA) for three of his books and ISHA honored him with its prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.