10 Million Years Ago: The jagged peaks of the Teton Mountain Range form along the Teton Fault
Pre-1800’s: No written accounts. Bison and abundant wild game sustain Native American tribes like Shoshoni, Crow, Blackfeet, Bannock, and the Gros Ventre.
1803: Lewis and Clark begin exploring unknown territory from the Missouri River to the Pacific.
1807: John Colter leaves the Lewis and Clark expedition and returns to Jackson to pursue beaver trapping. Colter and other Mountain Men like Jim Bridger, Jedediah Smith, William Sublette, and David E. Jackson (for whom Jackson’s Hole was named) begin gathering every summer during a “Mountain Man Rendezvous” to trade pelts for food and winter survival supplies.
1840: The valley becomes quiet for 20 years after silk hats put beaver hats go out of style.
1862: The Homestead Act of 1862 invites pioneers to acquire new land (formerly shared with Native American tribes) under the condition that they will improve it
1894: Many big game hunters, beef cattle ranchers, hay and oat farmers call Jackson Home. Jackson is incorporated.
Early 1900s: Local families find ways to earn money by becoming big game hunting and sport fishing guides. Jackson Hole becomes a hiking, horseback riding, fishing, and hunting destination.
1920: An all Female City Council is elected in Jackson and given the nickname “the petticoat government”
1920s: With little to do to avoid cabin fever in the winter, Jackson residents begin hiking to the top of Snow King and skiing straight down on 10 foot wooden planks, using a single wood pole as a braking device.
1925: Mike O’Neil comes to Jackson and builds one of the first ski jumps on Snow King. Thus begins an era of ski jumping and racing on Snow King Mountain in Jackson.
1929: Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks and Bridger-Teton National Forest are established, limiting the amount of open space that can be used for ranching and encouraging tourism to the area.
1936: Civilian Conservation Corps creates a switch back horse and hiking trail to the top of Snow King. The CCC trail becomes one of Snow King’s first race courses. Since most skiers at this time don’t turn very easily, they either come to a stop at the switchbacks or crash off the trail.
1937: Jackson Hole Ski Club is established. Their first race includes jumping through a fire-engulfed hoop and is held on Snow King.
1939: Snow King Resort opens as Wyoming’s first ski area with a tow rope installed by Neil Rafferty. His tow rope consisted of a 4,000 foot cable, powered by an old Ford tractor engine. Skiers were towed up the bottom half of Snow King by holding on to a stick that was attached to a rope that was clamped onto the cable with a wrench. Lift tickets cost $2.95 for a full day of skiing.
1946: Neil Rafferty, with the support of the Jackson Hole Winter Sports Association , erected Snow King’s first chair lift, a $5000 old ore tram from Salida, Colorado. The new lift ran to the top of Snow King Mountain and provided for many fun days for locals and visitors.
1947: Neil Rafferty installed a tow rope up Telemark Bowl on the top of Teton Pass. The tow rope cost 10 cents a ride and was open until the 1960s in the early season, before Snow King opened for their winter season. The ski tow was operated using the spinning tires of a flatbed jeep.
1965: Jackson Hole Mountain Resort opens on Rendezvous Mountain. The Aerial Tram is installed in 1966.
1966: The Aerial Tram is installed at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. Local resident and the first person to ski the Grand Teton, Bill Briggs, becomes the ski school director at Snow King.
1969: Grand Targhee Resort opens in Alta, Wyoming.
Present Day: Jackson has become a world renowned skiing and summer destination, welcoming over 3 million visitors every year, but still somehow maintains that “small town feel.”
Content sources:
Jackson Hole Chamber;
Jackson Hole Historical Society & Museum; “Teton Skiing: A history & guide to the Teton Range” by Thomas Turiano: "Jackson Hole: On a Grand Scale" by David Gonzales.