Author Archives: Jesse Ritner

In 1956, Ebony published an article on Bryce Parks and Floyd Cole. Cole and Parks were Black ski patrollers based out of Denver. And they were likely the first African American patrollers in the nation. The reporter wrote that the two skiers were invited in 1952 to “join the patrol by officials who had notedContinue reading “An Incomplete History of Black Skiers”

Building Natures Level: Undergraduate (less than 100 students). U.S. History, Environmental U.S. History, Environmental History, Histories of National Lands, History of Architecture. Necessary Material:  Computer and projector set up with power-point or equivalent and enough printed versions of each image for each group. Overview: This lesson is about reading through images the different ways in whichContinue reading “Architectural Meaning at Arizona Snowbowl – Lesson Plan”

In 1938, in the densely wooded forests of the Coconino National Forest, the Flagstaff, Arizona ski team opened a ski area at the base of Humphrey Peak. Cut into the middle of a mixed Birch-Pine forest, the ski hill, at the time, may have been the southernmost ski area in the country. And it markedContinue reading “Architectural Meaning at Arizona Snowbowl”

…the word “restricted” advised Black and Jewish skiers that they were unwelcome. In contrast, phrases such as “observing strict dietary rules” or “Jewish-American cuisine,” notified people that the hotels served kosher meals, and were presumably Jewish-owned and operated. Nevertheless, vacationing in generally hostile towns was not particularly appealing. Jewish-owned ski centers and hotels in the Borscht Belt allowed the rapidly growing Jewish middle- and upper-middle-class population of New York and Philadelphia to ski in safety and comfort…

…Describing things as moccasins is not in of itself shocking. For north American audiences, the footwear evokes an easily recognizable style and material. In terms of prose, it is neat and short. A single word stands in for a long description of soft, tanned, and decorated leather. And in only one instance it seems like a useful analogy. But the term reappeared as I continued through the folder…