This cloche hat is made from red wool felt and is decorated with a small pin resembling a mountain axe. The pin also has a small shield with a landscape with the word “ Pordoi” printed across it. This likely refers to the Italian Pordoi Pass, located in the Dolomites in the Alps. Beatrice “Bebe” moved to Sun Valley in 1947.
Wood River Museum of History and Culture, 2002.41.07
Ned Bell, Myrna Heiner, and Lee Limes in costume at a party at The Quonset Hut in Sun Valley in the 1950s.
From the leaves changing and the colder weather, fall in the Wood River Valley is officially here. This time of year also means all things Halloween: Carving pumpkins, dressing up in fun costumes, and trick-or-treating. While this picture is not from Halloween specifically, it shows a costume party at the Quonset Hut at Sun Valley in the 1950s.
Halloween is often the one time per year that most people get to dress up in costumes, so it is fun to imagine a time when these types of parties were more common. The image notes say, “another dress up day in Sun Valley” and based on the number of other photos we have in our collection from costume parties and dress up days at Sun Valley, it is clear that these events happened often.
This photo features Ned Bell, who spent 48 years living and working in Sun Valley, Lee Limes a long-time Sun Valley resident who worked at the Ram, Sun Valley Ski School, and at the Gold Mine Thrift Store, and Myrna Heiner, who also worked at the Ram and at Sun Valley Ski School. These individuals, and many others, came to Sun Valley during the early days of the resort and through events, such as this costume party, they helped to build, shape, and grow the area and community around them.
The image of these sheep in the beautiful field surrounded by hills and snow-covered peaks serves as the best example of the sheepherding life in Idaho. These sheep are grazing on what was the Busterback Ranch, in the Stanley Basin of the Sawtooth Valley and next to U.S. Forest Service land.
Beginning around 1930, this ranch has been passionately owned and operated by the Breckenridge Family, and more recently by longtime Idahoan sheep rancher, Katie Breckenridge.
After graduating college, Breckenridge decided to work for the U.S. Forest Service here in Idaho, and soon after became the manager of the Sun Valley Horsemen’s Center in the late 1960s. A little while later, Breckenridge went on to work with her family on Busterback Ranch, deciding to continue the legacy of the sheep ranch.
What Katie Breckenridge and the whole Breckenridge family has accomplished on this range represents the history and importance to the culture of sheep ranching in the Valley today.
To learn more about sheep ranching in the Wood River Valley, make sure to check the program of events for The Trailing of the Sheep Festival.
The end of August is always a bittersweet time, summer is coming to a close but the excitement of a new school year dawns. Today this “back-to-school season” is marked by sales, shopping, and commercials, but looking at Mrs. Fisher’s 1st grade class, I cannot help but wonder what the back-to-school season looked like for these students in 1957. Did the shops have discounts? Did parents take first day of school photos on the front porch? I would like to think that there are some things that remain the same throughout every “back-to-school” season – mixed feelings of nerves and excitement for parents, teachers, and students alike about the uncertainty of what another year will bring.
We do not know the exact date of this photo but based on the summer attire of some of the students, it could be from the beginning of the school year or the end. The year 1957 brought a lot of national and local changes and events that impacted the lives of these students, whether they occurred before or after this photo was taken.
Nationally, throughout 1957 school integration was happening across the south, highlighted by violent scenes from Little Rock’s Central High School in September. In October, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik I which marked the start of the “space race” and an increased popularity in space-related toys and education. Locally, the Community Library opened in 1957 offering a place for these students and their families to access books and more. Additionally, in the summer of 1957, students may have spent a few days watching the first annual Wood River Valley Little League Invitational Tournament. As the 2023-24 school year approaches, we know that this year will be similar to the 1957 school year – it will be eventful and full of change.
Note this story was originally published in August of 2023 in the Idaho Mountain Express.
As summer slowly draws to a close Wagon Days Parade and Celebration quickly approaches. Held annually during Labor Day weekend, since 1958, thousands have gathered in the Ketchum and Sun Valley area to witness the infamous Big Hitch in the Wagon Days Parade. The parade and festivities are a historical spectacle celebrating the valley’s rich mining past, serving as a living tribute to the many communities that shaped the Wood River Valley. Most notably is the parade’s grand finale, known as the Big Hitch, where the train of six ore wagons makes its turn from Sun Valley Road onto Main Street. The wagons pay homage to the diverse communities that once thrived in this region, each wagon, buggy, carriage, or cart highlighting a particular chapter in the Valley’s history. This commemoratory event embodies the many defining histories of the Valley including this Wagoneer Sam Sanders shown in this photograph taken in 1924. Sanders had operated the ore wagons under Horace Lewis, son of Ketchum’s founder Isaac Lewis. More commonly known as “Uncle Sam,” Sam Sanders was the last to drive the ore wagons when they were still being operated and up until the Ketchum Fast Freight Line closed.
Note this story was originally published in August of 2023 in the Idaho Mountain Express.
Summer is slowly coming upon us and with it comes high waters, flowers blooming, and the start of fishing season for some. Outdoors people of all ages are starting their summer activities in the mountains around the Wood River Valley, including those looking for the perfect bite or to spend a night outside under the stars. This image comes from the Union Pacific Photo Collection, showcases a fisherman standing waist deep in a mountain lake located near the White Cloud Mountains. Union Pacific had various guides for exploration on its payroll, including Jack Bauman, Clayton Stewart, Taylor Williams. These guides would take guests on trips across the Wood River Valley. From fishing down at Silver Creek to camping and horseback riding into the mountains.
Camping, fishing, and numerous other outdoor recreational activities have been a staple for Central Idaho. The Publicity Department for Union Pacific used their guides and their family members as the models for the marketing pieces they would produce. They would pose at campsites, along mountain ridges on horseback, hike along trails, or like Kilpatrick they would stand in the water with a fishing pole in hand. Today, we see many versions of those same photographs taken with updated equipment but in the same places. These images from both the past and present provide inspiration and insight into the various landscapes we live in, visit, and can explore throughout the seasons.
Note this story was originally published in June of 2023 in the Idaho Mountain Express.
