History of Killington Ski Area - Killington, Vermont
Killington Resort
Killington Mountain Ski Resort | History of Killington Ski Area | Killington Info
Discover what life was like in this Central Vermont mountain town before skiing
Vermont's Green Mountains are part of the Greater Appalachian Mountain range. The peaks of Killington and Pico, like all Vermont mountains, were once much higher than present. Worn by erosion and wiped by glaciers, the mountains of Vermont are rounded and green. The Green Mountain range is amongst the oldest in the world, dating back some five hundred million years. The Green Mountains are old, very old. Older than the Rockies, Alps, Andes, Himalayas, and many other well known mountains. Only the Adirondacks in New York are older.
It was on July 7, 1761 when the town of Killington was formally granted a charter. One of the grantees was Ezra Stiles, a relative of Killington Ski Area founder Preston Leete Smith. Like many Vermont towns, Killington was originally a New Hampshire grant.
It was in the year 1763 when Reverend Samuel Peters christened the State of Vermont from the top of Killington Peak. The view from the Summit is spectacular, on clear days you can see all six New England states, New York and Canada.
Reverend Peters is credited with naming the state "Verde-Mont" for Green Mountain as he smashed a bottle of booze on the rocks. The Reverend Peters was traveling the mountains baptizing local residents. The Killington area was sparsely populated, only about 300 people lived in the area at the time.
By 1810 Killington was called Sherburne and was home to about 116 people. The State of Vermont's population was 218,000. The legal name was changed back to Killington in 1999.
Early settlers set-up grain and sawmills. They cleared the land for grazing. Sheep farming and logging was prevalent. In 1850, the railroad came to town and hastened the growth of the log-cutting industry. By the mid 1800's, Killington's population reached 578, a few more cows than men and more sheep than cows. Life was not easy for the sheep farmers though, the regions extreme winters and the mountains abundant population of wolves, coyotes, and other predators drove many of the farmers to warmer environs.
By 1880 Vermont's population dropped by a whooping 54 percent! Vermont mountain towns continued to drop in population until 1960. The population of Sherburne (Killington) reached a low of 266 residents in 1960.
The first tourist resort at Killington was built in 1880, well before the region was developed as a ski resort. The original Summit House accommodated hikers and natural lovers that came to Killington for the fantastic summit views.
The Killington Ski Area opened on December 13, 1958. The ski area was the dream of Preston Leete Smith. It was the beginning of Vermont's most famous and largest ski resort. The ski resort that has transformed a previously depressed area of Central Vermont into an enormous economic resource. Pres Smith, Perry Merrill, and Joe Sargent cooperated to make Killington Mountain Ski Area and resort a reality. Smith's vision and determination met with good fortune and Killington continues to grow and prosper. Recently the Marriott Corporation announced plans to built a new Marriott Hotel at the base of Killington Mountain.
The Killington Ski Area was sold to SKI and is now owned by The American Skiing Company, which owns nine skiing resorts in the U.S. including, three in Vermont: Killington, Mount Snow and Sugarbush Ski Resorts. The American Skiing Company is one of the largest ski conglomerates in the world.
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