About the Society

Today, Perisher and the surrounding high country provide a wonderful playground for skiers, snowboarders, walkers and even wombats.  As time moves on, however, it is easy to forget ‘the good old days’ of rope tows or no tows, lodge building, homemade skis, lace-up leather boots and riotous lodge parties.  To this end, the Perisher Historical Society (PHS) has been established to capture the history and memories of the early days of the Perisher area as well as its ongoing development into the future that will eventually be part of its important history.

With support and encouragement from both Perisher Resort management and the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), the Perisher Historical Society was incorporated on 6 August 2007.

The aim of the Society is to research, collect, document, and display the history and development of the Perisher Range including its lodges, buildings and structures and the activities that result from them.

Perisher Range defines the geographical scope of the Society and refers to those areas within the Kosciuszko National Park associated with the access provided by Kosciuszko Road, this includes but is not restricted to the centres of Blue Cow, Guthega, Perisher Valley, Smiggin Holes, and Charlotte Pass as well as Sponars Chalet and Ski Rider Hotel plus the associated back-country regions of the Main Range.

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Our Collections

The Society is unlikely to have a physical or built form museum, and so its window to the world is principally by way of this website. It is our eMuseum.  Nevertheless we do have a display case on the concourse in the Perisher Skitube Terminal with a selection of memorabilia and a screen showing home movies from the early days of skiing in the area.

The Society has recovered the records of the organising bodies of the sport of skiing in NSW.  The PHS collection also includes numerous ski magazines, Ski Year Books, club histories and other related publications.

The Society’s eMuseum includes historical timelines; stories; videos and movies; summaries of the development of, for example, the resorts, ski lifts and Skitube; sections dealing with the people behind this development, including the ski instructors; and the history of oversnow transport.

Publications

PHS has published a number of books on the history of the area and these can be ordered from the Bookshop on our website.

Newsletter

The Society publishes a twice-yearly newsletter with short historical articles and photographs.

Our Achievements

Winner of the Skade Award 2013 – International Skiing History Association

Peter Southwell-Keely – Highway to Heaven – A History of Perisher and the Ski Resorts along the Kosciuszko Road

Winner of the Skade Award  2021 – International Skiing History Association

Donald A. Johnston – Hotel Kosciusko. The history and legacy of Australia’s first planned alpine resort

Shortlisted – National Trust Heritage Awards 2021 – Educational Section

Perisher Historical Society Website

Regular Events

Annual Dinner

The PHS Annual Dinner, held at the opening of the ski season each year, provides an opportunity for members and friends to celebrate the history of the area, renew old friendships and reminisce about ‘the good old days and the colourful characters who made them so.

Hello in the Snow

A chance to catch up with fellow skiers during Cross- Country week in August.

Upcoming events are listed here.

 

How can you help?

Your annual membership fee will assist with the ongoing development of our website and other expenses associated with research and publication of historical documents and photographs.

The Society is keen to collect:

  • Stories spoken or written
  • Club histories
  • Photographs and movies
  • Photographs of equipment or memorabilia related to the early days in the region

Please contact us here if you can assist in any way.