How conveyor belts for bananas became ski lifts on an Idaho mountain

James Curran’s Banana Conveyor Becomes World’s First Chairlift

In 1936, an Omaha engineer with no ski skills changed winter sports forever.

James Curran, a night school grad who built bridges for Union Pacific Railroad, saw a problem at Sun Valley Resort. Skiers had no good way up the mountain.

So Curran, who once made banana conveyor systems in Central America, had a wild idea: put chairs on cables instead of fruit hooks. His bosses laughed.

“The most stupid idea,” his chairman said. Yet Curran kept at it, testing prototypes with roller skates on Omaha streets.

By December 21, the world’s first chairlift opened at Sun Valley.

Today, you can visit Ketchum, Idaho to see where skiing changed from elite sport to everyone’s winter fun.

From Irish Roots to Self-Made Engineer

James Curran was born in Omaha in 1903, the sixth of seven kids in an Irish immigrant family. Unlike other engineers, Curran skipped college.

He earned his engineering license through night school while working full-time. He studied on his own, took the tough state test, and passed with no problems.

By 1927, he got a job as a bridge engineer with Union Pacific Railroad, where his problem-solving skills made him stand out.

Banana Hooks Sparked a Winter Sports Revolution

Before changing skiing forever, Curran worked at Paxton and Vierling Steel designing systems that moved bananas from land to ships in Central America.

These systems used hooks hanging from overhead cables to move banana bunches onto waiting cargo ships. The hooks slid along cables, carrying fruit in a steady flow.

This sight stuck in Curran’s mind and later gave him the key idea for moving people up mountains.

Railroad Tycoon Wanted Winter Passengers

Averell Harriman, the boss at Union Pacific Railroad, bought land in Idaho in 1936 with one goal: fill more train seats during winter. Harriman saw skiing as the perfect way to get passengers during cold months.

He called his new resort “Sun Valley” and wanted it to become America’s top ski spot. The problem?

Getting skiers up the mountain comfortably.

Rope tows pulled skiers by their arms, and J-bars dragged them awkwardly uphill, leaving them tired before skiing down.

A Lunchtime Sketch Changed Skiing Forever

During lunch in 1936, Curran grabbed a napkin and drew an idea that would change winter sports: replace banana hooks with chairs. His idea let skiers sit comfortably as they moved uphill, with skis hanging freely below.

The chairs attached to an overhead cable, moving steadily at a gentle speed.

Skiers could hop on, ride to the top while resting their legs, then ski down – many more times than possible with tiring rope tows.

His Boss Called It “The Most Stupid Idea Ever”

When Curran showed his chairlift design to Union Pacific Chairman Harriman, he got crushed. Harriman reportedly called it “the most stupid idea that’s ever crossed this desk.”

Other engineers piled on, saying hanging people from moving cables seemed dangerous. They worried about skiers falling off, loading safely while the system moved, and how snow might affect operations.

His bosses called the concept “too hazardous” and almost killed the project.

Testing Ski Lifts with Roller Skates in Omaha

Curran believed in his idea so much he built test models in his pickup truck.

To test without snow, he got creative – he used roller skates to copy how skiers would move during loading and unloading.

He drove slowly down Omaha streets with his makeshift chairlift hanging off his truck while coworkers on roller skates practiced grabbing the chairs.

Through these street tests, Curran found that 4-5 mph worked best for safely picking up riders.

Engineering Solutions for Human Cargo

Moving people safely meant solving problems banana hooks never faced. Curran designed chairs with safety bars to stop falls.

He created special cable systems to keep chairs at the right height no matter how heavy the rider. The chairs needed to fit bulky ski gear while keeping riders comfy.

His team built strong towers that could handle mountain winds and heavy snow. They solved each problem one by one, turning an idea into a working system ready for the mountain.

Christmas 1936 Brought the First Chairlifts to Life

On December 21, 1936, Sun Valley Resort opened the world’s first two chairlifts on Proctor and Dollar mountains. The Proctor Mountain lift carried skiers 3,540 feet up the slope, climbing 1,150 feet during the ride.

Each single-person chair cost about $75 to make – around $1,500 in today’s money. The lift towers stood like guards against the snow, holding cables that carried a line of chairs up the mountain.

Skiers Slowly Warmed Up to Hanging from Cables

The first skiers looked nervously at the moving chairs. Many felt uneasy about hanging from cables high above the snow.

But after watching others ride safely, they tried it – and loved it.

The chairlift felt much better than getting dragged uphill by a rope tow that nearly pulled arms out of sockets. Skiers could now make many more runs each day without getting tired from the uphill trip.

Word spread fast about this new way to enjoy skiing.

Casual Skiers Flooded Mountains Thanks to Chairs

Chairlifts changed skiing from a sport for serious mountaineers into fun recreation anyone could enjoy. Before Curran’s invention, skiing meant either hiking up mountains or using tiring uphill transport.

After chairlifts, people who just wanted a fun day on the slopes could take multiple runs without getting worn out. Ski resorts opened across America after World War II, all using Curran’s chairlift idea.

Skiing became open to millions of regular people who would never have tried it without this comfy uphill ride.

The Man Who Changed Skiing Never Tried It Himself

James Curran created the device that made skiing popular worldwide but never strapped on skis himself – not even once.

After his chairlift success, he went back to his regular job at Union Pacific without pursuing other ski innovations. His contribution went largely unrecognized for decades until 2001, when the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame finally inducted him.

The basic principles of his 1936 design still appear in modern chairlifts at ski resorts around the world, moving millions of skiers uphill every winter day.

Visiting Ketchum, Idaho

You can visit the original chairlift site for free on Proctor Loop Trail, where a bronze plaque marks where James Curran built the world’s first chairlift. Get there via Fairway Road from Sun Valley Resort.

The Wood River Museum of History & Culture at 580 Fourth Street East has chairlift displays and interactive exhibits. It’s open Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-6pm with free admission.

You can also check out the Ruud Mountain chairlift’s top terminal from Trail Creek Cabin trailhead.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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