Drag Lifts
The first known ski lift was a drag lift at Germany's Schollach in 1908. Austria installed one at Dornbirn that same year.
Cable Cars
France's Chamonix installed a cable car in 1927, but the first skier-exclusive cable car was installed at Switzerland's Engleberg the following year.
J and T-bars
Davos, Switzerland installed the first overhead cable lift, or J-bar, in 1934. Two years later, they converted to a two-person T-bar. This trend spread quickly to Colorado's growing ski industry.
Rope Tows
Cable cars, J-bars and T-bars were costly, so most mountains installed cheaper rope tows. By 1940, the U.S. had some 100 rope tows in operation.
First Chair Lifts
Engineer Jim Curran innovated the modern chair lift for the 1936 opening of Sun Valley, Utah. He based the design on lifts used to load bananas onto cargo ships.
Detachable Lifts
Detachable chair lifts were invented in the 1950s, but the first modern detachable, which slows down for easier loading, was installed in Breckenridge, Colorado in 1981.
