Friedman Memorial

Hailey, ID USA (KSUN / SUN)

Sun Valley was the brainchild of W. Averell Harriman, chief executive of the Union Pacific Railroad and future governor of New York. The businessman in Harriman was looking for way to build passenger traffic to the West, and the avid skier in him wanted a venue that evoked the old world charm of the Swiss and Austrian Alps. To these ends he commissioned a young count, Felix Schaffgotsch to scour the country for the perfect site, and in 1936 (after the likes of Aspen, Yosemite and Mt. Rainier were passed up) Ketchum was "discovered".