Ski Bradford

Ski Bradford's own homepage states that it "has offered great skiing near Boston for 75 years," as displayed on the site as of September 2026. Per New England Ski History, the area "dates back to the winter of 1949-50, when the Bradford Ski Tow was constructed on Dead Hill" in the Bradford section of Haverhill, serving mostly local skiers; Hugh Pearson and Ken Boyd "reportedly cut the first trail." In August 1951, Boyd, Pearson, and their wives "survived at sea for more than 22 hours" when Boyd's amphibian plane ran out of fuel off the coast of Maine; they were rescued by a Coast Guard cutter after "an extensive 7,500 square mile search." "Circa 1956," Roger and Evelyn Sawyer purchased the Bradford Ski Tow, later buying the land and adjoining parcels. After more than two decades of rope-tow service, Bradford installed the Hornet T-Bar in the center of the ski area for the 1971-72 season. Sawyer Enterprises, Inc. was formed in October 1972, led by Roger and Evelyn's sons Neil and Brad; that December, ownership transferred to Sawyer Enterprises, Inc. "Circa 1980," ski instructor John Moody became general manager. On March 10, 1982, Bradford hosted the Massachusetts state ski championships (MIAA), with Haverhill winning the boys' title and future Warren Miller movie star Dan Egan of Milton finishing fourth. Bradford "moved into the chairlift age in 1983, when it installed the Hornet triple chairlift." Improvements for 1985-86 included expanded snowmaking, base lodge upgrades, and a new surface lift, with snowmaking improved again for 1987-88; a second triple chairlift was installed in 1988 on the Wasp slope. In January 1991, Bradford reported averaging 89 days per season, with 80,000 to 100,000 skier visits, and a snowboard halfpipe was reportedly built for the 1993-94 season. During the mild 1994-95 winter, when Bradford reported only three good days below 25 degrees for snowmaking by February, co-owner Brad Sawyer told the Boston Globe, as reproduced by New England Ski History, "This is an equipment-buying business and it gets expensive," and that the goal was to "offer a lesson, rental and lift ticket that is less expensive. Basically, we teach people how to ski and then they go across the border." Bradford rebounded for a strong 1995-96 season, boosted by snowboarding; ski school director William Hegarty told the Globe, "The increase in snowboarding is amazing. It's attracting a different clientele than you would get with skiing." A third triple chairlift was installed on the southeastern side of the area for 2003-04. In a March 2005 Globe article, owner Neil Sawyer said, "In the '70s, people skied around bare spots on the mountain; now if you have a bare spot, you might as well close. People expect perfectly groomed snow. It's a very different business than it was 30 years ago." Matriarch Evelyn Sawyer died February 15, 2009, at 92. The expert trail Hugh's Run, named for co-founder Hugh Pearson, was cut for 2009-10; Neil Sawyer said it was "like skiing back in the '50s." "Circa 2014," the area reportedly logged about 60,000 lessons per season. Co-owner Brad Sawyer died September 5, 2016, at 71, and former general manager John Moody died December 10, 2018, at 77. As of New England Ski History's page, last updated October 29, 2024, "Bradford features snowmaking and night skiing on all of its terrain." The Bradford Ski Team's own page describes it as a youth alpine race club for grades K-12 that "offers entry-level competition by participating in the Eastern Mass Buddy Werner League and an optional higher level of competition by attending select Tri-State and USSA open races in Southern New Hampshire."