Jo Heiss’s mother Marge was in her mid-20s when she and her sister Roberta showed a dark-haired man with an Austrian accent around their ranch, pushing themselves along on long wooden skis with elk hide coverings.
The man didn’t make much of an impression on Jo’s mother. But Dad Brass’s ranch made an impression on Count Felix Schaffgotsch. And, so, Jo Heiss has grown up knowing that her family’s Brass Ranch is now the setting for Sun Valley Resort.
We interviewed Jo about her family’s role in America’s first destination ski resort and their later association with people like Ernest Hemingway, who rented their house from them.
We just updated the video with some new photos from the Community Library’s Regional History Department.
Take a look.