Dean Richard Perkins was born on August 5, 1928 in Montpelier, Idaho to Mary Ann Dayton and Joseph Bunney Perkins. In the 1930s, the Perkins family moved to Ogden, Utah, where Dean Perkins and his siblings began skiing as children. Dean Perkins attended Weber State and the University of Utah, where he was a member of both the ski and tennis teams. Perkins was a member of the United States FIS Ski Team in 1950 and 1951. During this time, Perkins became familiar with the Wood River Valley of Idaho, where he would later build a second home. He married Janet Diane Bell Perkins Rigler (1938-2018); the couple had two children and later divorced. Perkins competed in numerous events during college and just after, winning first place in both downhill and giant slalom. Perkins was training for the 1952 Olympics when he was drafted into the United States Army during the Korean War. He joined the United States Army Ski Team and raced throughout Europe, including in several post-Olympic races with the United States Ski Team.
In 1955, Perkins returned to Ogden, where he opened Perkins Ltd, a sporting goods and clothing store. In addition to this business, Perkins worked as a manufacturer’s representative for Roffe and Demetre Ski Wear. He founded the Perkins Ltd. Ski School and served on the board of the Western Winter Sports Representatives Association. In 2013, Dean Perkins was inducted into the Intermountain Ski Hall of Fame for his contributions to skiing through competition and the development of the ski industry through his work in retail. In addition to skiing, Perkins was involved in mountain climbing, tennis, and motorcycle and automobile racing.
Dean Perkins died on September 10, 2016, in Ogden, Utah. (Adapted from “Dean R. Perkins Obituary,” The Salt Lake Tribune, September 18, 2016)
The Dean Perkins photograph collection consists of 1 box containing images documenting Dean Perkin's life and family and his career in skiing and in the ski retail industry. The collection contains both physical prints and digital-only images. Folders 1 and 6-9 are digital only. Folders 2-5 contain black-and-white photograph prints. The digital-only images were primarily scanned from material loaned by the donor and returned; these are in high resolution tif format. The digital-only material also contains several lower resolution jpgs which were created by the donor and emailed to the Marriott Library Special Collections and Archives. A selection of the digital-only images are available to view on the
Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.
Permission to publish material from the Dean Perkins photograph collection must be obtained from the Special Collections Manuscript Curator.
Donated by Dean Perkins in 2005, addendums in 2012 and 2013.
Processed by Chris Ehrman in 2006. Updated by Claire A. Kempa in 2023.
See also the
This collection forms part of the Utah Ski and Snowboard Archive, which is part of the S.J. Quinney Outdoor Recreation Archive
See also the