Rocky Mountain Fur Trade Journal Editorial Staff

Jim Hardee, editor

Jim Hardee has served as the director of the Fur Trade Research Center since 1998, and has researched, written, and presented extensively on the Rocky Mountain fur trade. He edited The Rocky Mountain Fur Trade Journal from 2009 to 2018, and again in 2023 to 2025. Jim’s two-volume The Western Expeditions of Nathaniel J. Wyeth was completed with the publication of Hope Maintains Her Throne. He is also the author of Pierre’s Hole! The History of a Fur Trade Landmark.

Clint Gilchrist

Bio Coming Soon

Nathan E. Bender

Nathan E. Bender is a librarian/archivist and historian in Cody, Wyoming. With master’s degrees in anthropology and library science, he publishes original research on western history and folklore, historic archaeology and material culture studies, Native American Studies, libraries and bibliographies in a variety of books and academic research journals, including the Rocky Mountain Fur Trade Journal. His latest work is The Art of the English Trade Gun in North America. He currently works at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West.

Tim Tanner

Tim Tanner is a national-recognized author, artist, educator, and historic preservationist. An avid historian for over fifty years, his writings have been included in Rocky Mountain Fur Trade Journals, Muzzeloader, Old House Journal, and Early Homes magazines. His historic-themed paintings can be found in galleries and collections from coast-to-coast. A member of the American Mountain Men and a founding member of the American Longrifle Association, Tim and his family live in a restored pioneer home – complete with an imported ca. 1820 log cabin – in Southeast Idaho, near the original Fort Henry fur trade site. Tanner teaches art and is an administrator at Brigham Young University – Idaho.

William R. Swagerty, PhD

William R. Swagerty has taught college-level American history since 1977 and has presented papers at many fur trade symposia over the past 30 years. His article, “Stereotypes of Rocky Mountain Trappers and Traders Revisited,” appeared in the 2020 Rocky Mountain Fur Trade Journal. Swagerty is especially interested in the labor and social histories of fur trade personnel, and the material culture of the fur trade, specifically blankets and trade cloth. He is director of the John Mui Center and professor of history at University of the Pacific, Stockton, California.

Angie Thomas

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Dawn Ballou

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