In the late 1800s, Thomas Elwood "Billy" Hofer became nearly as much a fixture of Yellowstone National Park as Old Faithful Geyser. As a wilderness guide, wildlife census taker, explorer, and expert skier, tracker, and naturalist, Hofer acquired a vast and intimate knowledge of all things Yellowstone. He became the go-to expert for presidents and politicians, park service professionals and intrepid reporters. Through numerous articles in
Forest and Stream
Magazine he told the country about Yellowstone and advocated for its protection. He even captured wildlife alive for the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C., and visited President Theodore Roosevelt in the White House. Yet Billy Hofer, as important as he was to the park's early history, became a "lost legend"—until now.
After extensive research, Professor Scott Herring (
Rough Trip Through Yellowstone
) has written the only biography of this fascinating character. With detailed citations that delve into the park's early history, this book is an astonishing chronicle of a man who helped make Yellowstone what it is today.