Robert M. Utley

Robert Marshall Utley (born October 31, 1929^[1]) is an author and historian who has written sixteen books on the history of the American West. He was a former chief historian of the National Park Service. Fellow historians commend Utley as the finest historian of the American frontier in the 19th century.

The Western History Association annually gives out the Robert M. Utley Book Award for the best book published on the military history of the frontier and western North America (including Mexico and Canada) from prehistory through the 20th century.

Utley lives in Scottsdale, Arizona, with his wife Dr. Melody Webb, also a historian.

Early life and education

Utley was born on October 31, 1929 in Bauxite, Arkansas. During his childhood, his parents, Don Williams Utley and Valeria Haney, moved him to northwestern Indiana, where he attended high school. Later, he attended nearby Purdue University, receiving a Bachelor of Sciences in history. He then attended Indiana University for graduate school, receiving a Master of Arts in history in 1952. Following his graduation, Utley served in the U.S. Army, and later worked for the National Park Service.^[1]

Selected bibliography

• Lone Star Lawmen: The Second Century of the Texas Rangers. Oxford University Press, USA (January 30, 2007).
• Lone Star Justice: The First Century of the Texas Rangers. Oxford University Press, USA (March 22, 2002).
• A Life Wild and Perilous: Mountain Men and the Paths to the Pacific. Henry Holt & Company (1997).
• The Lance and the Shield: The Life of Sitting Bull. Henry Holt & Company (1993).
• Billy the Kid: A Short and Violent Life. University of Nebraska Press (1989).
• Cavalier in Buckskin: George Armstrong Custer and the Western Military Frontier. University of Oklahoma Press (1988).
• High Noon In Lincoln: Violence on the Western Frontier. University of New Mexico Press (1987).
• The Indian Frontier of the American West, 1846-1890. University of New Mexico Press (1983).
• Clash of Cultures: Fort Bowie and the Chiricahua Apaches. National Park Service Washington DC (1977).
• Frontier Regulars; the United States Army and the Indian, 1866-1891. Macmillan, New York (1973).
• Frontiersmen in Blue; the United States Army and the Indian, 1848-1865. Macmillan, New York (1967).
• The Last Days of the Sioux Nation. Yale University Press, New Haven, CT (1963).

References

External links

• An Interview with Robert M. Utley on the History of Historic Preservation in the National Park Service—1947-1980
• Robert M. Utley's web site