Jemez Mountains

Thomas W. Swetnam is a Regents' Professor emeritus at the University of Arizona, where he studied land use history and forest and fire ecology. He lives in Jemez Springs, New Mexico.

"Thomas Swetnam offers a fascinating collection of historical anecdotes and natural history insights in The Jemez Mountains. Amid a parade of unusual personalities and extraordinary events, we learn not just about the land but about the varied lenses through which people saw it and saw each other. The result is a composite portrait of one of New Mexico's most diverse and best-loved regions." - William deBuys, author of Enchantment and Exploitation: The Life and Hard Times of a New Mexico Mountain Range, Revised and Expanded Edition"Thomas Swetnam grew up in the Jemez Mountains as the son of the Forest Service's Jemez District Ranger before moving to his science career at the University of Arizona, and he has now come full circle as the author of The Jemez Mountains: A Cultural and Natural History. Swetnam recounts dozens of stories, legends, myths, and historical accounts of life in the Jemez Mountains over the last nearly five hundred years. Topics include personal family stories of Pueblo life, the Spanish entrada, early settlers, ranching, mining, forestry, military actions, banditry, religion, scientific studies, recreational development, natural disasters, wildlife encounters (think grizzly bears!), and many more. His book provides amazingly detailed insights into the peoples of the Jemez Mountains and their interactions with each other and their environment." - Robert Parmenter, former chief of science and resource stewardship for the Valles Caldera National Preserve