Indian Trader: The Life and Times of J.L. Hubbell

From the late 1870's until 1930, Juan Lorenzo Hubbell traded at Ganado, Arizona, in Navajo country. While Euro-Americans viewed him as the dean of Indian traders in the Southwest, Navajo sentiment varied.

J.L. Hubbell's life story tells the larger tale of the settlement of the West, the reservation trader, and the Indian economy. Marths Blue's ethnobiography weaves the conflicts and complexities of the Southwest into Hubbell's life: the Navajos' repatriation and economic recovery, the sera of the reservation trader in frontier history, the tourist explosion wrought by the Santa Fe Railway and the Fred Harvey Company. It also explores Arizona's quest for statehood, water development in its desert plateau country, the transition of the Navajo blanket to rug, and the image-makers' (artists, writers and photographers) portrayals of the Southwest.

Drawing on historical documents, oral histories, and archival materials, Blue presents a fascinating tapestry of character and place richly illustrated by over 100 photographs and maps. Her portrait of Juan Lorenzo Hubbell positions him squarely in the gallery of the West's prominent men.