National Association Honors Phil Roberts

August 22, 2011
Man
UW History Professor Phil Roberts signs copies of the "Wyoming Almanac" at a Cheyenne bookstore. (Dave Roberts)

The Oregon-California Trails Association (OCTA) presented its Outstanding Educator of the Year award to University of Wyoming History Professor Phil Roberts.

He was honored for "excellence in making the history of the emigrant trails come alive for University of Wyoming students"  and for his work in using the trails across Wyoming to illustrate an approach to looking at Wyoming from the perspective as a "trail to somewhere else."

"While my office is at the university, my classroom is the state of Wyoming," Roberts told the group when accepting the award. He has taken classes to trail sites over the years and in the past 20 years Roberts has averaged about 50 public presentations annually to civic, educational and historical groups around the state.

Additionally, there are a number of articles and lecture notes relating to Wyoming's trails on Roberts' website.

OCTA  promotes research, education and preservation activities to preserve the stories and the legacy of the 19th century American migration on the Oregon, California, Santa Fe, Applegate and Mormon trails.

A UW faculty member since 1990, Roberts has served as editor of "Annals of Wyoming." He is co-author (with his two brothers) of "Wyoming Almanac," now in its fifth edition, and his edited textbook, "Readings in Wyoming History," is in its fourth edition.

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