Dr. Russell, a native of Idaho and Montana, is an Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. He was born in Lewiston, Idaho and spent his growing years at Lewiston, Weippe, Orofino, Lochsa Lodge (Powell), the Bitter Root Valley, and White Sulphur Springs, Montana. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering at Montana State University in Bozeman. Upon graduation, he moved his family to Iowa where he worked for Collins Radio Co. in Cedar Rapids and did off-campus graduate work at Iowa State. After earning a PhD at ISU in 1978, he continued as a practicing engineer in industry until, in 1984, he decided to return to ISU.
Steve's family ties to Idaho and Montana remain strong and he and his family return each year for several weeks in the summer. It is these trips that afford him the opportunity to "pound the brush" in search of faint segments of the remaining tread of historical trails and wagon roads.
It was in 1984 that Steve started his avocation of pioneer trail research. His initial interest in the tread followed by Lewis and Clark eventually expanded to include all the major pioneer trails of Western Montana and Northern Idaho. For the Montana Statehood Centennial Year, 1989, he prepared map displays for the Meagher County Historical Association, the Bitter Root Historical Society, and St. Mary's Mission. His 1989 centennial story, "Traveling the Carroll Trail" appeared in the June 1, 1989 edition of the Meagher County News and received a second place award for Best Single Centennial Story in the Montana Better Newspaper Contest.
For most of his research, he has concentrated his efforts on the Lolo Trail System that encompasses the trail treads now known as the Northern Nez Perces Trail, the Lewis and Clark Trail, the Nee-Mee-Poo Trail, the Bird-Truax Trail, and the Virginia City Lewiston Wagon Road. Steve's goal has been to precisely locate the extant trail tread and accurately document its location and existence. His research method involves computer analysis of archival records, map and navigation analysis, and field exploration. During his many years of field work, he has taken hundreds of photographs of the trail treads and various sites along the trail. Today, Steve's involvement with the Lolo Trail System has expanded to include working with the Clearwater National Forest and Nez Perce tribal members on management and preservation planning.
Steve plans to continue his trail research for many years to come with a goal of documenting and
preserving the historic trails of Northern Idaho and Western Montana. He welcomes your interest
in historic trails and invites you to contact him at Iowa State University (333 Coover EECpE,
Ames, Iowa 50011, 515-294-1273, sfrussel@iastate.edu)