Trailblazing Concessioner #617: Howard H. Hays Papers

Published July 30, 2026 at 6:00 AM MDT

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Photograph of Howard Hays, ca. 1940. Box 5, Howard H. Hays papers, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

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Postcard promoting the Wylie Permanent Camping Company’s accommodations in Yellowstone National Park, ca. 1914. Box 5, Howard H. Hays papers, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

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Photograph of a Wylie Permanent Camping Company coach, ca. 1910. Box 5, Howard H. Hays papers, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

Howard Hays moved west from Illinois in 1905 to seek his fortune in the healthy outdoors. After working on a ranch in Montana, he felt drawn to nearby Yellowstone National Park. There, Hays met William Wallace Wylie, a pioneer in developing permanent park camps.

Hays joined Wylie's operation. Soon Hays' lifelong career as a national park concessioner and promoter of scenic tourism was launched. Hays eventually acquired the Yellowstone Park Camps Company. He served as its president until health issues forced him to sell in 1924.

Undeterred, he returned in 1927 to lead the Glacier Park Transport Company in Montana. He introduced iconic red buses and pioneered international service to Canada's Waterton Lakes Park.

The Howard H. Hays papers at UW’s American Heritage Center offer a look at the life of this resilient and visionary man who shaped the early tourism industry in America's renowned national parks.