Wide-open spaces and a bold spirit of adventure have always lived in this northwest corner of Wyoming. Fur-trapping mountain men...journeys of Shoshoni Indians...rodeo riders and cattle drives...all are a part of Jackson Hole's rich heritage. Yet it's the rugged mountain men that historians remember most. The fondness for beaver top hats shared by gentlemen in Europe sent these early-day trappers and explorers to the Rocky Mountains in search of the prized pelts. This low-lying valley surrounded by steep mountains, called a "hole" by fur traders, was a favorite spot of trapper Davey Jackson. And so, in 1829, it being customary to name a place for the trapper who worked there most frequently, the name Jackson Hole was born.