Don Bullis
Western History Writer
Don Bullis graduated from Eastern New Mexico University with a
bachelor’s degree in AmericanHistory and American Literature in
1970. He attended graduate school at the University of New
Mexico. He worked in public relations, educational projects and
business before he began a career in New Mexico law enforcement which
lasted until the early 2000s.
He also worked as a columnist for the New Mexico Independent
newspapers and served as editor of the Sandoval County
Times-Independent. He wrote a regular column for the Rio Rancho
Observer called “Ellos Pasaron Por Aqui” for twenty years. He also
wrote book reviews and served as a political correspondent for the
Observer and the Cibola County Beacon. His columns have appeared
in New Mexico Magazine, New Mexico Stockman and Tradición
Revista and other periodical publications.
He is the First Vice-President of the Historical Society of New
Mexico, and is Immediate Past President of the Central New Mexico
Corral of Westerners.He is past editor of the email monthly New Mexico
Historical Notebook. He lives in Rio Rancho with his wife Gloria.Bullis
was named New Mexico’s Centennial Author by the New Mexico State
Library in 2011.
He was honored as Outstanding Alumni for 2013 from Eastern New
Mexico State University. Bullis is also the recipient of the 2013
Rounders Award presented by the NM Dept of Agriculture.
Don Bullis is the author of nine non-fiction books on New Mexico
history and two novels, also set in New Mexico. They are:
- New Mexico’s Finest: Peace Officers Killed in the Line of Duty,
1847-2010 (first edition, 1991;Second edition, 1996; third edition
1999; fourth edition, 2010)
- The Old West Trivia Book (first edition, 1993; second edition,
2009)
- Bloodville (novel 2002)99 New Mexicans…and a few other folks
(2005)
- Bull’s Eye (a novel 2006).
- New Mexico & Politicians of the Past (2008)
- Duels, Gunfights & Shoot-Outs: Wild Tales from the Land of
Enchantment, (2009)
- New Mexico Historical Biographies, (2007-2009-2011)
- Unsolved: The American Valley Ranch Murders and other New Mexico
Mysteries (2013)
- Winner of:First Place, Non-Fiction Biography from the New Mexico
Press Women, 2007
- Lansing Bloom Award from the Historical Society of New Mexico,
2010
- Fray Francisco Atanasio Dominguez Award from the Historical
Society of New Mexico for 2011
- Best reference book from the New Mexico/Arizona Book awards, 2012
- Bronze Medal from the Independent Book Publishers Association,
2012
- Best Reference book from the Eric Hoffer Book Awards, 2013