Catlin, John B: Part 1 – The Civil War
John B. Catlin
John B. Catlin
One of Missoula’s most interesting pioneers, John B. Catlin, is among a select few who could claim a connection with the acclaimed Lonesome Dove saga. Lonesome Dove author, Larry McMurtry, acknowledged in an interview in 2001 that he based part of the book on Nelson Story who drove a herd of cattle from Texas to Montana in 1866 and “sold them at a profit”. (See American Heritage Magazine Feb/March 2001: THE MAKING OF “LONESOME DOVE”) John Catlin and his buddy, Steve Grover, were along for the ride. But that is a small part of the Catlin story. Let’s start from the beginning. The John B. Catlin biography appears in Progressive Men Of The State Montana, by A.W. Bowen & Co, 1902.