Granville Stuart
| Granville Stuart | |
|---|---|
Granville Stuart, circa 1900
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| Born |
August 27, 1834 Harrison County, West Virginia |
| Died | October 2, 1918 (aged 84) Missoula, Montana |
| Cause of death | Heart failure |
| Resting place | Deer Lodge, Montana |
| Other names | Mr. Montana |
| Occupation | Pioneer, gold prospector, businessman, civic leader, vigilante, author, cattleman and diplomat |
| Political party | Democrat |
| Spouse(s) | Awbonnie Tookanka (1862–1888), Allis Belle Brown (1890–1918) |
| Children | Kate, Tom, Charlie, Mary, Elizabeth, Emma, George, Eddie, Harry, Samuel & Irene |
| Parent(s) | Robert and Nancy C. Stuart |
Granville Stuart (August 27, 1834 – October 2, 1918) was a pioneer, gold prospector, businessman, civic leader, vigilante, author, cattleman and diplomat who played a prominent role in the early history of Montana Territory and the state of Montana. Widely known as "Mr. Montana", Granville's life spanned the formative years of Montana from territorial times through the first 30 years of statehood. His journals and writings have provided Montana and western historians unique insights into life in the Northern Rockies during the second half the 19th Century.
Granville Stuart was born August 27, 1834 in Harrison County, Virginia (after the civil war this area became part of West Virginia) to parents Robert and Nancy C. Stuart. He was their second son and brother to their first son, James Stuart. In 1838, the Stuarts after a brief stay in Illinois, moved to Muscatine County, Iowa near present day West Liberty, Iowa. It was in frontier Iowa that a young Granville and his brother James learned to hunt, explore and respect the wilderness.
In 1849, Granville's father Robert made his way to the California gold fields as a Forty-niner but had little luck. In 1851 he returned to the family in Iowa. In the Spring of 1852 Granville and his brother James accompanied their father west on the Oregon Trail back to California. By the summer of 1853 Robert was tired of gold prospecting and returned to Iowa. The brothers Granville and James stayed in the Sacramento, California area to make their own life. After failing to strike it rich in Sacramento, they moved to Yreka in June 1854 and the Klamath River valley in 1855 in search of gold. Because of troubles with hostile Rogue River and Klamath Indian tribes in northern California, Granville and James enlisted as scouts in the First California Mounted Riflemen for three dollars a day to fight Indians in the Rogue River Wars in February 1856. Their military career lasted about a month without any encounter with hostile Indians. They returned to Yreka to prospect but by the Spring of 1857 had decided to return overland to the family in Iowa.
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