Mountain men given their due in new book by Seymour man

Jim Montgomery found himself one day with a little time on his hands, time he decided to fill by watching a History Channel program on Indian battles of the 1870s.

He already had an interest in the era, especially as it pertained to the hunters, trappers and mountain men who played usually unsung but key roles in the early years of the country. One of his favorite movies, for example, is "Jeremiah Johnson," the story of just such a man.

Montgomery, of Seymour, also has been a visitor to Friendship, here in Indiana, where the National Muzzle Loading Rifle Association holds two major shooting events each year.

"I always had an interest in that," Montgomery said.

It seems a natural step, then, that, sparked by the program and drawing upon both research and his own background as an outdoorsman, he would turn his hand to writing a fictional tale of a mountain man.

"I spent weekends and holidays putting it together," Montgomery said of "Lost Mountain Spirit," his recently published novel.

"Spirit" tells the story of mountain man Zen Bragg, also known to some as Pilgrim, and to others as Elk Arrow. It follows his travels, not only through the wilderness and its pockets of civilization, but also through life.

It's the story of a man of decency, courage and honor, and the people he comes to know. There is Buffler, also a mountain man, and Lame Horse, an Indian. There are travelers and settlers, and an Indian boy he calls Jonas.

It's a story of friendships and encounters that intertwine with the conflicts of the day, as the white man pushes into Indian country and the Indians push back. Through that intertwining, Pilgrim becomes a witness to the events at the Little Bighorn.

To those familiar with the era, other familiar names and events reach out - Chief Joseph of the Nez Percé, Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull; the attack on Black Kettle's village; the solemnity of the Sun Dance.

Montgomery peppers his book with a variety of characters throughout, just as a roaming mountain man would have met a variety of people through the course of his travels.

The author said he had "always had an interest in mountain men and what they did for the expansion of the country."

Once he came up with the basic idea for the story, he said, he created characters that complemented each other.

"This is the first small novel I've published," he said, although he did publish a book on herbs in 1997.

Drawing upon his own background, his next novel is "more along the lines of a hunting group" that becomes intrigued with a long-ago murder.

"It covers several years," Montgomery said of "Under the Hunter's Moon."

"Things start happening; there's a dark history of a valley (where there) used to be a rather flourishing community. Two of the members of the group get curious ..."

Although the geographical setting is fictional, he said, it does draw on the terrain of Jackson and nearby counties.

"Most of what I ever plan to write will be based on what I know," he added.

As for other aspiring authors, "I encourage anyone to write," he said.
"Lost Mountain Spirit" is available at publishamerica.com, amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.

The book is dedicated to Montgomery's wife, Toni. Together, they have two sons and two daughters, as well as several grandchildren.

Montgomery is an employee of Rose Acre Farms.