American Art Collaborative

In 1778, Catlin’s mother, Polly Sutton, and grandmother were captured by Indians at the surrender of Forty Fort, a stronghold built on a bluff above the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania. There, the Battle of Wyoming had been fought against the combined forces of the British and Indians. Polly Sutton’s stories entranced her son George, and inspired his interest in Native American culture, as did visits to the Catlin home by various soldiers and explorers during the artist’s youth