Taylor Sheridan’s “1883” is a television series that serves as a precursor to the well-liked program “Yellowstone.” The Dutton family’s migration from Texas to Montana in the late 19th century is explored in the series even though the Dutton family tree in “1883” mostly focuses on the series’ new protagonists.
The Dutton family is one of the most well-known ranching families in the country. The family also settled in Montana, establishing the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch in Yellowstone National Park. The series follows the Dutton ancestry beginning in 1883.
James Dutton and his wife Margaret, who are depicted in the 1883 series, are the family’s founders and are portrayed by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, respectively.
So who are the characters from Yellowstone, 1923, and 1883? Here is all the information you need to know about the Duttons.
James Dutton
Tim McGraw portrays James Dutton, the head of the family, in the year 1883. Elsa, John, and Spencer are the three kids that James and his wife Margaret had. The dad served in the military of the Confederacy during the American Civil War and was originally a farmer from Tennessee.
In an effort to start a new life, he chooses to travel to the West in a wagon train with his family, which also includes his sister Claire and her child Mary Abel. He makes it through the severe winter at the end of the limited series and settles on the future Yellowstone Dutton Ranch.
Margaret Dutton
In 1883, Faith Hill began acting as Margaret, McGraw’s fictional wife, with her real-life husband. Elsa, John, and Spencer are her three children; Spencer was born after the family had already moved to Montana. The mother with a strong will who helps build the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch is Margaret, a nurse who served in the Civil War.
Elsa Dutton
James and Margaret Dutton’s eldest child, Elsa, is portrayed by Isabel May in 1883. She travels west with her family and meets a cowboy named Ennis along the way. She hopes to marry him, but he has been killed by robbers.
Elsa starts a turbulent romance with Sam in Colorado after he saves her life as a Comanche warrior. She makes a promise to return to him after her family has settled following their informal wedding ceremony.
However, the pair never gets back together since Elsa passes away from an arrow shot during an attack on the family’s wagon train. She chose to be buried in Paradise Valley, which later developed into the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch.
Sam
Martin Sensmeier portrays Sam in the year 1883. After saving Elsa’s life, he is a native American warrior and he falls in love with her. He marries Elsa to prove his loyalty to his land and community, but the two are never reunited.
John Dutton Sr.
John Dutton Sr., represented by James Badge Dale, follows the Dutton family’s tradition in 1923. The relationship between John Sr., the elder son of James and Margaret Dutton, and his aunt Cara and uncle Jacob has endured even after his parents’ passing.
His son Jack is born when he marries his wife Emma. Prior to being assassinated by Banner Creighton, a rival of the family, John assists his uncle in working the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch’s land area.
Emma Dutton
Emma first appears in 1923, and Marley Shelton performs the part of her. She is the mother of Jack Dutton and the wife of John Dutton Sr. Emma, who experienced sorrow at the loss of her husband and killed herself.
Jack Dutton
In 1923, Darren Mann portrayed the role of Jack. He farms the property of the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch with his father and great-uncle, Jacob Dutton, as the son of John Dutton Sr. and Emma Dutton. In the first season, he marries Elizabeth Strafford.
Elizabeth Dutton
Michelle Randolph portrays Elizabeth Dutton, formerly Strafford, in the year 1923. She is Jack Dutton’s wife, and she struggles with being married to a rancher’s reality, especially the time spent apart. Elizabeth turns to Cara for assistance at this time, and the two of them become close.
Elizabeth and Jack had a difficult time, but after her loss, their bond gets stronger. Although some fans have suggested that the pair is the parents of John Dutton II, Randolph told The Hollywood Reporter that even she is now confused.
Spencer Dutton
James and Margaret Dutton’s second son, Spencer, is portrayed by Brandon Sklenar. Sometime after the family had moved to Montana, he was born there.
When Spencer returns home from serving in World War I, he struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder. However, the former employee decides to become a renowned big game hunter in Africa rather than working on the ranch.
Spencer eventually makes the decision to move back to Montana with his wife Alexandra, following the deaths of his brother John Sr. and his uncle Jacob. He could be the grandfather of John Dutton III from Yellowstone and the father of John Dutton II.
Alexandra Dutton
When Spencer Dutton first meets Julia Schlaepfer’s Alexandra, she is traveling to Kenya with her former fiancé Arthur. She runs away with Spencer after deciding to cancel her wedding, and the two fall in love right away.
The couple’s survival in a life-or-death scenario when stranded at sea motivates them to get married on a boat by a captain. Her presence at the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch following her and Spencer’s separation was hinted at in the season 1 finale.
Claire Dutton
Dawn Olivieri portrays Claire in the year 1883. She is the widow of Henry and the sister of Jacob and James.
Only one of her seven children, Mary Abel, made it through childhood. Together with the Dutton family, they travel west until Mary Abel is murdered, at which point Claire kills herself.
Henry
Henry is Mary Abel’s father and the late Claire Dutton’s spouse. Henry did not appear in the series and passed away before 1883, living longer than six of his children.
Mary Abel
Emma Malouff played the role of Mary Abel in 1883. She was Henry and Claire Dutton’s only surviving child. She travels west with her mother and the rest of the Dutton family before being murdered by a gang close to Fort Worth, Texas.
Jacob Dutton
In 1923, Harrison Ford takes the patriarchal role of Jacob, who outlives both his siblings, James Dutton and Claire Dutton. Jacob, who is married to Cara, manages the family ranch alongside his great-nephew Jack and nephew John Sr. on a daily basis. Jacob oversees the cattle association in addition to the property.
Cara Dutton
Cara, portrayed by Helen Mirren, is a key character in 1923 since she got married to Jacob Dutton. Her faint accent reveals that she is an immigrant from Ireland.
After James and Margaret pass away, she and Jacob inherit ownership of the property. Cara assists Emma and Elizabeth in keeping the house in order while Jacob, John Sr., and Jack take care of the upkeep of the property.
John Dutton II
John Dutton II has been mentioned in 1923 and shows up in a Yellowstone flashback episode. John II, played by Dabney Coleman, is the grandfather of Lee, Jamie, Beth, and Kayce and the father of John III. He’s either the son of Jack and Elizabeth or Spencer and Alexandra, though that hasn’t been verified yet.
John Dutton III
Kevin Costner plays John Dutton III in the movie Yellowstone. The largest ranch in Montana, the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, is passed down to John III. His connections with Lee, Jamie, Beth, and Kayce, his four children, are complex yet loving and devoted.
Evelyn Dutton
Evelyn makes an appearance in Yellowstone, and Gretchen Mol plays the role. John Dutton III, her husband, and she had four kids together: Lee, Beth, Jamie, and Kayce. Evelyn died in a horseback riding accident in 1997 while out riding with Beth and Kayce.
Her husband and children struggled to carry on without her years later since she was seen as “the spine of the family.”
Lee Dutton
Dave Annable only appears as Lee to Yellowstone viewers in the premiere episode, but he is mentioned frequently in further episodes. He is the eldest child and is slated to inherit the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, but he is killed in an accident while trying to find livestock that were stolen.
Jamie Dutton
In Yellowstone, Wes Bentley’s character Jamie is the second-oldest child. After Jamie’s real father, Garrett Randall, killed his mother, Phyllis, he was taken in by John III and Evelyn.
He subsequently gets in touch with his biological father, which makes things difficult for John III. Jamie serves as Montana’s attorney general and collaborates with his adoptive father, who ascends to the office of governor.
The lawyer is also at odds with his sister Beth, who holds him responsible for her infertility.
Christina
Katherine Cunningham plays Christina, who makes an appearance in Yellowstone. During his campaign for Montana attorney general in season 2, she managed Jamie Dutton’s campaign.
Jamie and she have a son together who was also called Jamie in their prior relationship.
Jamie Dutton Jr.
Following the breakup with Jamie in season 4, Christina shocks him by announcing her pregnancy. It’s not yet known if he will be called James or Jamie, but he is reportedly named after his father.
Beth Dutton
Beth is portrayed by Kelly Reilly. She has a thriving banking job in Salt Lake City and returns to the Dutton Ranch to support her family’s heritage.
After Beth’s return, she rekindles her romance with Rip Wheeler, and despite their relationship’s on-again, off-again pattern, they unexpectedly tied the knot at the conclusion of season 4.
Jamie wants to be the future governor of Montana, while Beth backs their father, which contributes to their sibling rivalry.
Rip Wheeler
Cole Hauser’s character, Rip Wheeler, was adopted by John Dutton III after becoming an orphan as a teenager. Rip began as a ranch worker and worked his way up to become John’s friend and the supervisor of the Dutton Ranch.
He’s known Beth since they were teenagers when he first started working there, but they didn’t get romantically involved until they reunited as adults.
Kayce Dutton
Luke Grimes plays Kayce, a character that appears in Yellowstone. Tate, their son, was born to him and his wife Monica Dutton.
In addition to being a former Navy SEAL, Kayce is the youngest of his siblings. He starts a career as a livestock agent with the Montana Livestock Association before deciding to resign in order to help out on his father’s ranch.
On the Broken Rock Indian Reservation, where Monica lives, Kayce also works to close a divide between the Native American population there.
Monica Dutton
Monica is already married to Kayce when Kelsey Asbille’s portrayal of her in Yellowstone’s first season begins. The pair, who have a son named Tate, are married, however, it is unclear how their connection first began.
Along with being Dutton family members, the trio deals with life on the Broken Rock Indian Reservation.
In episode 5 of the show, a vehicle accident results in the death of Monica and Kayce’s second child, a son called John. Her relationship with her father-in-law and sister-in-law gets stronger in spite of the tragedy.
Tate Dutton
Tate is the son of Kayce and Monica Dutton, who is portrayed by Brecken Merrill. Tate’s prominence has grown even if his character only has a tiny plot in the beginning as he adjusts to the fact that he will eventually take over the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch.
Tate and his grandfather, John Dutton III, get closer after Kayce and Monica settle on the farm.
Conclusion
- The Dutton family is one of the most well-known ranching families in the country.
- The series follows the Dutton ancestry beginning in 1883. James Dutton and his wife Margaret, who are depicted in the 1883 series, are the family’s founders.
- Three television programs, 1883, 1923, and Yellowstone, detailing the family’s history and legacy, center on the story of the Montana-based Yellowstone Dutton Ranch.
- An amazing 12.1 million people watched the first episode of Season 5 when it debuted in November 2022.