Maggie Tilton

Maggie Tilton is a fictional character appearing in two books in the Lonesome Dove series. She is a prostitute and the lover of Captain Woodrow F. Call, a Texas Ranger, and is also the mother of his son, Newt Dobbs.

She appears only briefly in the last two books published, and the first two chronologically, Dead Man's Walk and Comanche Moon.

Dead Man's Walk

Maggie makes her first appearance as a whore working in Austin, where she meets returning Texas Ranger Woodrow F. Call, and they begin a relationship. To Call, it is nothing more than a business relationship: she is a whore, he is her customer, and he insists on always paying her. She begins to have feelings for him, hoping that he would reciprocate, but he never even seemed to acknowledge her feelings. He soon leaves to take part in the Texas Santa Fe Expedition, and when he returns, they resume their relationship.

Maggie is played in the film by Gretchen Mol.

Comanche Moon

She and Woodrow continue their relationship for the next ten years, with Woodrow always returning to Maggie after a mission with the Rangers. This book begins with Woodrow, Gus McCrae, Pea Eye Parker and Joshua Deets being led by Captain Inish Scull into the Llano Estacado in pursuit of the Comanches Buffalo Hump, Blue Duck and Kicking Wolf. Kicking Wolf picks up their trail, and decides to steal Scull's horse, Hector, and give him to the Mexican bandit Ahumado. When Scull discovers that Hector has been stolen, he abandons the Rangers under his command, taking Famous Shoes as his guide to find Hector. On the spot, he promotes Call and McCrae to Captains, and orders them to return the troop to Austin. In Woodrow's absence, she is sometimes an unwitting customer of Jake Spoon.

In Austin, Maggie tells Woodrow that she is expecting his child. Call continues to stay with her, and give her money to take care of herself, but will not acknowledge that he is the father. He is soon ordered by Governor Elisha M. Pease to retrieve Scull. While Call and McCrae are in pursuit of Scull, the rest of the Comanche tribe, led by Buffalo Hump and Blue Duck, launch a raid on Austin. Maggie, remembering what Call told her, hides under a building, and is not attacked by the Indians. Word reaches the Rangers of the Raid, and they abandon their search for Scull to return to Austin. She and Call are briefly reunited then, but soon he has to leave again, this time to round up a herd of cattle from a Captain King in Lonesome Dove.

When she gives birth to her son, Newt, Call will not acknowledge the child is his, as she has hoped. He insists on believing that Jake could be the father. After she dies, Call and Gus raise Newt, but Call will still not admit he is the father.

In the film of Comanche Moon, Maggie is played by Elizabeth Banks.

It is interesting to note that while Call does - at some points in both novels - address her as Maggie, Gus accuses him in Lonesome Dove of never addressing her by name.