On June 25, 1876, just 9 days before the nation's centenial celebration, George Armstrong Custer became famous. It wasn't the way he had it planned. The Battle of the Little Bighorn was the biggest victory Native Americans achieved over the U.S. Army but it was the beginning of the end, their Last Stand. The road from there led to the reservation.
In 19th Century American history, the Little Bighorn is probably the most famous battle after Gettysburg and the Alamo. While the casualties at Gettysburg far exceeded those of the Alamo and Little Bighorn combined, the latter two battles seemingly involved situations where American forces were virtually wiped out. The defenders of the Alamo were hoping for reinforcements right up until they met their end on March 6, 1836. The Little Bighorn situation differed in that Custer divided his forces on the day of the battle. The 7th Calvary was split into three battalions led by Lt. Col. Custer, Major Marcus Reno and Captain Frederick Benteen. One company was left under Captain McDougald to guard the pack train. The 210 men in Custer's battalion were all killed. The Reno and Benteen battalions with a combined total of about 430 men suffered about 60 casualties. How would the 7th Calvary have fared if Custer had not split his forces? It's something we'll never know.
Nathaniel Philbrick's "The Last Stand: Custer, Sitting Bull, and the Battle of the Little Bighorn" is the latest and maybe the best take on this famous battle which took place in southeastern Montana, just a bit north of Sheridan, Wyoming. As the jacket notes indicate, Philbrick brings to light a new source, the unpublished writings of Private Peter Thompson, begun just months after the battle. There is no claim that Thompson's story is unimpeachable but it is worth considering. Also considered among many other source documents was a memoir by Wooden Leg, a Northern Cheyene, which provides a stirring account of the attack of the Seventh Calvary. Check out the reviews online.
Philbrick also wrote a great book about the Pilgrims called "Mayflower", published in 2006.
Other books I've read on Custer:
Evan S. Connell - "Son of the Morning Star: Custer and the Little Bighorn", published in 1984
David Humphreys Miller - "Custer's Fall: The Indian Side of the Story" (1985)
Douglas Jones - "The Court Martial of George Armstrong Custer" (1976), a novel with the premise that Custer survived and was brought to trial.
James Welch with Paul Stekler - "Killing Custer: The Battle of the Little Bighorn and the Fate of the Plains Indians" (1994)
William O. Taylor - "With Custer on the Little Bighorn" (1996)
In August of 1992 I got to visit the Custer Battlefield while on a family vacation trip from Long Island to Colorado Springs. Among other places we got to see were Yellowstone National Park, Pike's Peak and Mount Rushmore.
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