Anniversary of Lt Col Custer's Last Stand

The Battle of the Little Bighorn, usually referred to as Custer's Last Stand, occured 137 years ago today on June 25th 1876. This battle has been made famous through many books, a few movies, and still retains many myths.  Hands down, the best book on the subject is the recent work by Nathaniel Philbrick called "The Last Stand: Custer, Sitting Bull and the Battle of the Little Bighorn".

The U.S. Army in the midst of the Plains Indians Wars sent several columns of Cavalry and Infantry to fix and destroy the Indians. Custer, for reasons probably pertaining to his vanity or ego about sharing what he thought would be glory and probably some disrespect for the Indians ability to fight a fixed battle, located a large Indian encampment on the Little Bighorn River the morning of June 25th 1876 and despite warnings from his Crow Indian Scouts concerning how large and therefore how many warriors he faced, Custer decided not to wait on the other columns, but to attack, fearing the element of surprise had been or would be lost.

The village the Crow Scouts spotted consisted of Lakota (Sioux), Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho warriors, women and children led by Crazy Horse, Chief Gall and Sitting Bull. Custer divided the 7th Cavalry, which consisted of 12 Companies into three forces: Three companies (Co A, Co G and Co M) under Major Marcus Reno; three comapnies (Co D, Co H and Co K) under Captain Frederick Benteen; and kept five companies under his own command (Co's C, E, F, I and L). The 12th Company, Co B, was commanded by Captain Thomas McDougall to guard the pack train and supplies.

Custer sent Major Reno to attack the Indian camp from the East and draw their attention while Custer rode around North of the camp to attack the camp from the rear (the West end of the camp) and prevent the Indians from escaping.

The Indians had no intent on escaping, even if they did, the warriors would have fought until the women and children were able to withdrawal. Major Reno was unsuccessful in pentrating the camp and was driven back sustaining heavy casualties. Lt Col Custer was discovered trying to circle the camp and was engaged on the move until heavy Indian forces pinned the largest portion of his command on a hill known as Last Stand Hill.

It was here that the majority of Custer's force, approximatley 210 men, were killed. Total casualties for the 7th Cavalry were 268 killed and 55 wounded out of a total force of 700 men. ...a stunning loss for the Army and a great victory for the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho. A big loss for the Custer family as not only did they lose George Custer, but Custer's brother, brother in law and nephew were also killed.


Of course, the story of the Battle of the Little Bighorn would not be complete without the story Commanche, the mount of Captain Miles Keough who died with Custer. Commanche a veteran Cavalry horse was wounded several times by bullets and was found one or two days after the battle, badly wounded, but nursed back to health by surviving members of the 7th Cavalry. He has often been referred to as the only survivor of Custer's Last Stand, which wasn't true as there were other horses found alive. Commanche was described as a 15 hand Bay gelding, who like beer by the way, and was retired after overcoming his wounds, only to be used for cermonial purposes. Commanche died 15 years later and remains today perserved in a environmentally controlled glass case at the University of Kansas.

General George Crook - Indian Warfighter

Born 1828 and died 1890, General George Crook was considered the Army's greatest Indian fighter. It is by no coincidence that he maximized use of Indian Scouts, particularly members of the particular Indian Nation he was fighting.

General Crook earned his reputation as a relentless enemy of the Indians however personally he had a healthy respect for Indian culture and was in turn respected by the Indians.

Crook graduated from West Point in 1852 and spent the next several years in California and Oregon fighting Indians. It was here he first not only developed his expertise in irregular warfare but learned how to integrate scouts and local volunteers into his military campaign plans.

In 1861 the outbreak of the Civil War brought Crook back to the east where he participated in battles, most notably the Second Battle of Bull Run and Chickamauga. After the war, Crook was assigned back to the West and against Indian tribes again,....this time fighting the Paiute. Because of his successes, Crook was assigned to pacify the Arizona Territory where beginning in 1871 he fought Apache attempts to stay off designated reservations.

It is here in the Apache campaign that Crook's reputation soared, being relentless and successfully integrating Apache and White Scouts (notably Al Seiber and Tom Horn) into his hunts for Apaches renegades.  Crook became to be known by the Apache as "Gray Wolf" and for his honest treatment of the Apache during capture and negotiations.  Honest meaning honest like a horse because you knew what to expect from Crook.

 In 1875 General Crook was transferred to the Northern Plains first to protect and remove Gold miners who illegally entered the Black Hills to prospect and subsequently incurred Indian attacks by the Lakota (Sioux).

In 1876, he led one of several columns against Sitting Bull's Lakota and Cheyenne bands, however be forced to retreat at the Battle of Rosebud while Custer's 7th Cavalry unit was essentially wiped out.

In 1882 Crook again returned to Arizona to go after Chiricahua Apaches who had fled the reservation. This band was led by Geronimo, who conducted a very serious guerilla campaign against the white settlers.

In 1886, General Crook was replaced by General Nelson Miles, a man with little respect for the Apache or Indians for that matter. General Miles finally captured Geronimo and exiled him to an internment camp in Florida.

The campaign against Geronimo and the Chiricahua was Crook's last military campaign. He ended his career being an advocate for the Indian Nations and lobbying for fair treatment for his former enemies until he died in 1890.