Custer’s Last Stand
Custer’s last stand (or) Battle of the Little Big Horn
The Native Americans call it the Battle of Greasy Grass Creek but whatever you call it, Custer lost. He took with him in death five companies of soldiers, two brothers, a nephew and a brother-in-law. The total was US Cavalry 268 dead, 55 wounded. The exact number of causalities on the American Indian side has never been determined.
This eastern Montana battle ground near the Little Bighorn River is perhaps one of the most famous in American “Old West Stories.” In the 1870s, the (in the Black Hills War or Great Sioux War), Indian and Cavalry conflicts were common, but this one gained fame for the unusually high number of dead and the first real American loss in the west. Led by Sitting Bull, the Lakota, Cheyenne and other tribes wiped the American forces out relatively quickly. It was shocking.
Today, Little Big Horn battle ground is on, or very near the Crow Reservation. Located just off Hwy 90 and south of Nardin, Montana, the actual site is easy to find. The grave yard holds more than just the men who died in this battle. Some 4000 are buried there although Custer’s soldiers were the first.
The Visitor’s Center offers a small number of displays that lay out the battle ground to make it easier to understand. In 2003, a 2 million dollar monument brought forth the Indian point of view of the battle. There is also a monument for all the unfortunate horses.
Other things to see include the Crow Agency Fair, Powwow and rodeo in August just 1 mile west of the battleground. The Crow tribe has its own government and their Reservation covers about 2,500,000 acres in Big Horn County. Custer Battlefield Museum at Garryowen, Montana is off I-90 Exit 514 and located where the Battle of the Little Bighorn began.
Today the battle ground is an open field, but some still find slivers of flint or broken buttons off bloodied uniforms. This year the official reenactment takes place June 25th, 26th & 27th 2010 near Hardin, Montana.
While you are in Montana, travel south toward the Wyoming border to Bighorn Canyon. See the Bad Pass Trail, Yellowtail Dam and four historic ranches. If wildlife and wilderness is your passion, go camping, boating and fishing in the many Montana Lakes.
*
By Marti Talbott
*
A Terrible Glory: Custer and the Little Bighorn – the Last Great Battle of the American West
