Little Bighorn Battlefield

This battle should never have happened.  A scout even told Custer that there were more Indians than he had bullets.  If he had waited until all the other regiments came together they probably would have been okay. We will never know.

                    

The white marker with the black front is where Custer fell.  These were the soldiers that fell on what is now called Last Stand Hill.  He was removed from Little Bighorn and is buried at West Point. 

              

Such a vast open area.  In 1984, a grass fire went through the area.  After the fire, a lot of artifacts where revealed.  Archaeologists were able to track a lot of the movements through these findings.  All over the battlefield you see these white markers.  Most of them in twos.  They probably fought back to back.

They have an Indian Memorial.

     

A horse cemetery.  It seems a lot of the soldiers had shot their horses to use as barricades.

We also stopped at Custer Museum.  This is right down the road from where we are staying in a town called Garryowen.  Garryowen was the tune that was played as the 7th Calvary marched.  Outside they have a Tomb of the Unknown Soldier that was dedicated 50 years after the battle.  Actually it came about because some road workers uncovered the remains.  It’s believed that it was one of Lt Col Reno’s men.  They know it was a soldier because they found buttons.  The black and white photo is the actual dedication.  The indian is believed to be the one who shot Custer and the man is a survivor of the battle.  Inside the tomb they laid a hatchet among other artifacts.  This is where the term “bury the hatchet” came from.  Notice the man is not looking directly at the indian.

          

I’m really glad that we came this way.  It was a fun day.