On June 22, 1876, General George Armstrong Custer,
with eight hundred and fifty men and Indian scouts
and guides started up the Rosebud River. Early in the morning of the
twenty-fourth, while the Custer command was passing up the Rosebud, scouts who
were well in advance, saw a few Sioux scouts or hunters. Later in the day they
reported to Custer that they had seen these men and that the Sioux had crossed
over to the valley of the Little Bighorn. Custer seemed a little excited, and
instructed the scouts to go first to the mountains forming the divide between
the Rosebud an the Little Bighorn. The sun was now very low, and the scouts
followed with the command following. In the scouting party were Lieutenant
Barnum, Mitch Boyer, the five Crow scouts-White Man Runs Him, Goes Ahead, Hairy
Moccasins, White Swan, and Paints Half His Face Yellow-a half-breed, and some
Arikara. The scouting party followed up the Rosebud until he reached a small
creek that heads in the mountains. They followed this stream, almost reaching
the summit of the divide before daylight. Here they lay down to rest. At
approaching dawn Boyer and White Man Run Him left the others asleep and went to
a high point on the summit, usually referred to as the Crow's Nest. Far below
them and to the west spread the Little Bighorn valley, over which hung a mist
like cloud-and smoke from large Indian encampment. The Crow called to the others
to ascend. Varnum or Boyer sent a note by Red Star, an Arikara scout, to Custer,
who by that time had ascended close to the divide between the Rosebud and the
Little Bighorn. When Red Star came hurriedly to Custer, he was asked by the
latter in sign "Have you seen the Cutthroats (Sioux)?" On receiving the scouts
reply, Custer read the note, and then with four or five men road at once to
Crow's Nest, from which vantage he studied the distance for some time and viewed
the encampment with its great herd of horses on the hills beyond.
This outlook, which affords a splendid view of the entire
region is about fifteen miles at the head of Davis creek, which flows into the
Rosebud, and Middle Reno creek, which empties into the Little Bighorn. The creek
flowing down to the Little Bighorn stretches clearly before one, and much of the
Sioux encampment was plainly in sight.
("The writer's (Curtis') party visited this point in mid
afternoon when considerable haze hovered over the valley, yet even the small
cabins now on the camp site could be discerned with the naked eye, and with the
aid of a glass smaller objects could be readily identified. While the party
stood on this point two railway trains were seen to pass along the valley. These
details are mentioned here because it has been asserted that Custer was not able
to see the valley clearly from this outlook. The scouts say that the white tipis
were pitched so thickly in the valley that it had the appearance of being
covered with a sheet, and that the hills beyond were brown with horses. The
outlook afforded such a perfect prospect that with the assistance of the scouts,
who were thoroughly familiar with the ground, a commander could easily have
formulated a plan of attack and have found no reason for materially changing
it.") - Curtis observation
Custer discussed with his scouts the situation, the nature
of the ground and the best route to follow, and then road back to his command,
which was just below him to the right. In the early forenoon the command moved
down the western slope of Wolf mountains and out of the plain, and thus began
the most unfortunate day ever experienced by United States troops in Indian
warfare. Before leaving the summit one Crow scout, Hairy Moccasins, was sent
ahead to scan the ground and obtain a closer view of the village. Preceding down
the valley, past the oft-mentioned death-lodge of the Sioux, he climbed a
pine-clad hill near the junction of the middle and north branches of Reno creek,
observing the Sioux everywhere across the Little Bighorn, and a few, who were
presumably Sioux scouts, in the valley of Reno creek. Hairy Moccasins rode back
and reported the size and position of the Sioux encampment, and said that the
hostiles were not running away, as had been thought. On receiving this report
Custer hurried the command down the valley and halted at the junction of the two
forks on a fair-sized flat, now, as it probably was then, a prairie dog village.
("At this point White Man Runs Him designated to the author the
site where the troops were halted and the spot where Custer stood.")- Curtis
observation
This is where Custer and Reno separated.
Reno advanced down the valley at its left margin. He had
with him as scouts White Swan, Paints Half His Face Yellow, both Crows, and
several Arikara. The distance from the point of separation as traveled by Reno
to where he began his fight is, by the United States geological Survey, three
and one-half miles.
With Custer were the Crow scouts, White Man Runs Him, Hairy
Moccasins, Goes Ahead, and Curly, and Mitch Boyer as interpreter and scout.
Custer's command bore off to the right down a sharp bank, across a narrow flat,
then across a narrow cut of a dry creek and out on a rising plain, Custer with
his staff and scouts in the lead and their horses at a gallop. The course was
gradually up and out of Reno creek. Off to the left Reno's command was in full
sight, moving down the valley almost within hailing distance. As Custer's
command emerged from the valley it passed, for two or three minutes, from the
sight of Reno's men, then came up close to the crest of the hill overlooking the
valley. Just before reaching this crest-the distance is about a quarter of a
mile-the command was halted and the scouts were sent ahead. They appeared at the
top of the hill, riding along silhouetted against the sky, and signaling Custer
to follow; he and his staff went at once to the summit.
"This is where Custer was seen to wave a salutation to Reno's
command...This statement by Reno's men verifies the scouts story and proves that
Custer's route paralleled the river rather than went far back from it, as some
have stated and as his line of march is traced on many published maps")- Curtis
observation
When Custer reached this outlook, probably
one-half or three-fourths of the Indian encampment was in plain view. Reno had
already forded the river and was riding down the valley toward the Sioux camp.
The distance from the point of separation to where Custer now stood on the
outlook is one mile, and to where Reno was seen across the Little Bighorn
beginning his march down the Valley, it was the same distance. From these points
either or both commanders could have ridden into the Sioux camp in less than ten
minutes. Custer stopped here, as the Indians expressed it, "only as a bird
alights and then flies on."
The ground in general is a sharp ridge sloping
abruptly toward the river on one hand and gently to the other, this easy slope
ending in a draw, which from here to the point where the attack on Custer began
parallels the river. The peculiar topography enabled Custer and his staff to
keep close to the crest where they could have a full view of the valley, while
at the same time the troops were entirely ignorant of what was in the valley on
the other side of the ridge. Within one minute from Custer's starting from this
first point of vantage he passed over the ground on which Reno's disordered
force was later to make its stand.
("This spot is now strewn with the
bleached bones of troop-horses and pack-mules.")- Curtis observation
Hugging the ridge for a time, Custer passed a
hill and out in full view of the valley again. This last point is one of the
highest in the region and gave a perfect view of the entire Indian encampment
and the ground on which Reno made his attack.
("It is... a mile and a quarter from the scene of Reno's
fight in the valley. The nature of the intervening ground is such that calvary
could have covered it in a lope. The distance from here to the point of
separation is two and one-half miles.")- Curtis observation
Custer's route thence practically paralleled
the valley for a distance, then turned to the left down a dry creek, by the
Indians called Medicine Tail Coulee. Here he rode out close to the river, and
probably planned to ford at this point and attack the Sioux. But the Indians had
now discovered him and were gathered closely on the opposite side, and if the
plan had been to cross, it was given up without an effort, even without going
quite to the stream.
("It has been said that this was not a good ford-that the
river had cut banks and quicksand. On the contrary, there is no better fording
place in the river. The ground slopes down without a bank of any sort, and the
opposite side is likewise favorable to passage, although a little higher, and
there is no sign of a treacherous bottom.")- Curtis observation
From here Custer turned slightly, led his
command back up the valley a short distance, then swung to the left, and with
Boyer and some of his staff dismounted and went out on a fairly high point
overlooking the entire encampment.
(" The configuration of the land is, as at the other stopping
place, such that the troops now dismounted were back of him and in part, at
least, out of the sight of the Indians- Curtis observation
At this time some Indians were crossing the
river here and there, and others were stealthily creeping up in Custer's front.
When Custer had reached this point, Reno's fight in the valley had closed, and
his men, with those of Benteen, were together on the bluffs, so that the entire
Sioux force was free to attack Custer. Lieutenant-Colonel Brown,
says:
"While waiting for the ammunition pack-mules, Major Reno
concluded to make an effort to recover and bury the body of Lieutenant Hodgson.
At the same time he loaded up a few men with canteens to get water for the
command; they were to accompany the rescuing party. The effort was futile; the
party was ordered back after being fired upon by some Indians who doubtless were
scalping the dead near the foot of the bluffs. At this time there were a large
number of horsemen, Indians, in the valley-at least one thousand, says Benteen.
Suddenly they all started down the valley, and in a few minutes scarcely one was
to be seen." -(Quote)
According to the testimony of almost
innumerable Sioux participants, this rush of warriors down the valley commenced
when they had sighted Custer's command, and this was the beginning of their
attack on him. Custer personally, while sitting there, shot at Indians who were
reckless enough to come within range. Boyer sat at Custer's side and the Crow
scouts were behind with the troops. Boyer called White Man Runs Him, who came up
to them on his hands and knees, when Boyer said to him "You have done what you
agreed to do-brought us to the Sioux camp; now go back to the pack-train and
live." The scouts then mounted and rode away, and as they came in sight of the
attacking Sioux, many shots were fired at them, but they were soon out of range.
They say they did not ride hard very long, but as soon as well out of range
proceeded more slowly and watched the fight. Theirs was only a distant view,
hence they could give no details of the encounter. Custer mounted at the time
the scouts left him and began his retreat, and it was at this point that seven
bodies were found by the burying squad. None of these men had empty cartridges,
which clearly indicates that they were killed in the first attack, before there
had been any considerable firing by the troops.
"Custer made no attack, the whole movement
being a retreat. Whether he thought only of withdrawing far enough back from the
river to find a favorable position to make a stand, or had undertaken a long
retreat to the mountains, cannot be told. The Sioux thought he was trying to
reach the distant hills, and headed him off, forcing the retreat on a line more
or less paralleling the river.
("A careful study of the ground convinces one that within
miles there was no more favorable ground for a stand than that occupied by
Custer's troops when the Sioux made the attack. To the west was a circling
cut-bank protecting a third of his line; to the east his position commanded all
of the immediate points; there were no hills near enough to form a satisfactory
commanding position for the Indians, and he was within fifty yards of
water.")-Curtis observation
On June 27, two days after Custer's defeat,
Terry arrived with Gibbon's men, forming a junction with Reno's force. They
buried Custer's two hundred dead, gathered up Reno's wounded, and withdrew to
the mouth of the Bighorn. The wounded were sent to Fort Abraham Lincoln, and
Terry applied for reinforcements. Large additional forces were hurried to the
front, but no considerable body of the Indians could be found; they were
apparently satisfied for the time with their bloody victory, and had scattered,
many going back to their reservations. The soldiers now adopted a policy of
disarming and dismounting all of the Indians at the agencies. Colonel Miles, in
pursuit of the fleeing Sioux north of the Yellowstone, had two parleys with
Sitting Bull, Gall, and others. No understanding being reached, the chase was
resumed. Five of the chiefs surrendered and were held as hostages, but Sitting
Bull and Gall with their immediate bands escaped into Canada.
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