The Last Days of George Armstrong Custer (43 page)

An analysis by Custer scholars includes:
General Custer's Libbie,
by Frost;
Custer,
by Monaghan;
Son of the Morning Star,
by Connell; Ambrose's
Crazy Horse and Custer,
and Wert's
Custer
. One noted historian, Robert M. Utley, in his biography,
Cavalier in Buckskin,
leaves the door open a crack to the possibility that another child was born late in 1869 and that Custer could have been the father. Mo-nah-se-tah is a prominent figure in Custer's memoir,
My Life on the Plains,
and Elizabeth Bacon Custer's
Following the Guidon.

For the case of a woman who claims to be a descendent of “Yellow Hair,” also known as Josiah Custer, the alleged child of Mo-nah-se-tah and Custer, see: “My Heritage, My Search,” by Gail Kelly-Custer.

An opposing view of the relationship within Cheyenne oral tradition is presented by John Stands in
Timber
and Margot Liberty in
Cheyenne Memories,
which dismisses any notion of a liaison between Custer and the girl.

The text of Benteen's scurrilous letter about Custer abandoning Elliott can be found in
The Custer Myth,
by Graham. Benteen's explanation of the incident in Custer's tent is described in his letter of February 22, 1896, to Theodore Goldin in
The Benteen-Goldin Letters on Custer and His Last Battle,
edited by Carroll.

The best accounts of the Joel Elliott affair can be found in
Cavalier in Buckskin,
by Utley;
Custer Legends,
by Frost;
The Battle of the Washita,
by Hoig; and
Sheridan's Troopers on the Borders,
by Keim. Incidentally, Keim, the reporter whom Benteen noted as being a witness to a later confrontation with Custer, makes no mention of that incident in his coverage of Elliott's tragic fate, although he did write that he reported the reason for Custer's officer's call to Sheridan.

The theory about Benteen fearing to confront Myers can be attributed to the author's speculation.

Captive Clara Blinn's message is on display at the National Frontier Trails Center in Independence, Missouri, and has been reprinted in Rister's
Border Captives,
which details the incident. W. T. Harrington's letter to Sheridan dated November 8, 1868, is located in the Records of the U.S. Army, Box 16, Division of the Missouri, Special File, RG 393. For an excerpt of the incident from Custer's official report see
My Life on the Plains,
by Custer. The University of Oklahoma edition of the book also includes an argument by Colonel William B. Hazen with respect to the identity of the Indians who were responsible for the death of Mrs. Blinn.

Custer's own dramatic account of the release of the captured women on Sweetwater Creek can be found in
My Life on the Plains
. His wife, Libbie, adds her perspective to the story in
Following the Guidon
. An eyewitness account by participant David Spotts is contained in his
Campaigning with Custer and the Nineteenth Kansas Volunteer Cavalry on the Washita Campaign, 1868–69
. For two other interesting versions see
California Joe,
by Milner and Forrest and chapter 11, “Deliverance by Deception,” of Hoig's
Battle of the Washita
.

The best version of the Battle of Summit Springs can be found in a biography of Major Carr titled
War Eagle,
by King.
The Summit Springs Battle,
by Werner, includes copies of Carr's official reports and several interesting maps. Scout Luther North's interview with Walter Camp about the battle can be found in
Camp on Custer,
edited by Liddic and Harbaugh. An in-depth analysis by Don Russell with respect to who actually killed Tall Bull—in his opinion Buffalo Bill—is contained in his
Lives and Legends of Buffalo Bill
. For support for Frank North as the slayer of Tall Bull, as well as coverage of the battle, see both
Two Great Scouts and Their Pawnee Battalions,
by Grinnell and Danker's
Man of the Plains
. Other notable sources for the battle include:
Summit Springs,
by King;
Across the Continent with the Fifth Cavalry,
by Price; and Sheridan's
Record of Engagements with Hostile Indians Within the Military Division of the Missouri.

The most factual and dramatic account of the Washita battle, which provides a perspective from the Indian side of the affair without compromising the truth, can be found in my
Black Kettle
. An accurate overall account of the Winter Campaign of 1868–69 can be found in Hoig's
Battle of the Washita.
Another excellent choice would be
Phil Sheridan and His Army,
by Hutton. For a compilation of the official documents see
General Custer and the Battle of the Washita: The Federal View,
edited by Carroll. An eyewitness perspective from a reporter who accompanied the campaign is
Sheridan's Troopers on the Borders,
by Keim. The classic
Indian Fights and Fighters,
by Brady, includes a notable version of the Washita battle. Edward Godfrey, one of Custer's officers, adds interesting details in his “Some Reminiscences, Including the Washita Battle, November 27, 1868,” which also appears in Hutton's
Custer Reader
.

Custer's own view of events is included in his memoir,
My Life on the Plains,
in which he reacts to the criticism, and Libbie Custer provides her insight in
Following the Guidon
.

Two of the more critical assessments are Brill's
Conquest of the Southern Plains
and
Custer's Battle of the Washita and a History of the Plains Indian Tribes,
by Epple.

The most balanced debate about the morals of the campaign can be found in Hutton's
Phil Sheridan and His Army
. One of the better arguments for the humanitarian position is covered in detail in chapter 12, “A Quarrel of Conscience,” of Hoig's
Battle of the Washita
. Ironically, Hoig concludes that the battle was a massacre but provides more than enough evidence to dispute that finding.

For a reporter's eyewitness point of view that at times both supports and refutes the army's presentation of events and evidence, see
Sheridan's Troopers on the Borders,
by Keim. Sheridan's orders to Custer appear in the works by both Hoig and Keim.

Other sources, for the most part sympathetic to the Indians, include:
The Fighting Cheyennes,
by Grinnell, and
Our Indian Wards,
by Manypenny.

The most powerful narrative of the Sand Creek Massacre can be found in my
Black Kettle,
which provides an evenhanded view of events from both sides of the tragic affair.

Helen Hunt Jackson was a resident of Colorado Springs when she wrote
A Century of Dishonor,
which describes the massacre in great detail and quotes liberally from testimony given before the Congressional Committee. The report of the U.S. War Department was published in 1975 by the Library of Congress under the title
Report of the Secretary of War Communicating, in Compliance with a Resolution of the Senate of February 4, 1867: Copy of Evidence Taken at Denver and Fort Lyon, Colorado by a Military Commission Ordered to Inquire in the Sand Creek Massacre, November 1864
.

Sherman's quote defending the attack on Washita can be found in my
Black Kettle,
256.

Chapter Five

Battling Sioux in Yellowstone Country

The incident between Tom Custer and Wild Bill is related by O'Conner in his
Wild Bill Hickok
and also in an article titled “Tom Custer: In the Shadow of His Brother,” by Reedstrom.

Bird's biography,
In His Brother's Shadow: The Life of Thomas Ward Custer,
provides an evenhanded depiction of Tom's event-filled life.

Henry Capehart's quote about Tom's bravery can be found in my
Glorious War,
297.

A detailed account of Custer's investment venture and his New York socializing can be found in
General Custer's Libbie,
by Frost. Correspondence about the subject between and by Custer and Libbie has been reprinted in
The Custer Story,
by Merington. Another notable source is Utley's
Cavalier in Buckskin,
which suggests that some of Custer's practices in promoting the mine, although common for the time, were less than honorable.

Between 1867 and 1875, Custer—under the pseudonym Nomad—wrote fifteen letters describing his adventures with horses, hounds, and hunting, which were published in
Turf, Field and Farm
. Five of these stories relate to his experiences in Kentucky. The entire collection has been published with informative anecdotes by editor Brian W. Dippie in a book titled
Nomad.
A chapter in Frost's
General Custer's Libbie
has been dedicated to the Custers' rather uneventful stay in Kentucky. Other notable sources include:
General Custer's Thoroughbreds: Racing, Riding, Hunting, and Fighting,
by Frost; “The Two-Year Residence of General George A. Custer in Kentucky,” by McMurtry; and “Custer's Kentucky: General George Armstrong Custer and Elizabethtown, Kentucky, 1871–73,” by Crackel.

John Burkman's biography,
Old Neutriment,
by Wagner was based for the most part on Burkman's reminiscences. His memories provide an excellent, if not emotional, insight into the personal life of the Custers and associated events from the viewpoint of an enlisted man who happened to be a hero worshiper of Custer. Libbie Custer also pays tribute to Burkman in her
Boots and Saddles
.

The best account of the Grand Duke's entire U.S. visit, which was compiled from newspaper stories, can be found in
The Grand Duke Alexis in the United States,
by Tucker and Dykes. An excerpt from Libbie Custer's diary can be found in
The Custer Story,
by Merington. Two versions by participants are Cody's
The Life of Hon. William F. Cody, Known as Buffalo Bill,
and “A Royal Buffalo Hunt” by Hadley, a scout who also had been an officer in the Nineteenth Kansas Volunteer Cavalry during the Winter Campaign of 1868–69. “Custer, Cody and the Grand Duke Alexis” by Elizabeth Bacon Custer and John Manion, is also entertaining.

The text of the letter written to Custer by Jimmy Calhoun can be found in Merington's
Custer Story,
236–37.

The politics of the Union Pacific Railroad are vividly portrayed in Kuberkin's
Jay Cooke's Gamble: The Northern Pacific Railroad, the Sioux, and the Panic of 1873
. Excellent sources about the railroad at that time for the casual reader are
Penny-an-Acre Empire in the West,
by Stewart, and
Guidebook of the Western United States; Part A: The Northern Pacific Route,
by Campbell, et al. Information and documents pertaining to the Northern Pacific are also contained in the collection of the Minnesota Historical Society.

Stanley covers the scope of his military career in his
Personal Memoirs of Major-General D. S. Stanley, U.S.A.
The appendix of this book includes extracts from Stanley's letters to his wife during the Yellowstone Expedition, which conveys his low opinion of Custer, as well as his official report:
Report on the Yellowstone Expedition of 1873.
Custer's vacillating opinion of Stanley can be found in his correspondence with Libbie in Merington's
Custer Story
. More about the Stanley–Hazen feud can be found in
Great Plains Command,
by Kroeker and
Phil Sheridan and His Army,
by Hutton.

Informative references about George Yates are “Colonel George W. Yates,” by Annie Roberts Yates; “George Yates: Captain of the Band Box Troop,” by Pohanka; and
A Summer on the Plains,
by Pohanka.

The best biography of Tom Rosser is
Fightin' Tom Rosser, C.S.A.,
by Bushong and McKain. My
Glorious War
contains detailed accounts of those times Custer and Rosser met on the Civil War battlefield. Rosser and Custer on the Yellowstone Expedition, in addition to biographical material on Rosser, are covered in
Custer's 7th Cav and the Campaign of 1873,
by Frost.

Custer's article “Battling with the Sioux on the Yellowstone,” which includes the quote about Rosser, can be found in the July 1876 issue of
Galaxy
reprinted in
The Custer Reader,
edited by Hutton.

There has been some question regarding the identity of the Lakota Sioux Indians who attacked Custer's cavalry in the engagements of August 4 and 11, 1873. There are those, including author Stephen Ambrose in
Crazy Horse and Custer
supported by Mari Sandoz in her
Crazy Horse,
who have written that famed warrior Crazy Horse and medicine man Sitting Bull probably participated in at least the first, if not both skirmishes. The tactics employed in that initial skirmish on August 4 certainly resembled those that Crazy Horse had first displayed to the white man during Red Cloud's War. One piece of evidence that may point to Sitting Bull having a hand in the attacks was the presence of Frank Grouard with the Sioux. This future army scout whose treachery indirectly contributed to the death of Crazy Horse at that time was known to have been a member of Sitting Bull's family by adoption.

Custer noted in his report that was reprinted in his wife's book
Boots and Saddles:
“The Indians were made up of different bands of Sioux, principally Uncpapas [
sic
], the whole under command of ‘Sitting Bull,' who participated in the fight, and who for once has been taught a lesson he will not soon forget.”