The gentle Montana breeze whispers through my hair, giving it a flip before weaving through the tall prairie grasses and over the bluff to the Little Bighorn River. I can envision the massive camp from so long ago. Thousands of people from the Sioux, Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes gathered for a summer buffalo hunt. Some had left the reservation to find food and freedom, planning to return after a summer spent renewing the soul and replenishing the body. Others had no intention of returning to a place where they were constantly lied to, starved, beaten and killed. Instead, choosing to join the last hold outs of the great Sioux Nation….Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse, to live as their ancestors had.
I’m on the auto-tour at the Battle of the Little Bighorn National Monument in Crow Agency, Montana. The drive is 4.5 miles with many many stops along the way. At each stop, enter the sign number in to your phone and you can hear a short narrative about what happened at your current location. I admit I didn’t stop at every one (I spent 2 hours at the monument, could have easily been more), but most of the ones I heard were narrated by Native Americans which definitely adds a poignancy to the readings.
Let me go back up to the beginning of my day. I was driving from Idaho to Colorado and had spent the night in Billings MT. I was at the gate to the monument at about 10 minutes before 8 (when it opens) and I was already 3rd in line. So if you are going, get there early. I left the monument between 10-10:30 and the parking lot was about 3/4 full.
I was concerned that this would be a monument to the 7th Cav and General Custer only, but it’s not. There is a small museum showing period garb and ways of life for both the Plains tribes and the Army. There is a very interesting map in there showing the birth place of the soldiers involved in the battle. The largest group, 128, were born in Ireland. The second largest, 125, were from Germany. Something I never thought about, but the US was still young and European immigrants were still coming over to help build it.
A short walk from the visitors center up the hill there are two memorials. View the layout here: https://www.nps.gov/libi/planyourvisit/maps.htm
To the right stands a large obelisk, erected in 1876 and inscribed with the names of the military killed in battle. Now more grey than white it’s surface pitted and worn, weathering the harsh conditions buffeting it for over 100 years, protecting and acknowledging the mass grave below. It also stands sentinel over what look to be it’s offspring…small white marble markers. Inscribed on the markers: U.S. Soldier 7th Cavalry Fell Here June 25, 1876. Looking out across the large battlefield the eye catches on dots of white standing solid among the moving grasses. All of these are indications of where a soldier took his last breath (remains not claimed by relatives were removed from beneath the markers and placed in the mass grave above). It’s very sobering to think hundreds of men lost their lives here due to miscalculations, miscommunication and the need of the government to eradicate and/or control the native peoples.
To the left is a monument to the Plains tribes, completed and dedicated in 2014. Looking over from the soldiers memorial you catch sight of what looks like a door in the side of a hill. Walk through the door and you will find much more then expected.. The memorial is circular, formed with engraved granite walls and stone embedded in the earth. Engraved on the walls are narratives from tribe members who where there, renditions of battle drawings and quotes from both that time and this one. The design protects these etchings from the harsh Montana summers and winters, it’s beautiful and moving. As you make your way around the wall you come to an open section which has been filled with metal artwork depicting one chief and two warriors heading to battle, and the family they leave behind. I was alone at this monument when I began to hear the faint beating of the drums whirling around me, flowing with the ever present wind. Looking off into the perpetually rolling grassland, a faint line of ghostly warriors standing along the ridge of the next hill were looking back. We stood like that for a few minutes until a family came crashing into the monument and the spell was broken. And that’s when I went on the auto-tour, with a heavy spirit for all those who had lost their lives.
The Battle of the Little Bighorn has always been called Custer’s Last Stand and I have always felt he was unjustly glorified. There are many renditions of what went on and why he attacked so many with so few. Giving him the benefit of the doubt, I’ll just say his intel was faulty. Or he was crazy. Either way, over 200 soldiers were left dead on the battlefield and now are white marble markers around which the winds and grasses flow.
The Battle of the Little Bighorn was also the last stand of the Plains Tribes attempting to regain their way of life. It is not known how many warriors died in the battle because their people removed the bodies from the battle field immediately. There are a few red granite markers commemorating the known fallen warriors, but there are not many. Although they had a great victory, it was also the beginning of the end because the US Government doubled-down on their war to exterminate the American Indian and their way of life.
I’m sure you can tell by my writings which way my sentiments lean, and they always have. Maybe it’s because of that smidge of Indian blood I’m told I have, maybe it’s because I just read Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee or maybe it’s just because my heart always goes out to the underdog. Whatever your leanings are, I think we can all agree it was a dark time in our countries history ruled by greed, ego and disregard for our fellow man. Be kind. Be empathetic. Be humble. Be humane. All bring hope for the future.
It is such a sad story!!! And you are a wonderful narrator, Dana!
Thank you 🙂