A 2019 BGES’ Indian Wars Field University Program Death in Montana: The Last Stand of

Perhaps the most flamboyant character to ever grace American history books, George Armstrong Custer forever remains in our mind’s eye as Errol Flynn—one and the same. One easily could envision who this brash young, romantic man was. Of course his immortality relates to his death on the windswept plains overlooking the Big Horn River.

Custer’s “Last Stand” is a complex story and a melancholy end to a meteoric military career that found birth with the Military Academy Class of 1861, was burnished with a field promotion to general officer as a 23-year-old man, defied death on countless fields including Gettysburg, and who was in for the end at Appomattox. Custer went on to find his career revitalized and extended in brutal hard actions against Midwestern Indian tribes—inclusive of a massacre at Washita and an intrusive invasion of sacred grounds in the Black Hills. It seems poetic justice that this relatively young man would lose his life before he was 40. This program examines that final campaign and battle.

Tuesday, June 11, 2019

6:30 PM. We will have a preliminary meeting so that you may pick up your name tags and reading books, and meet with your host and guide, Neil Mangum, before breaking for dinner on your own.

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

08:15 AM. We depart to the Rosebud Battlefield with a stop at the Hayfield Fight of August 1, 1877—not a big fight, but typical of the Indian engagements fought by the . The Rosebud is a wide open and pristine site. We could walk 8 or 9 miles if we did the entire field, but Neil has picked a route of some 3 miles from departure out of the van and then return. The Rosebud is often overlooked in the larger Little Big Horn story, but this fight between Civil War–era Gen. and Crazy Horse was a decisive Indian victory in that it kept Crook from joining in the converging maneuver that Custer was a part of; Crook and his troops were not there to support Custer at the Little Big Horn. After lunch, we will head to the Canyon Creek battlefield. This is a little sampler of the program we will conduct in August. Dinner will be on your own, and lunch will be provided.

Thursday, June 13, 2019

8:15 AM. The Yellowstone Campaign intended to bring veteran United States Army troopers together to fall upon the Indians and force them into the reservation or destroy them. Today we follow John Gibbon of fame to its junction with General Terry of Wilmington Campaign fame. From the junction we will follow Custer as he moves up the Rosebud River toward his rendezvous with destiny. This will include several of his campsites and the concurrent movement of the Sioux—a key stop being Deer Medicine Rocks, where Sitting Bull has a vision that suggests the massacre to come. En route back to Billings, we will stop at the gravesites of two great leaders— Dull Knife and Little Wolf. Lunch is included.

Friday, June 14, 2019

8:15 AM. If you have never been to the Little Big Horn Battlefield, you will be struck by its stark and haunting beauty. We will commence with Reno’s attack on the village and the Indians’ response. We will follow Reno’s early success and then his beat down as he is driven back to his own cantonment area high atop a hill—BUT, sadly for Custer, not within supporting distance. It will cost Custer his life and mark Reno for very severe scrutiny. Lunch is provided.

Saturday, June 15, 2019

8:15 AM. We return to Little Big Horn to follow in detail the attack of Custer and how he and his men systematically are pushed from every position with steady and discouraging precision. A soldier killed here, another over there—two or three on that ridge and six across the swale, until the remaining soldiers find themselves pushed back to a slight hill that they will never leave alive. There are some places that America cannot define but which instead define America—Lexington Green, Chalmette, Gettysburg, and Greasy Grass Ridge overlooking the Big Horn River. This is a place to visit again and again. Our program will be very close to the dates of their occurrence 142 years ago. Lunch is provided—come join us.

About the Faculty:

Neil Mangum, one of the nation’s foremost historians, is an expert on frontier life. However, Neil is a Virginian who grew up in the shadow of the Petersburg National Battlefield, which was one of his very first assignments in the NPS. He still has deep ties. A retired National Park Service official, Neil served as Superintendent at the Little Big Horn National Battlefield as it transitioned from Custer National Battlefield. The popular Mangum only allows himself four or five tours a year, and BGES is fortunate to enjoy his favor. He enjoys the clientele and the small folksy nature of the group that is usually well prepared. Neil is author of The Battle of the Rosebud: Prelude to the Little Big Horn. He has a following, and most people on this trip will have traveled with him before, which makes this event even nicer.

Hotel Information:

Your registration fee DOES NOT include the hotel. The headquarters hotel will be the Boothill Inn and Suites, 242 E. Airport Road, Billings, Montana 59105. Call 406- 245-2000 for a room in the Blue and Gray Group block that expires May 11. The rate is $117.56 inclusive of tax and fees. They have a courtesy van that goes to and from the airport and local restaurants.

Transportation:

Our servicing airport is Billings (BIL). Our headquarters hotel will provide transportation to and from the airport. The closest major airport is Denver, which is a full day’s drive from Billings.

Recommended Reading:

You will be provided with a reading book and maps upon arrival. The following books are suggested to enhance your readiness for the program. Amazon.com has a program to support non-profits IF YOU SIGN UP to support Blue and Gray Education Society (EIN 54-1720582) at AmazonSmile. When you sign up there rather than the normal Amazon site, one-half of one percent of your purchase price will be provided to BGES as a donation from Amazon. This will apply not only on this purchase but others you may make at other times.

General John Gibbon: The 1876 Yellowstone Expedition: Catastrophe at the Little Big Horn

Paul Hedren: Rosebud, June 17, 1876: Prelude to the Little Big Horn

Orin Libby and the Arikara Scouts: Custer’s Scouts at the Little Big Horn, The Arikara Narrative

General : The Terry Diary: Battle of the Little Big Horn Expanded and Annotated Registration Form Death in Montana: The Last Stand of George Armstrong Custer Presented by Neil Mangum June 11-15, 2019

Name: ______

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Registration includes 4 lunches, a reading book with maps, the academic program, support of a professional historian, tour director, all admissions, and transportation. The program will be restricted to just 19 people—two vans which are needed due to access considerations. Register early and do not be disappointed. We also will provide snacks, bottled water, and a limited selection of sodas.

______Registration $895 Single

______Dues paying BGES member $825

______Full Time Student or active teacher $750

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I will pay the balance due before the event.

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Mail to BGES Seminars, PO Box 1176, Chatham, VA 24531 or fax credit cards to 434- 432-0596. You also may register online at www.blueandgrayeducation.org.