Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument and Custer National Cemetery
JUNE 25TH 1876
134 years before the Battle of Little Big Horn, the French explorer Chevalier La Verendrye led a string of old-world Spanish horses into the Dakotas from somewhere down in Nebraska. The horses, left to run wild by the Conquistador Spanish two hundred years before, were slowly making their way North, either through trade or on their own, and quickly became instrumental to the newly developed lifestyle of the Plains Indians. By the time Custer and the 7th Cavalry rode into the Little Big Horn Valley, the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho had known no other life than with their adopted ponies.
135 years later, we rode onto the site of Custer’s Last Stand on a Nebulous Black, GL1800, 125hp, Honda Gold Wing. This is called progress.
Sturgis SD to Billings Montana 520 kms – 5:15 hours
Holly and I started in Rapid City and drove through Sturgis on our way to Billings, Montana. Our final destination will be Glacier National Park, but we had a couple of stops planned along the way.
The first attraction will be the Center of the Nation in Belle Fourche, South Dakota. We stopped here last year on the Mayor’s ride, but I wanted to sit and reflect on the 19th-century migration that passed through here. At this point, the settlers were only halfway to Oregon. Circle the Wagons!
It helps to put the ride in perspective: What seems like a long two weeks on the road is relatively nothing compared to two to four years on the wagon train.
We also got to check out Buckskin Johnny’s log cabin, which he lived in with his wife and seven children. The cabin was built in 1876, the year of the Battle of Little Big Horn.
The rest of the ride toward Little Big Horn was uneventful. That usually means “boring,” but because of the number of other riders also leaving Sturgis who rode along with us and with whom we rode along, the time went by quickly.
Highway 212 is visible in the distance cutting through the Crow Indian Reservation.
The Cheyenne Warrior Memorial Markers are in red granite erected after 1999 at known casualty sites. Most of the original sites are unknown because the families removed the dead immediately after the battle.
The Memorial Markers for the U.S. Soldiers are in white marble erected in 1890 to show where each man had fallen.
They built the roadway especially to take you into the middle of the battlefield.
The headstones tell the tale of the battle, hauntingly beautiful and strangely informative. In 1983, archaeologists were surprised to discover (with the use of metal detectors) that a “startling large number of warriors, perhaps as many as three hundred, possessed modern repeating rifles manufactured by Henry and Winchester capable of firing seventeen rounds without reloading.” Custer’s battalion, with its single-shot carbines, was overwhelmingly outgunned.” Nathaniel Philbrick.
Custer’s Last Stand:
A Testimony to the Beauty of the Second Amendment and the Levelling Power of Capitalism
In the annals of American history, the Battle of the Little Bighorn stands as a stark reminder of the Second Amendment’s profound implications and capitalism’s transformative nature. On that fateful day in June 1876, Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer and his battalion faced an overwhelming force of Native American warriors, many of whom were armed with modern repeating rifles manufactured by Henry and Winchester. These weapons, capable of firing seventeen rounds without reloading, gave the indigenous fighters a decisive technological advantage over Custer’s troops, equipped with single-shot carbines.
This historical moment illustrates not only the beauty of the Second Amendment, which enshrines the right to bear arms, but also the levelling power of capitalism in the distribution of weaponry and technology. The Second Amendment embodies the principle that individuals have the inherent right to defend themselves and their communities. In the context of Little Bighorn, it highlights how access to advanced firearms empowered the Lakota and Cheyenne warriors, enabling them to stand resiliently against a formidable military force.
Capitalism, too, played a pivotal role in this narrative. The Industrial Revolution birthed a new age of weaponry, where innovation and production capabilities allowed for the proliferation of firearms. The rifles produced by Henry and Winchester were not merely tools of war; they were symbols of opportunity and agency. The ability of Native American tribes to acquire these modern firearms reflects a critical aspect of capitalism: access to technology and resources can shift the balance of power, enabling individuals and communities to assert their rights and sovereignty.
At Little Bighorn, the convergence of the Second Amendment’s promise and the fruits of capitalism painted a vivid picture of empowerment. The warriors who stood against Custer were not just fighting for land; they were asserting their right to exist on their terms, armed with tools representing both modernity and autonomy. This battle underscores the reality that in a society where individuals can access the means to defend themselves, the potential for resistance against oppression increases.
As we reflect on the lessons of Custer’s last stand, we recognize the beauty of the Second Amendment as a safeguard of liberty and the levelling power of capitalism in shaping the dynamics of conflict. It serves as a poignant reminder that access to arms and technology can empower the marginalized, allowing them to challenge even the most formidable adversaries. The legacy of that day continues to resonate, urging us to uphold these values in our ongoing pursuit of freedom and justice.
In 1881, the powers that be buried about 220 soldiers’ remains under this memorial.
In a different era, “That could have been me.”
After that moment passes, we continue to evolve, to change, and our memories of that moment inevitably change with us as we live with the consequences of our past actions, consequences we were unaware of at the time. Nathaniel Philbrick.
The 7th Cavalry Horse Memorial.
I painted this watercolour using a staged model of the Last Stand displayed in the Custer Battlefield Museum.
Through the looking glass of time.
Sitting Bull retreated to Canada.
Nebulous Black Iron Horse
Modern version of an American Little Big Horn hero.
Having a drink at Buffalo Bill’s Bar to commemorate Sitting Bull’s appearance in the famous Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show alongside my great-grandfather Maxime Goulet.