Recommendation for good, basic knowledge of LBH?

[lizs]

OK, know what y'all know ... or think ya know... what would you recommend as a good way to become a more knowledgeable LBH...ummm... would "scholar" be the word? As noted in my newbie introduction, I've been to the battlefield, the two re-enactments, seen the movie at the location, etc. Took a TON of photos... I have a fairly good idea of how things seemed to move during this battle (for me - and my brain has a hard time following battlefield manuevers).

What's my next step? I can listen to all you bellyache... umm, I mean talk... about various things which sound interesting, but I don't have the background to fully appreciate.

Where do I start? (Flailing about in mud and groveling for information will not be considered the correct answer!)

[Melani]

Hi, liz--

There are only about a million books on the subject, and everybody has their favorites. For a bio of Custer, I like Cavalier in Buckskin, by Robert Utley--or you can go to the man himself with My Life On the Plains. And Libbie's Tenting On the Plains, Following the Guidon, and Boots and Saddles--though of course those views are rather biased. Son of the Morning Star, by Evan S. Connell, seems to be liked by everyone (including me), and for a good beginner's overview of the battle, there is the ever-popular A Terrible Glory, by James Donovan. You will find an entire impassioned thread here on that one, discussing whether the author had all his commas in the right place and other details. I liked it very much. The Custer Myth, by W.A. Graham, has a huge bunch of detail on the battle from many survivors.

Then you can get into even more detail--Men With Custer, by Kenneth Hammer, has short bios of everybody who was at LBH. For a bio of Keogh, you can't do better than Myles Keogh: The Life and Legend of an "Irish Dragoon" in the Seventh Cavalry, edited by Cox, Langellier, and Pohanka. Or check this out: www.myleskeogh.org/ For a fun one on the early Seventh, Life in Custer's Cavalry, edited by Robert Utley--it's the letters of Capt. Albert Barnitz and his wife Jennie--very entertaining. Lakota Noon, by Greg Michno, is an effort to reconstruct the battle using entirely Indian testimony. For the life of enlisted men, Ten Years with Custer, by Sgt. John Ryan, edited by Sandy Barnard. Oh, and I almost forgot--Custer in '76, by Walter M. Camp--interviews with survivors.

That's just a small sample of my personal favorites--there are literally hundreds. One idea is to check out what the Friends of LBH have on their website to see if anything strikes your fancy: www.friendslittlebighorn.com/

You may need to acquire a few extra bookcases...

[biggordie]

Dear Non-Norwegian:

There are several threads devoted to books on the LBH fights, and several people have given recommendations for basic study. The thing to remember is that none of the books has everything right, since there is evidence surfacing all the time in one form or another.

To my mind, the best place to start [bearing in mind cost and availability] is with John S. Gray's "Centennial Campaign," and maybe Edgar I. Stewart's "Custer's Luck." There are several reasonably good books which give soldier and NDN accounts, either based on Walter Camp's notes, or the interviews of others. William Graham's "The Custer Myth" is a good sourcebook; but his "Custer's Last Battle" is poor research and not worth having, except for the appendices.

You can get the Army version by reading the Reno Court of Inquiry Proceedings, which are free on line. Google Amazing Tales and Weird Stories [just kidding].

For Walter Camp's notes, or at least what some authors claim them to be, you can go to any comprehensive book site, such as abebooks and enter Walter Camp in the proper spot. While you're there, enter R. Hardorff in the author field, and you will find a bunch of Camp books and NDN accounts books - all of which are worthwhile having, and all of which are good sources.

You can decide which ones suit your budget, from the above "listings" - but be sure to get Gray to start with for a very good overview of the campaign.

Hope this proves helpful. If you want to see what a couple of others have, see the thread "Inventoried at last" on the Book Collections board. If you would like a personal opinion on a specific book, PM me.

Gordie

[lizs]

Thanks, all!