Archives West Finding Aid

Samuel Meddaugh was a corporal in the Sixth Infantry and was at the Powder River Depot during the Little Bighorn fight. While not a participant in the battle, his diary gives great insight into the army's activities in the area. Chronicled is the endless marching and counter marching, the back and forth of the steamboats, and the numerous dangers encountered on the plains that had nothing to do with fighting Indians. Meddaugh's diary runs from 14 May to 15 September 1876, during which not an Indian is fought, yet one is here impressed by the fact that the life of a soldier on the plains was difficult, monotonous, and exhausting.

Holmes Offley Paulding was the surgeon with Colonel John Gibbon's "Montana Column," which marched from Ft. Ellis and met the Terry/Custer column from Ft. Lincoln. Paulding was one of the first to see the dead of Custer's command scattered along the hills near the Little Bighorn. He attended to the wounded Seventh Cavalrymen, under Major Marcus Reno and Captain Frederick Benteen, who had managed to hold off the Indians, in the southern portion of the battle, for more than a day after Custer fell. Paulding's diary, which spans 22 February 22 to 17 November 1876, is shaded with criticism of Colonel Gibbon, and reveals the tension felt between those in the high command. Also voiced are the concerns of duty that a surgeon in the field faced, as well as graphic descriptions of wounds sustained by soldiers in action. Paulding's diary is at once entertaining and powerful, a sad and ironic commentary on the war waged against the Indians.

General Alfred H. Terry was the commanding general of the expedition against the Sioux in 1876. While most sources agree that Terry was a highly respected commander, the officers under him did not fare so well. The personality conflicts among Custer, Reno, and Benteen are legendary, yet Terry's field diary is filled, appropriately enough, with concerns of the day, the weather, the distance travelled, and all the problems inherent in moving an army. In the extremely emotional situation that followed Custer's defeat, Terry's diary remains very professional. The diary runs from 17 May 17 to 22 August 1876.

Gustavus Doane, a lieutenant in the Second Cavalry, participated in the difficult task of transporting Reno's and Benteen's wounded to the steamboat "Far West" on the Bighorn River. His diary, however, is not a journal of the Indian Wars; it is instead an account of his expedition up the Yellowstone and to the Snake River country. Doane was a noted explorer of the Yellowstone region, and had surveyed the area in 1870. From 11 October 1876 to 4 January 1877, the period of time encompassed in the diary, Doane took extensive notes on the region through which he travelled, recording geologic formations and other natural phenomena. His hardships are also noted; Doane was plagued not only by severe winter weather and lack of food but also by superiors who disapproved of his making the expedition.

Frank Baldwin, a captain in the Fifth Infantry, was General Nelson Miles' right hand man, a capable officer who played a prominent role in the chase after Sitting Bull's Sioux following the Battle of the Little Bighorn. His diary spans 6 November to 19 December 1876, and reveals a dedicated man who worked to carry out the commands of his general while showing concern for the welfare of his men.

Like Frank Baldwin, Captain Simon Snyder campaigned with General Miles during the Indian Wars on the northern plains. His diary, which runs from 17 January 1876 to 14 October 1877, is a testament to the difficult, back and forth life that the plains soldier encountered. Of particular interest is Snyder's participation in the efforts to capture Sitting Bull and his description of the Battle of the Bear Paws, in which Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce were forced to surrender after a lengthy cat and mouse game with the U.S. Army.

The title of this book pretty well sums up the first half of the text. Homer Coon was a soldier with the Seventh Infantry when General Terry marched up the Little Bighorn River to the proposed meeting with Custer. The second part of the text, however, is an account of Coon's participation in the Nez Perce affair, including a description of the U.S. Army's defeat at the Battle of the Big Hole in August of 1877. While perhaps not complete or, in some cases, accurate, Coon's narrative provides an interesting perspective on two very important battles of the Indian Wars.

Hugh Hynds' description of the Little Bighorn fight is interesting because he was the First Sergeant of the Gatling Gun Battery with which Custer refused to be burdened. Many believe that the cumbersome machine guns might have saved Custer's Seventh, and while Hynds does not offer his opinion, his is an important resource when considering the value of the Gatling in its early days.

Edwin Brown was a trumpeter for the Fifth Infantry. His narrative is a recounting of General Miles' pursuit of Sitting Bull following the Little Bighorn. While interesting for its description of the life of a soldier on the plains, the information found in the diaries of Simon Snyder or Frank Baldwin might be more illuminating and accurate.

Dr. Kuhlmann states the case for Frank Finkel, a man who claimed to have escaped from the Little Bighorn on the back of his terrified horse. Kuhlmann gives a detailed analysis of what is believed to have been the formation of Custer's Seventh, and uses this in support of Finkel's claim. Kuhlmann's essay utilizes a great deal of information that is essentially the product of speculation, and while well researched, the facts upon which he relies should be accepted with caution. Also included is a note by Mrs. Hermie Billmeyer, the one time wife of Finkel.

Fred Dustin draws on court testimony and analyses of geography in an attempt to explain Major Marcus Reno's position in the valley of the Little Bighorn before his retreat across the river and to the bluffs. This extensive, highly detailed essay is intended to accompany and amend The Custer Tragedy, in which Dustin presents a varying version of Reno's advance and retreat. Dustin's work here, which includes several maps, is of value to those interested in the Reno/Benteen portion of the Battle of the Little Bighorn.