William H. White was born on November 6, 1854, in Indianapolis, Indiana, to Robert and Rebecca White. Orphaned at the age of six, he lived in Indiana until 1872 when he enlisted in the Army. From 1873 to 1877, he served with the 2nd United States Cavalry regiment at Fort Ellis, Montana Territory. White's company participated in the 1876 Centennial Campaign against the Lakota, Cheyenne, Dakota, and Arapaho Nations, marching with the "Montana Column" from Fort Shaw, Fort Ellis, and Fort Baker under the command of Colonel John Gibbon. Two nights after the Battle of the Little Bighorn, the Montana Column found the aftermath of the conflict and evacuated the wounded and buried some of the dead. About 1889, White settled near Columbus, Montana, where he owned 640 acres of farmland. Towards the end of his life he worked as an informal guide at the Custer Battlefield National Monument (now Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument). White died in 1938.
The William H. White diary describes garrison life and White's experiences in the field, including the march of the Montana Column in the 1876 Centennial Campaign against the Lakota, Cheyenne, Dakota, and Arapaho Nations (aka Sioux, in the 19th century). The entries date from January 1 through July 23, 1876, and describe White's life at Fort Ellis, his periodic visits to Bozeman, Montana Territory, and a march down the Yellowstone River to Fort Pease to relieve the garrison and its subsequent burning on March 6, 1876. Starting in March 1876, the Montana Column under the command of Colonel John Gibbon travelled along the Yellowstone and Stillwater rivers and encamped near Crow Agency, Montana Territory, on Rosebud Creek. In June, the company marched along the Big Horn River where, on June 27, they found the aftermath of Lt. Colonel George Armstrong Custer's defeat at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. White participated in the burial of some of the dead and helped with the evacuation of wounded from several cavalry comapanies that had been commanded by Major Marcus Reno.
This collection consists of a typescript made about 1967 by Jim Annin from a previous typescript made by Helen Peterson.
This collection is open for research.
The photocopy of a typed transcription prepared by Jim Annin, Columbus, Montana, was donated by him to Montana State University in 1967. Annin's transcription was taken from another previously prepared by Helen Peterson of the
This collection was processed 2012 March 20
[Creator Name], [Date of Creation], [Brief Description of Object], Folder [#], Box [#], [Collection Name], [Collection #], Montana State University (MSU) Library, Bozeman, MT