This Week in Little Bighorn History

Jacob Hetler (left) was born in Mansfield, Ohio, on August 2, 1852. He was a Private in Company D who participated in the hilltop fight during the Battle of the Little Bighorn and was wounded.

Alexander Downing died on August 2, 1884, in Pleasant Hill, Miami County, Ohio, and was buried in the Pleasant Hill Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company F who was not present at the battle due to detached service.

Charles W. Campbell died in Fort Bayard, New Mexico, on August 2, 1906. He was a Private in Company G who was with the pack train and was wounded in the hilltop fight.

William Earl Smith was born on August 3, 1853, on Rouses Point, New York. He was a Private in Company D who participated in the hilltop fight.

James Akers died in Washington, D.C., on August 3, 1881, and was buried in the Soldiers’ Home National Cemetery there. He was a Corporal in Company G who participated in the valley and hilltop fights.

Charles Stillman Ilsley was born on August 4, 1836, in Maine. He was a Captain for Company E who was not present at the battle due to detached service.

Thomas Murray died at the Soldiers’ Home in Washington, D.C., on August 4, 1888, and was buried in the National Cemetery there. He was a Sergeant with Company B who was with the pack train and participated in the hilltop fight where he was wounded. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his efforts to bring up the pack train and distribute rations during the battle.

Gabriel Guessbacher died on August 4, 1916, in Warwick, North Dakota, and was buried there in the Warwick Cemetery. He was a Private in Company I who was not present at the battle due to detached service. According to The Bismarck Tribune, he later claimed to be “one of the few who escaped the Custer massacre.”

James M. Rooney (left) died on August 5, 1918, in Yankton, South Dakota, and was buried in the State Hospital Cemetery there. He was a Private with Company F who was with the pack train and participated in the hilltop fight.

Henry N. B. Witt died in Santa Monica, California, on August 5, 1929. He was a Private for Company K who was not present due to detached service.

Cornelius Cowley died on August 6, 1908, in Washington, D.C., at the Government Hospital for the Insane (now St. Elizabeth’s Hospital) and may be buried in an unmarked grave in its cemetery. He was a Private in Company A who participated in the valley and hilltop fights.

Daniel Mahoney died at Barnes Hospital in Washington, D.C., on August 7, 1885, and was buried in the Soldiers’ Home National Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company M who participated in the valley and hilltop fights.

Joseph H. Green was born on August 8, 1849, in Leitrim, Ireland. He was a Private in Company D who participated in the hilltop fight.

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