This Week in Little Bighorn History

James Montgomery Bell (left) was born on October 1, 1837, in Williamsburg, Blair County, Pennsylvania. He was the First Lieutenant for Company D who was not present at the battle because he was on leave. He was promoted to Captain effective June 25, 1876, due to the death of Captain George Yates.

Joseph Milton died in Tillsonburg, Ontario, Canada, on October 1, 1904. He was a Private in Company F who was not present at the battle due to detached service, serving as the cook for the regimental band.

Wilbur Fiske Blair died on October 2, 1891, in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, and was buried there in the Lewisburg Cemetery. He was a Private in Company A who participated in the valley and hilltop fights during the battle.

Patrick Carey died in Washington, D.C., on October 3, 1893, and was buried the following day in the Soldiers’ Home National Cemetery there. He was a Sergeant in Company M who participated in the valley and hilltop fights.

Frank Braun died on October 4, 1876, at Fort Abraham Lincoln, Dakota Territory, during an operation on the gunshot wounds he received during the battle. He was a Private in Company M who participated in the valley fight and was wounded in the face and left thigh during the fight on Reno Hill. He was originally buried at the Fort Abraham Lincoln Cemetery but was later reinterred in the Custer National Cemetery on Crow Agency, Montana.

Abram B. Brant (left) died at Camp J. D. Sturgis, Dakota Territory, on October 4, 1878, from a gunshot wound to the abdomen and was buried at Fort Meade National Cemetery. He was a Private in Company D who participated in the hilltop fight. He was awarded the Medal of Honor the day after his death for his efforts during the battle. See also 7th Cavalry Troopers in South Dakota.

Henry Melanchton Krusee, who was also known as Melanchton H. Crussy, was born on October 5, 1840, in New York City. He was a Private in Company G who was not present at the battle due to detached service at Powder River, Montana. See also 7th Cavalry Troopers in South Dakota.

On October 5, 1878, eight men were awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions on Reno Hill. Known as the water carriers, they were:

Black Fox (left) died on October 5, 1936, and was buried in the Holy Family U. S. Scouts Cemetery in Sanish, Mountrail County, North Dakota. He was an Arikara Scout who was not present during the battle because he was scouting.

Jacob Horner (right) was born in New York City on October 6, 1855. He was a Private in Company K who was not present during the battle due to detached service at Powder River, Montana.

James Dougherty died on October 6, 1884, in Nicholson, Pennsylvania, and was buried in St. Patrick’s Cemetery there. He was a Corporal in Company B who was with the pack train and in the hilltop fight.

John Lattman died of a bleeding ulcer on October 7, 1913, in Rapid City, South Dakota, and was buried in the Elk Vale Cemetery, east of Piedmont, South Dakota. He was a Private with Company G who participated in the valley and hilltop fights during the battle. See also 7th Cavalry Troopers in South Dakota.

Henry Petring (left) died in Brooklyn, New York, on October 7, 1917, and was buried in the Cypress Hills National Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company G who participated in the valley and hilltop fights, during which he was wounded in the eye and hip.

James Boggs died on October 7, 1921, in Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, and was buried in the Shoops Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company H who received a medical discharge prior to the campaign.

This Week in Little Bighorn History

Wilbur Fiske Blair died on October 2, 1891, in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, and was buried there in the Lewisburg Cemetery. He was a Private in Company A who participated in the valley and hilltop fights during the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

Patrick Carey died in Washington, D.C., on October 3, 1893, and was buried the following day in the Soldiers’ Home National Cemetery there. He was a Sergeant in Company M who participated in the valley and hilltop fights.

Frank Braun died on October 4, 1876, at Fort Abraham Lincoln, Dakota Territory, during an operation on the gunshot wounds he received during the battle. He was a Private in Company M who participated in the valley fight and was wounded in the face and left thigh during the fight on Reno Hill. He was originally buried at the Fort Abraham Lincoln Cemetery but was later reinterred in the Custer National Cemetery on Crow Agency, Montana.

Abram B. Brant (left) died at Camp J. D. Sturgis, Dakota Territory, on October 4, 1878, from a gunshot wound to the abdomen and was buried at Fort Meade National Cemetery. He was a Private in Company D who participated in the hilltop fight. See also 7th Cavalry Troopers in South Dakota.

Henry Melanchton Krusee, who was also known as Melanchton H. Crussy, was born on October 5, 1840, in New York City. He was a Private in Company G who was not present at the battle due to detached service at Powder River, Montana. See also 7th Cavalry Troopers in South Dakota.

On October 5, 1878, eight men were awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions on Reno Hill. Known as the water carriers, they were:

Black Fox (left) died on October 5, 1936, and was buried in the Holy Family U. S. Scouts Cemetery in Sanish, Mountrail County, North Dakota. He was an Arikara Scout who was not present during the battle because he was scouting.

Jacob Horner (right) was born in New York City on October 6, 1855. He was a Private in Company K who was not present during the battle due to detached service at Powder River, Montana.

James Dougherty died on October 6, 1884, in Nicholson, Pennsylvania, and was buried in St. Patrick’s Cemetery there. He was a Corporal in Company B who was with the pack train and in the hilltop fight.

John Lattman died of a bleeding ulcer on October 7, 1913, in Rapid City, South Dakota, and was buried in the Elk Vale Cemetery, east of Piedmont, South Dakota. He was a Private with Company G who participated in the valley and hilltop fights during the battle. See also 7th Cavalry Troopers in South Dakota.

Henry Petring (left) died in Brooklyn, New York, on October 7, 1917, and was buried in the Cypress Hills National Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company G who participated in the valley and hilltop fights, during which he was wounded in the eye and hip.

James Boggs died on October 7, 1921, in Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, and was buried in the Shoops Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company H who received a medical discharge prior to the campaign.

John Godfried Tritten (left) was born on October 8, 1846, in Canton Rune, Switzerland. He was a Sergeant on the staff of the 7th Cavalry who was not present at the battle due to detached service.

Stanton Hook died in Denver, Colorado, on October 8, 1898, and was buried in the Fairmont Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company A who participated in the valley and hilltop fights.

This Week in Little Bighorn History

John Gardner was born on February 27, 1845, in Brockville, Ontario, Canada. He was a Private in Company F who was killed with Custer’s Column during the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

Joseph K. Ricketts was born on February 27, 1850, near Morrow, Ohio. He was a wagoner in Company M, but he was on detached service at Powder River, Montana, during the battle.

Augustus Louis DeVoto was born in Genoa, Italy, on February 27, 1851. He was a Private in Company B who was with the pack train and in the hilltop fight.

Lewis Merrill (left) died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on February 27, 1896, and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia. He was an 1855 graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, but Major Merrill was not present at the battle due to detached service at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Jacob Hetler (left) died on February 27, 1944, in Greenwich, Ohio, and was buried in the Adario Cemetery in Adario, Ohio. He was a Private with Company D who was wounded in the hilltop fight.

George Washington Wylie was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on February 28, 1848. He was a Corporal in Company D who participated in the hilltop fight.

Leap Year Trooper: James Dougherty was born on February 29, 1856, in Oxford. New Jersey. He was a Corporal in Company B and was with the pack train and in the hilltop fight.

Edwin Daniel Eldridge was born on March 2, 1852, in Newburgh, Maine. He was a Private in Company A who was not at the battle. He had been discharged from Fort Abraham Lincoln for medical reasons.

John O’Neill died on March 2, 1888, in Washington, D.C., and was buried in the Soldiers’ Home National Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company B who was with the pack train and in the hilltop fight during the battle.

Ludwick St. John was born in Columbia, Missouri, on March 3, 1848. He was a Private in Company C who was killed with Custer’s Column during the battle. He was buried in the mass grave on Last Stand Hill.

Thomas F. McLaughlin died on March 3, 1886, in Jamestown, North Dakota, and was buried in the Jamestown State Hospital Cemetery. He was a Sergeant in Company H who was wounded during the hilltop fight.

Henry Rinaldo Porter, M.D., (left) died at the Hotel Metropole in Agra, India, on March 3, 1903, and was buried in the Cantonment Cemetery there. A memorial monument for Dr. Porter sits next to his wife’s grave in Oberlin, Ohio. During the battle, Dr. Porter was the Acting Assistant Surgeon on Staff, and he participated in the valley and hilltop fights.

Thomas Henry French (right) was born on March 4, 1843, in Baltimore, Maryland. He was the Captain of Company M and commanded his men in the valley and hilltop fights. On what would have been his 48th birthday, March 4, 1891, his body was exhumed from Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery, and he was reinterred in Holy Rood Cemetery in Washington, D.C.

John Charles Creighton (left), who was also known as Charles Chesterwood, was born in Massillon, Ohio, on March 4, 1850. He was a Private in Company K who was in the hilltop fight.

Patrick Corcoran died on March 4, 1822, at Barnes Hospital on the grounds of the Soldiers’ Home in Washington, D.C., and was buried in the National Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company K who was wounded in his right soldier during the hilltop fight.

Thomas Joseph Callan

Thomas Joseph Callan (left) died in Yonkers, New York, on March 5, 1908, and was buried in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in East Orange, New Jersey. He was a Private in Company B who was with the pack train and in the hilltop fight. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions there. His obituary, which was printed in numerous newspapers across the country, stated a different reason for the award. The man deserved better.

This Week in Little Bighorn History

Patrick Carey died in Washington, D.C., on October 3, 1893, and was buried the following day in the Soldiers’ Home National Cemetery there. He was a Sergeant in Company M who participated in the valley and hilltop fights during the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

Frank Braun died on October 4, 1876, at Fort Abraham Lincoln, Dakota Territory, during an operation on the gunshot wounds he received during the battle. He was a Private in Company M who participated in the valley fight and was wounded in the face and left thigh during the fight on Reno Hill. He was originally buried at the Fort Abraham Lincoln Cemetery but was later reinterred in the Custer National Cemetery on Crow Agency, Montana.

Abram B. Brant (left) died at Camp J. D. Sturgis, Dakota Territory, on October 4, 1878, from a gunshot wound to the abdomen and was buried at Fort Meade National Cemetery. He was a Private in Company D who participated in the hilltop fight. See also 7th Cavalry Troopers in South Dakota.

Henry M. Krusee, who was also known as Melanchton H. Crussy, was born on October 5, 1840, in New York City. He was a Private in Company G who was not present at the battle due to detached service at Powder River, Montana.

Abram Brant (above) was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions on Reno Hill one day after his death. Seven others were also awarded the Medal of Honor on October 5, 1878, for their actions during the battle: Neil BancroftBenjamin C. CriswellCharles CunninghamDavid W. HarrisWilliam M. HarrisStanislas Roy, and Thomas W. Stivers.

Black Fox (left) died on October 5, 1936, and was buried in the Holy Family U. S. Scouts Cemetery in Sanish, Mountrail County, North Dakota. He was an Arikara Scout who was not present during the battle because he was scouting.

Jacob Horner (right) was born in New York City on October 6, 1855. He was a Private in Company K who was not present during the battle due to detached service at Powder River, Montana.

James Dougherty died on October 6, 1884, in Nicholson, Pennsylvania, and was buried in St. Patrick’s Cemetery there. He was a Corporal in Company B who was with the pack train and in the hilltop fight.

John Lattman died of a bleeding ulcer on October 7, 1913, in Rapid City, South Dakota, and was buried in the Elk Vale Cemetery, east of Piedmont, South Dakota. He was a Private with Company G who participated in the valley and hilltop fights during the battle. See also 7th Cavalry Troopers in South Dakota.

Henry Petring (left) died in Brooklyn, New York, on October 7, 1917, and was buried in the Cypress Hills National Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company G who participated in the valley and hilltop fights, during which he was wounded in the eye and hip.

James Boggs died on October 7, 1921, in Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, and was buried in the Shoops Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company H who received a medical discharge prior to the campaign.

John G. Tritten was born on October 8, 1846, in Canton Rune, Switzerland. He was a Sergeant on the staff of the 7th Cavalry who was not present at the battle due to detached service.

Stanton Hook died in Denver, Colorado, on October 8, 1898, and was buried in the Fairmont Cemetery there. He was a Private in Company A who participated in the valley and hilltop fights.

Edward Settle Godfrey (left) was born on October 9, 1843, in Kalida, Ohio. He was a First Lieutenant in command of Company K during scouting and the hilltop fight.

P. Henry Bishley was born in Chicago, Illinois, on October 9, 1846. He was a Private in Company H who was wounded during the hilltop fight.

Adam Wetzel was born on October 9, 1846, in St. Louis, Missouri. He was a Corporal with Company B who was with the pack train and participated in the hilltop fight.

Hairy Moccasin (left) died in Lodge Grass, Big Horn County, Montana, on October 9, 1922, and was buried in Saint Ann’s Cemetery there two days later. He was a scout who rode with Custer’s Column and participated in the hilltop fight.

Frank Berwald (right) died on October 9, 1936, in Highland Falls, New York, and was buried in the Sacred Heart Cemetery there. He was a Private with Company E who was with the pack train and participated in the hilltop fight.