Pieces of Uniform from George A. Custer Slaughtered Soldier at Little Bighorn

Description

BATTLE OF LITTLE BIGHORN
.  On May 17, 1876, George Armstrong Custer and his men of the 7th Cavalry Regiment set out from Fort Abraham Lincoln in their expedition against the Sioux.  As Custer’s men approached the Little Bighorn River area, the scouts warned him of the massive Native American encampment ahead.  Ignoring their admonitions, Custer and two other battalions, led by Marcus Reno and Frederick Benteen, moved forward and engaged the combined forces of the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes in the iconic Battle of Little Bighorn on June 25, 1876.  Because Reno retreated and Benteen did not advance, Custer did not receive any reinforcements and he and 276 of his men were slaughtered in the fight.
ORIGINAL PIECES OF CLOTH FROM A UNIFORM ISSUED TO A SLAUGHTERED SOLDIER IN GEORGE ARMSTRONG CUSTER’S 7TH CAVALRY EXCAVATED AT THE LITTLE BIGHORN BATTLE SITE, THE ONLY LITTLE BIGHORN CLOTH RELIC IN EXISTENCE
The original pieces of cloth from a uniform, measure less than 0.10'', issued to a slaughtered soldier in George Armstrong Custer’s 7th Cavalry excavated at the Little Bighorn battle site.  The cloth is originally from the collection Glenwood J. Swanson, a well-known Indian Wars historian, collector, and author.  It is pictured on page 280 in Swanson’s book
G.A. Custer: His Life and Times
and is accompanied with a certificate of authenticity signed by Swanson.  Little Bighorn relics made of this perishable material failed to survive due to the exposure of the harsh Montana weather and elements for over a century; however, the present cloth was found in the sandy area next to the fire pit at the Indian camp making it the only cloth from the battle site in existence.