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None Wounded, None Missing, All Dead: The Story of Elizabeth Bacon Custer

“My husband used to tell me that he believed he was the happiest man on earth, and I cannot help but thinking he was.”

Elizabeth Custer – 1882

A group of some 40 officers and their wives congregated in the parlor of George and Elizabeth Custer’s home at Fort Abraham Lincoln in North Dakota. A fiddler entertained several men and women at one end of the tastefully decorated room. More guests paraded past a table filled with a variety of food and drinks at the other. Elizabeth manned the door, kindly welcoming latecomers to the party in progress. She touched her finger to her lips indicating that the attendees should enter quietly.

The music stopped. A hush fell over the guests. Elizabeth’s brother-in-law, Tom, sister-in-law, Maggie, and family friend, Agnes, marched into the setting and crossed to the musicians. All three wore costumes. Maggie was dressed as a Sioux Indian Maiden. Agnes and Tom were dressed as Quakers. George and the others in attendance stifled a chuckle as the trio struck a dignified pose for the captive audience. They were acting out a scene from a current event in the region. Known as a tablie ux, the object of the entertaining charade was to guess the event and whom the players represented.

Partygoers enthusiastically shouted out their best guesses. Others issued comical remarks that made everyone erupt in laughter. When the right guess was announced the actors broke character and took a bow. The happy audience applauded their efforts and the music started up again.

To learn more about Elizabeth Bacon Custer and her marriage to George Armstrong Custer read

None Wounded, None Missing, All Dead: The Story of Elizabeth Bacon Custer.

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“I would be willing, yes glad, to see a battle everyday during my life.”

George Custer – October 1862

Spirited music and laughter burst through the doors of Chicago’s Opera House. The velveteen drapes subdued the whir of roulette wheels that lined the theatre lobby and muffled the voices of the Faro dealers. Patrons poured into the establishment seeking entertainment and shelter from the freezing cold. Chicago was a city of handsome dwellings whose elegance and refinements were reflected in the brilliant social life. A throb beat through its every artery. One of the many acts that could hold the attention of the bustling area was Lydia Thompson’s British Blondes. The troupe of celebrated actresses with overwhelming proportions who specialized in dancing and pantomime, performed for packed houses nightly. Among some of the most famous audience members were Grand Duke Alexis Romonoff, Wild Bill Hickock, and George Custer.

Over the Thanksgiving holiday in 1869, George had visited the show a couple of times, partaking not only in the burlesque styling of the irresistible sirens, but the popular games of chance that greeted people when they entered the building. George had been in Michigan taking care of family business when he decided to travel to Illinois to visit Phil Sheridan, his former army commander and respected mentor who was ill. News that he was in the Windy City spread quickly and George was inundated with invitations to attend dinners and theatrical openings. His reputation as soldier and military leader, along with the numerous published articles he had written about his combat experience, preceded him. Everyone wanted to be in George’s company and he delighted in the attention. Local newspapers reported on his outings, giving special concentration to the fact that Elizabeth was not at his side. “George Custer,” the article began, “has been seen about without his wife, chasing blondes instead of Indian maidens.” He made light of the report in a letter he wrote to Elizabeth and let her know that in addition to the Blonde Beauties Show he also took in a play featuring the best known comedian of he day, Joseph Jefferson. “I never had so nice a time in all my life – expect when I am with you,” George assured his wife.

Elizabeth read over her husband’s letters from their quarters at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. She usually accompanied George in his travels, but for this trip she decided to remain behind. Her cousin, Anne Bingham, was coming to visit and she didn’t want to miss spending time with her. After receiving George’s letter Elizabeth wished she had gone with him. Along with the list of entertaining activities, his correspondences contained some worrisome information about playing cards with friends. George was a gambler who found it difficult to resist a game.

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George Armstrong Custer read

None Wounded, None Missing, All Dead: The Story of Elizabeth Bacon Custer.

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    “…Girls needn’t try to get her dear Bo away from her, because he loves only her, and her always.”

    George Custer to Elizabeth Custer – 1871

The day was gray, and a raw, cold wind swirled outside the windows of the late Judge Albert Bacon’s home in Monroe, Michigan. It was early fall 1868. The Judge’s daughter, Elizabeth, and son-in-law, George, sat inside the parlor of the stately home. Each was quietly involved in their individual tasks. George was hunched over a writing table working on a book about his days at West Point. Elizabeth set aside some sewing she was doing and drifted over to a piano in the corner of the room. Her husband glanced up from his writing long enough to see that Elizabeth wasn’t going far. After weeks of being apart he wanted her near him at all times.

The genteel army wife made herself comfortable at the polished keyboard then reached for a stack of music bound in a faded leather pouch. She untied the ribbon holding the music together and sifted through the pages. Inside one of the pieces of sheet music was a daguerreotype of George. It had been taken in April 1865 and he was dressed in his major general uniform; the two stars on his collar clearly displayed. Some of the music had left its imprint on the picture, the notes like a melody over his face.

Elizabeth sat her husband’s picture on the stand next to the song she selected and began to play. The ebullient sound filled the air. Although he was tapping his foot in time with the beat, George’s attention was trained on the assignment before him.

For a moment Elizabeth wondered if he might only be pretending to be engrossed in writing. She worried that he longed to be doing something else. Nearly a year had passed since a nine member military jury found George guilty of “leaving his post without permission, excessive cruelty, and illegal conduct in putting down mutiny in the 7^th Cavalry by shooting deserters.” The punishment he received as a result of the court-martial was a year suspension from rank, duty, and pay. George’s yearly pay was $95 a month.

George and Elizabeth were affected by the verdict. Courts-martial were commonplace. More than half the army servicemen were tried and court-martial in 1867 alone. Far from feeling disgraced by the ordeal, the Custers planned to spend the time away from the job and the frontier enjoying one another’s company, entertaining family, and traveling abroad.

After a short respite from frontline service Elizabeth began to doubt how long George would remain content away from active duty. She knew how much her husband loved the soldier’s life. He had once admitted, “I would be willing, yes glad, to see a battle every day during my life.”

To learn more about Elizabeth Bacon Custer and her marriage to George Armstrong Custer read

None Wounded, None Missing, All Dead: The Story of Elizabeth Bacon Custer.

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“Daughter, marrying into the army, you will be poor always; but I count it infinitely preferable to riches with inferior society.”

Judge Bacon to Elizabeth Custer – 1866

George Custer raced his stallion, Jack, at full speed over the limitless Alkali grass covered plateau miles away from the main entrance of Fort Riley, Kansas. The foam-flecked animal was inches behind Elizabeth and her fast horse, Custis Lee. Both riders urged their horses on to even greater speed; the cold wind biting at their smiling faces.

George steered his ride along the foot of a high hill. Abruptly reaching a steep decline, he brought his horse to a quick halt. Elizabeth, dressed in a black riding skirt, uniform jacket, and an Excelsior hat, and riding sidesaddle pulled further ahead of her husband. Quickly looking around, George turned Jack in the direction of a narrow trail through a flinty apron of rocks. He followed the crude path as it wound around the hill then suddenly dropped back down and came out the other side of the steep decline in front of Elizabeth. She waved playfully at him. The horses found their rhythm and broke into a smooth gallop. Elizabeth glanced over at George and giggled like a little girl. The two rode on towards a distant, tumbled pile of thunderheads, sooty black at their base and pure white as whipped cream where they towered against the dome of the sky.

They slowed their horses and stopped next to a cluster of rocks. George dismounted and helped Elizabeth down from her ride. Draping their arms around one another they stood quietly staring at the land stretched out before them. “The prairie was worth looking over,” Elizabeth noted in her memoirs, “because it changed like the sea.” “People thought of the deep-grass as brown, but in the spring it could look almost anything else,” she added, “purple, or gold, or red, or any kind of blue. ₁ Often when cloud shadows crossed the long swells, the whole prairie stirred, and seemed to mold and flow, as if it breathed.” In late January 1867, the terrain the Custers admired was winter-defeated, lightless and without color.

George loosened the hold he had on Elizabeth and she noticed his expression changed subtly. As post commander he needed to return to his duties. The responsibilities of coordinating and training more than 960 enlisted men was daunting, but the 27 year old was committed to the task.

To learn more about Elizabeth Bacon Custer and her marriage to George Armstrong Custer read

None Wounded, None Missing, All Dead: The Story of Elizabeth Bacon Custer.

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“Few living women can ride a horse equal to her and but few better.”

                 George Custer’s thoughts about Elizabeth’s equestrian skills – 1866

A group of mounted Union officers rode onto the crest of a barren hill overlooking Fort Riley, Kansas. Major Frederick Benteen was in the lead, his eyes were sharp as eagles and he searched out the vast country ahead with exceeding care. The military outpost the soldiers were riding towards in January 1867 was established to protect settlers and railroad workers from Indian attacks. Benteen and his division were going to reinforce that protection. He led troops in the battle against Cheyenne leader Black Kettle and his braves on the Washita River (near Cheyenne, Oklahoma) after the Civil War had ended. That experience convinced Benteen that he would be a major asset in the military’s quest to keep order on the expanding western frontier. “I struck the first blow in the Indian Wars…” he reminded his peers.

In addition to his involvement at the start of the Indian wars, Benteen openly agreed with his superior officer, General Phil Sheridan, who had been named administrator over the Great Plains after the War Between the States, that the best way to defeat the Indian would be to attack them during the winter months. The Plains Indians depended heavily on their warrior ponies that thrived primarily in the spring and summer. The ponies could easily outrun an Army horse and didn’t need saddles and shoes to do their job. They required very little sustenance either – no grain at all, just clumps of grass and very little water when it was available. The warrior ponies could also stand for hours without moving or neighing, which allowed its riders to sneak up on prey (deer, buffalo, etc.) easily. Winter was particularly hard on the animals because the ground was frozen. Finding any grass to eat under several layers of ice and snow was difficult. The ponies were generally skin-and-bones. Conversely, Army horses were sturdy during the winter, having fed on wholesome rations of grain. Soldiers could ride in on and Indian village, attack, and ride off with no fear of being followed.

Although Benteen shared his executive officer’s plan for when to engage the Indians in battle and also proved his considerable soldiering skills and dedication to the Union cause, General Sheridan made George Custer commander of the cavalry at Fort Riley. Benteen like many others resented George. He was one of the youngest decorated heroes of the Civil War, had attended West Point and rode thoroughbreds. Rumor had it he was conceited as a result of the accolades he had received and that Elizabeth was just as haughty. She too was educated and had mingled with presidents, senators, and generals. Benteen had not attended college and had a disdain for West Point graduates. His horse was not a pedigree, he had not been involved in combat, and his wife was not socially connected. Benteen believed answering to George would be difficult and supporting his staff a daily struggle, but orders had been given.

To learn more about Elizabeth Bacon Custer and her marriage to George Armstrong Custer read None Wounded, None Missing, All Dead: The Story of Elizabeth Bacon Custer.