Custer's Dead Officers: First Lieutenant James Calhoun

 

On June 25, 1876, at the Battle of the Little Bighorn, five companies of the U.S. Seventh Cavalry, under the direct command of George Armstrong Custer were wiped out.  Among the dead was:

First Lieutenant James Calhoun was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1845. He enlisted in the Union Army in 1864 . By the end of the Civil War, he held the rank of sergeant.

After the war, Calhoun accepted a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the infantry and served in the western territories.  He married Margaret “Maggie” Custer, sister of George Armstrong Custer, in 1872. This connection brought him into the inner circle of the so-called “Custer Clan.”

Calhoun was promoted to 1st Lieutenant and transferred to Company C of the 7th U.S. Cavalry, which was commanded by Captain Tom Custer, George’s brother. At the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876, Calhoun was acting commander of Company C, as Tom Custer was serving as aide-de-camp to his brother. Calhoun and his men made their last stand on what is now known as Calhoun Hill, where evidence suggests they fought fiercely before being overwhelmed.

He was initially buried on the battlefield. His remains were later moved to Fort Leavenworth

Calhoun was nicknamed “The Adonis of the Seventh” because of his striking appearance.

Custer’s Last Stand Re-examined

The Great Northern Rebellion of 1860 (alternate history)

Custer's Dead Officers: First Lieutenant William W. Cooke

 

On June 25, 1876, at the Battle of the Little Bighorn, five companies of the U.S. Seventh Cavalry, under the direct command of George Armstrong Custer were wiped out.  Among the dead was:

First Lieutenant William W. Cooke, a Canadian who was the Regimental Adjutant and was known as "Queen's Own" Cooke.  Cooke was known for his long side whiskers that he always wore.

Cooke was awarded brevet promotions to captain, major and lieutenant colonel for this bravery during the Civil War.  He joined the Regular Army after the War and was made a second lieutenant in the 7^th Cavalry in 1866. 

In 1868 he participated in the Washita Campaign.  At the Battle of the Washita, Cooke, one of the best shots in the regiment, commanded forty sharpshooters.  Cooke’s men hid themselves on the northern side of the river and shot down Cheyenne fleeing Custer’s charge.  Chief Black Kettle and his wife Medicine Woman Later were killed by Cooke’s sharpshooters.

In 1871Cooke became the regimental adjutant reporting to Custer.  Cooke became a close friend of Tom Custer and became part of what was known as the Custer Gang, a close-knit group of Custer’s friends and relatives. 

The anti-Custer faction within the regiment, including Captain Frederick Benteen and Major Marcus Reno, began calling him “The Queen’s Own.”

On the day of battle at the Little Bighorn, June 25, 1876, Cooke was by the side of George Armstrong Custer.  He is remembered for writing Custer’s final orders to Captain Benteen: “Come On. Big village. Be quick. Bring packs. W.W. Cooke. P.S. Bring Packs”.

Cooke died alongside Custer. He was scalped twice, the second trophy being his side whiskers.  The Cheyenne warrior Wooden Leg claimed to have scalped the whiskers from one side of Cooke's face. He gave this trophy to his grandmother, who didn’t think much of it and discarded it two nights later at a victory dance.

Custer’s Last Stand: Portraits in Time

The Great Northern Rebellion of 1860 (alternate history)

An American at the Battle of Waterloo

 

Though not in an official U.S. capacity, one notable American did fight at the Battle of Waterloo, Colonel William Howe De Lancey.  Born in New York City in 1778, De Lancey came from a prominent Loyalist family that fled to England after the American Revolution.  He later joined the British Army and rose to become chief-of-staff to the Duke of Wellington during the Napoleonic Wars.

At Waterloo on June 18, 1815, De Lancey played a critical role in organizing troop movements and logistics.  Tragically, he was struck by a cannonball during the battle and died from his wounds a few days later.  His story became widely known due to a moving memoir written by his new bride, Magdalene Hall, who had joined him in Brussels shortly after their wedding and just before the battle.

Wars and Invasions (Four alternative history stories)

War and Reconstruction in Mississippi 1861-1875: A Portrait

 

Custer's Dead Officers: Captain Tom Custer

 

On June 25, 1876, at the Battle of the Little Bighorn, five companies of the U.S. Seventh Cavalry, under the direct command of George Armstrong Custer were wiped out.  Among the dead was:

 Captain Tom Custer, 31, rode with the five companies led personally by George Custer.  Tom Custer had distinguished himself during the Civil War, receiving the Medal of Honor twice for bravery, becoming the first of only 16 individuals in American history to achieve this distinction.  

After the Civil War, Tom Custer was appointed a first lieutenant in the 7^th cavalry.  He was wounded at the Battle of the Washita and took part in the Black Hills expedition of 1874.  During the 1876 campaign he served as aide-de-camp to his older brother Lt. Colonel George A. Custer and died with his brother on Last Stand Hill.

 In an interview given in 1900, Dr, Henry Porter recounted: “As soon as we could, several of the officers and myself went over to where Custer had fought…. We found Custer's body stark naked, as white and clean as a baby's. He was shot in the head and breast. The body of Captain Tom Custer, General Custer's brother, was horribly mutilated. He was disemboweled, and his head had been crushed in by a blow from a stone hammer used by the Indians. The only arrow wound I found was in his head. He had the Sioux mark of death, which was a cut from the hip to the knee, reaching to the bone. His heart was not cut out, as has been reported…”

 In fact, Tom Custer’s body had been so badly mutilated that his remains were identified only by a recognizable tattoo of his initials on his arm.

 The bodies of George and Tom Custer were wrapped in canvas and blankets, then buried on the field in a shallow grave.  When soldiers returned a year later, the brothers' grave had been scavenged by animals and the bones scattered.  According to a witness, "Not more than a double handful of small bones were picked up."  George Custer was reinterred with full military honors at West Point Cemetery on October 10, 1877.   The remains of Tom Custer, were reinterred at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Legends of the Superstition Mountains

Custer’s Last Stand Re-examined

Custer's Dead Officers: Captain Myles Keogh

 

On June 25, 1876, at the Battle of the Little Bighorn, five companies of the U.S. Seventh Cavalry, under the direct command of George Armstrong Custer were wiped out.  Among the dead was:

Captain Myles Keogh an Irish immigrant and seasoned soldier, joined the Seventh Cavalry in 1866 after distinguished service in the Union Army during the Civil War.

During the Battle of the Little Bighorn, Keogh commanded a detachment on Battle Ridge. He and his men attempted to hold the southern end of the ridge but were overrun by Lakota and Cheyenne warriors. His body was found surrounded by several of his men, and his horse, Comanche, survived the battle—later becoming a symbol of the fallen regiment

The medals of Captain Miles Keogh tell an interesting story.  The senior captain among the five companies wiped out with Custer, Keogh's body was found at the center of a group of troopers that included his two sergeants, company trumpeter and guidon bearer.

 Keogh was stripped but not mutilated, perhaps because of the "medicine" the Indians saw in two Papal medals he wore on a chain around his neck.  Vatican records confirm these two medals were given to Keogh during The Papal War of 1860.

 Captain Benteen secured the medals which were sent to Keogh’s sister in Ireland.  They remained in the family until 1988 when they passed into the hands of a well-known collector.  The medals were recently auctioned off for $35,000.

History's Ten Worst Generals

Custer’s Last Stand: Portraits in Time