Forgotten Barber, Unforgettable Battle: A South Dakota Veteran’s Lifelong Quest to Understand Little Bighorn
An article was published in the November 9, 1936 issue of the Rapid City Journal, detailing the research of Mr. Agner Mosier into the Battle of the Little Big Horn.
In the quiet halls of the South Dakota State Soldiers’ Home in Hot Springs, an aging veteran found purpose in the pages of history. Agner Mosier, a former barber from Rapid City and a U.S. Cavalryman with the famed Seventh Regiment from 1880 to 1885, spent his later years piecing together one of America’s most mythologized conflicts: the Battle of the Little Bighorn.
Mosier didn’t just study the battle—he walked the land, retraced the movements, and spoke with fellow cavalrymen who had lived through that fateful June day in 1876. His deep dive into the terrain where Custer made his last stand wasn’t for glory or fame. Instead, it was a soldier’s search for understanding—of tactics, survival, and perhaps of the men who fought and fell.
Through his fieldwork and his interviews—particularly with Capt. Frank M. Gibson and Major Marcus A. Reno’s associates—Mosier built a compelling narrative. He dispelled common myths, questioned official accounts, and brought renewed attention to stories that might otherwise have been forgotten. One such figure was Daniel Newell, a survivor of the battle whose firsthand account, published in Sunshine Magazine in the 1930s, deeply influenced Mosier’s understanding.
What sets Mosier apart is how his research leaned into human experience rather than heroic legend. He examined where Reno made his stand, how Indian scouts anticipated Custer’s movements, and why the Gatling guns were left behind. Mosier understood that the battle was less about romanticized bravery and more about preparation, decision-making, and an underestimation of the Lakota, Cheyenne, and Arapaho forces.
His conclusion? The U.S. command’s failure wasn’t simply a matter of being outnumbered. It was strategic error, poor coordination, and a tragic underestimation of the resistance they would face.
The article also paints a vivid picture of Mosier’s humility. Despite being a veteran himself, he doesn't seek the spotlight. Instead, he positions himself as a student of history, learning from those who were there. His work reminds us that history isn't just the domain of scholars in ivory towers—it’s often preserved by ordinary people with extraordinary curiosity.
As we revisit stories like Mosier’s, we’re reminded that the past is not a static collection of dates and names. It is alive in memory, in retelling, and in the quiet diligence of a retired barber with a soldier’s eye and a historian’s heart.
I apologize for the article preview below. If you click on the image, and then right click to save, it will download a copy to your computer which can then be enlarged and read easily.
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Rapid City Journal; November 9, 1936 |