Elizabeth Bacon Custer

“As the sun broke through the mist a mirage appeared, which took up about half of the line of cavalry, and thenceforth for a little distance it marched, equally plain to the sight on the earth and in the sky. The future of the heroic band, whose days were even then numbered, seemed to be revealed, and already there seemed a premonition in the supernatural translation as their forms were reflected from the opaque mist of the early dawn.” 

― Elizabeth Bacon Custer, Boots and Saddles: Or, Life in Dakota with General Custer

Elizabeth Bacon Custer

When George Custer was killed at the Little Big Horn in 1876, he was fortunate to leave behind his greatest advocate, his wife Elizabeth. Libbie promoted his image and fought off all naysayers who had anything but the best to say about the celebrated "Boy General." She kept this up until her death in 1933, by which time many of Custer's critics had already passed on. She wrote letters, editorials, and gave lectures on her gallant husband. Fortunately, for us and for history sake, she also wrote three wonderful books based on her experiences and life with Custer and the 7th Cavalry.

While her books are technically non-fiction, they are decidedly and unsurprisingly slated to depict her husband in a favorable light. But, they also provide a wonderful window into the lives of 19th century soldiers and their families. She describes picnics, horseback riding, games, parties, holiday gatherings, and other tidbits of daily life that are priceless when it comes to understanding those times of yesteryear. All three books are highly recommended.

Boots and Saddles: Or, Life in Dakota with General Custer was Libbie's first book, published in 1885. It is also her most famous book. 

It covers the couple's time at Fort Abraham Lincoln near Bismarck, in what was then Dakota Territory. It covers up to the time the 7th Cavalry left on the Sioux Expedition of 1876 and Libbie was informed that she was a widow.

Boots and Saddles is one of the few books about military life in the 1800's written from a woman's perspective. It is worth reading for that fact alone. But it also sheds light on George Custer, the man, as well as the rest of the "Custer Clan." 

 

Tenting on the Plains: Or, General Custer in Kansas and Texas was Libbie's second book, published in 1887. Tenting on the Plains primarily focuses on the Custer's lives during the period immediately following the Civil War. 

At this time they were stationed in Louisiana, Texas, and Kansas. Libbie portrays the aftermath of the Civil War in Texas and life in Kansas while her husband took part in General Winfield Hancock's 1867 expedition against the Indians between the Arkansas and Platte rivers. 

Throughout the book, she provides detailed descriptions of an army officer's home life on the frontier during this major period of Indian unrest.

Following the Guidon: Into the Indian Wars with General Custer and the Seventh Cavalry is the third book in Elizabeth's trilogy, published in 1890. 

In this final book she covers the period when Custer's career and standing was again on the rise. Custer had been "in exile" following his court-martial and has been recalled to assist the army with the growing Indian problems throughout the Great Plains.

This book recounts the first major engagement after Custer's return, The Battle of the Washita.

If you want to read the books in a real chronological order you should start with Tenting on the Plains, then Following the Guidon, and finally ending with Boots and Saddles. Personally, I read the books in publication order and found that just as enjoyable. No matter the order in which they are read, Libbie's books provide an insight into Custer, their lives together, his family, and the frontier army that you just can't get anywhere else.

Elizabeth never remarried and spent the 57 years following her husband's death strongly supporting and defending him. She played a giant role in building the legend General George Armstrong Custer. She died just four days short of her 91st birthday, on April 4, 1933.

Libbie's books are still in print and are readily available. Check out your favorite bookseller.