In August 2024, I travelled to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to attend the Little Big Horn Associates conference. I met up with my Montana Mayhem buddies and we hit up the sights around the area. As we are normally running around Montana, Wyoming, and the Dakotas, this was something different for us. And speaking just for myself, I had a blast!
It's always fun to meet up with fellow Custer/Indian War/History enthusiasts. I especially enjoy meeting people in real life that I have only known online. The Facebook pages and other message board sites are great for exchanging information and ideas. But close friendships can also be found online. Our Montana Mayhem group was formed by individuals who were fed up with the status quo of the online message boards. With the development of the Facebook groups, more and more people are getting exposed to the Custer story.
So, I apologize in the fact that this post has nothing to do with any troopers in South Dakota. But it is 7th Cavalry related. It also shows some of the fun that can be had with a membership to the Little Big Horn Associates. There are newsletters, scholarly journals, and the opportunity to attend these conferences around the country. Not to mention you meet a lot of really cool people who share your interests.
Check out my Montana Mayhem 2024 photo album on Google Photos (I know we didn't go to Montana.) Sorry for the helter-skelter organization in the photo album. But you get the gist...
Check out this video that didn't make it into the album. Watch to the end and you'll see my buddy Frank being weird. Come on...I know you want to. It's only a handful of seconds.
What a fantastic trip. I will make it to a LBHA conference one of these days. I make many trips to that corner of Pennsylvania but only recently added more of Gettysburg and the battlefield to them. My wife loves eating crabcakes at the Dobbin House (and the at-first odd combination of gingerbread and lemon curd is amazing, too), and I've spent time wandering around East Cavalry Field and the top of Culp's Hill, where soldiers from my Upstate NY hometown fought. And you definitely can't beat an UTZ chip, especially the crab ones. If you can find them, the kettle classic crab ones are even better than the regular ones. If you make it the few miles over to Hanover next visit, UTZ has a factory store. It's a great place to stock up on hard to find flavors and unique snacks.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kind words Pete! Yeah, it was a great outing. It was my first time to Gettysburg and I was overwhelmed to say the least. So much history. So little time. You are right, the Dobbin House was fantastic. We were there a week and could have spent triple that or more. It was both fun and aggravating trying to choose what to see. You absolutely need to get to an LBHA conference. The next couple years will be in the western US - 2025 is in Kansas City and 2026 will of course be the 150th anniversary of the Little Big Horn and the conference will be in the area. Drop me a note if you plan to come to a conference. I'll keep an eye out for you.
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