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Custer Battlefield Museum

Where the Battle of the Little Big Horn began . . . Garryowen, Montana

"Peace Through Unity" Memorial Dedicated

The unveiling of the "Peace Through Unity" Indian Memorial at the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument near Crow Agency was held June 25, 2003, on the Battle's 127th Anniversary.

The "Peace Through Unity" Indian Memorial honors the Native Americans who died on this sacred ground on June 25 and June 26, 1876.  The Indians who fought in this battle, while fighting to preserve their land and culture, are remembered and recognized.


Photo Credit Little Big Horn National Monument

On December 10, 1991, the Indian Monument was authorized by Congress and signed into law by former President George Herbert Walker Bush.

Once known as Custer Battlefield National Monument, the law renamed the site Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument and also called for the design, construction and maintenance of a memorial to recognize the Indians who fought to preserve their land and culture in the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

The Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument commemorates one of America's most significant and famous battles, where two divergent cultures clashed in a life or death struggle.  Four hundred years of conflict between Euro-Americans and Native Americans culminated on this ground and resulted in the defeat of 12 companies of Seventh Cavalry by Lakota (Sioux) Cheyenne and Arapaho warriors.

In 1881, a memorial was erected on Last Stand Hill, over the mass grave of the Seventh Cavalry soldiers, U.S. Indian Scouts and other personnel killed in battle.  Today, many visit the Little Bighorn Battlefield that honors the U.S. Army's roll.  The fallen Lakota and Cheyenne warriors were removed by their families and buried in the Native American tradition in teepees or three-scaffolds in the nearby Little Bighorn Valley.  Until this event, no memorial has paid tribute to the Native Americans who struggled to preserve and defend their homeland and traditional way of life.  Their heroic sacrifices were never formally recognized until now.

One hundred and twenty-seven years after the Battle of the Little Bighorn, this new Indian Memorial brings all Americans full circle, through the theme "Peace Through Unity."  The design is a living memorial to the Plains Indian women and warriors who took part in the fateful battle and whose spirit and culture survive, continuing the Plains Indian Legacy.

For more information about the "Peace Through Unity" Indian Memorial dedication, please contact the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument at (406) 638-3213.

For events in Custer Country, persons may contact Jim Schaefer, Executive Director of Custer Country at (406) 778-3336, or contact Christopher Kortlander, Director of the Custer Battlefield Museum at (406) 638-1876.
 

Custer Country     www.custer.visitmt.com

Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument      www.nps.gov/libi/index.htm

Visit the New Live Webcam at the Little Bighorn Battlefield

Custer's Last Stand Reenactment     www.custerslaststand.org

Official Site of the Crow Tribe, Apsaalooke Nation     www.crowtribe.com

  

 

 

Custer Battlefield Museum  1-90 Exit 514  Town Hall, P. O. Box 200, Garryowen, MT  59031  (406) 638-1876

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