A BGES Historic Commemorative Program: Destiny at the Little Big Horn: The 140th Anniversary Study

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1 A BGES Historic Commemorative Program: Destiny at the Little Big Horn: The 140th Anniversary Study They died with their boots on! For as long as I can remember Custer was that mythical man whose image reflected the restless promise of Manifest Destiny. The stirring notes of the irreverent riding tune Garry Owen is known to all. What is and was reality was that America was growing and as ambitious settlers moved west, discovered gold and silver throughout the west they demanded government protection and that is what George Armstrong Custer and the 7th Cavalry provided. Time has tarnished the luster from the name, the numerous tomes penned by Custer and his doting wife Libby have become dated and Custer National Battlefield has been renamed and a memorial to Native American warriors has arisen near the spot where Custer and the other white soldiers died. Neil Mangum lived that transition as the man charged by the Federal government with managing the Little Big Horn National Battlefield. Join us as we return to that score of years from 1860 to It is one of those trips everyone should make once and once having done so will do so again. Monday, May 23, PM: Check in at our headquarters hotel in Billings (TBA). Neil and I will meet you in the lobby and distribute readings and other information about the program. We will finish in time for you to have dinner on your own. Tuesday, May 24, 2016 Lets be on board at 8 AM so we can enjoy our day en route and in Yellowstone National Park. We are traveling with purpose, stops and interpretations include the Canyon Creek Battlefield where the post Custer 7th Cavalry meet and defeated the Nez Perce Indians. A legendary name Calamity Jane was a nurse on the battlefield. Yellowstone is perhaps the most visited National Park in America and why not? Old Faithful and other sites of geological and natural beauty will mix with Fort Yellowstone and the Yellowstone Mudpots. We will overnight in or near Yellowstone. Lodging and lunch provided. Wednesday May 25, 2016 We will start today back in the park for the majority of the morning before departing to have lunch and then travel to Cody. The name should ring a bell this is the land of Buffalo Bill. We will spend the afternoon immersed in his world

2 visiting his museum and the various sites in and around the town that cement his legend. We will overnight in Cody and eat in the famous Irma Hotel. Lodging and lunch and dinner included. Thursday May 26, 2016 It is hard to separate the Old West from the Wild West and the Indian Wars represent the Wild West. We are going to start getting deep on the Indian Wars today. We will open by visiting Medicine Wheel, a site sacred to Mother Earth and both the Arapahoe and Crow Nations. Six engagements fill the balance of our day: Sibley s July 1876 fight, Sawyer s and Connor s separate August 1865 engagements; The Fetterman Massacre, The Wagon Box Fight and Fort Phil Kearny. Our overnight will bring us to Sheridan, Wyoming. Lodging along with lunch is provided. Friday May 27, 2016 We will leave our hotel en route to the site of Crazy Horse s last fight at Wolf Mountain-a fascinating engagement. Then we will visit one of the most pristine Indian Wars battlefields at the Rosebud. Expect to walk up to 5 miles across the prairies as we follow the ebb and flow of this legendary and instructive battle who better to lead than the man who wrote the book. Recently cavalry expert Robert O Neill published a Blue and Gray Magazine special on the Battle of the Rosebud. You can bet that we will be using that magazine as one of your teaching aids. We will return to Billings where we will reside for the remainder of our study. Lodging and lunch provided. Saturday May 28, 2016 Our last two days turn to the Little Big Horn Campaign. Today we will follow both soldiers and Sioux and Cheyenne camps along the Rosebud River. You will experience the big deal of the day a visit to Deer Medicine Rocks. Here on this private and sacred ground we will learn of Sitting Bull s great vision of dead soldiers that were painted on the rocks. The vision was so compelling that the Indians decided to stand their ground that, as we will see, they certainly did. We will stop at campsites and lines of march to the engagement zone. Lodging and lunch provided. Sunday May 29, 2016 Today is the culminating point of our program with the entire day following the fighting at Reno Creek and from ridge to ridge and often tombstone to tombstone. Here Custer fatally split his force and moved them into positions where they could not support each other. While Marcus Reno survived the battle, Yellow Hair and his poorly led men did not. Neil s special expertise here captured my imagination on our last trip and I am personally looking forward to Neil s lead across the fields and from ridge to ridge. This day will obligate you to come again. We will provide lunch

3 and release you in time to depart or spend a last evening with your new friends. Lodging is NOT included this evening, lunch is. If you elect to stay you will need to make your own reservations. I think you will agree that you were glad you were here during the 140th commemorative year. About the Faculty: Neil Mangum is one of the nation s foremost historians and is an expert on George Custer. A retired National Park Service official, Neil served as Superintendent at the Little Big Horn National Battlefield as it transitioned from Custer National Battlefield. The popular Mangum only allows himself four or five tours a year and BGES is fortunate to enjoy his favor. He enjoys the cliental and the small folksy nature of the group that is usually well prepared. Neil is author of The Battle of the Rosebud: Prelude to the Little Big Horn. He has a following and most people on this trip will have travelled with him before which makes this event even nicer. Hotel Information: Your registration fee includes includes 6 nights single or double occupancy lodging. HQ hotel in Billings MT will be the Boot Hill Inn. Phone: Address: 242 East Airport Road, Billings, MT Transportation: The servicing airport is Billings Regional Airport (BIL). We will seek a hotel that affords transportation to and from the airport. There will be plentiful options at the airport. We will also make arrangements for those who drive in to leave their cars at the headquarters hotel or public parking (will be at your expense. Recommended Reading: You will be provided with a reading book and maps upon arrival. The following books are suggested to enhance your readiness for the program. All prices are inclusive of shipping. Nathan Philbrick, The Last Stand, Custer, Sitting Bull and the Battle of the Little Big Horn $24 click here to order Jeffrey Wert: Custer $32 click here to order Robert Utley: Sitting Bull, The Life and Times of an American Patriot $27 click here to order Stephen Ambrose: Crazy Horse and Custer: The Parallel Lives of Two American Warriors $24 click here to order

4 Janet Chapple, Yellowstone Treasures, $30 William Cody, Buffalo Bill Cody, An Autobiography $ 18 Neil C. Mangum, The Battle of the Rosebud Out of Print Available on the secondary market on line Registration Form Destiny at the Little Big Horn: The 140th Anniversary Study Presented by Neil Mangum May 23-29, 2016 from Billings, Montana Name: Address: City/State/Zip: Phone: Registration includes 6 nights lodging, 6 lunches, 1 dinner, a reading book with maps, the academic program, support of a professional historian, tour director, all admissions and transportation. We will also provide snacks, bottled water and a limited selection of sodas. Registration $2250 Single Double occupancy $1800 per person Dues paying BGES member $2175 Single Dues paying BGES member $1700 per person Double occupancy Full Time Student or active teacher $2000 single* Note teacher or student will save money if traveling and rooming with another person than the applicable rate above provides.

5 Send me the books indicated, I have enclosed $ I am sending a deposit of $500 per person plus full payment for any books. Total enclosed is $ I will pay the balance due before the event. Check enclosed Charge my (circle one) MC VISA AMEXP Discover $ # Exp: CVV: Signature: Mail to BGES Seminars, PO Box 1176, Chatham, VA or fax credit cards to