The FReeper Foxhole Revisits The Battle of The Little Big Horn - December 3rd, 2004

http://www.cbhma.org/history.shtml ^ | Joe Sills, Jr.

[snippy_about_it]

Lord,

Keep our Troops forever in Your care

Give them victory over the enemy...

Grant them a safe and swift return...

Bless those who mourn the lost.
.

FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer
for all those serving their country at this time.


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The FReeper Foxhole Revisits

BATTLE OF THE LITTLE BIG HORN




Summary of the Battle

The Little Big Horn battle was easily the worst defeat ever sustained by the U.S. Army in Plains Indian warfare with the 7th Cavalry suffering 268 killed or dying of wounds, and 60 wounded. The news shocked the nation and gave rise to an endless debate about the facts, strategy and tactics of the battle which continues to the present day.


Col. Custer

May 17th, 1876

On May 17, 1876, the 7th United States Cavalry Regiment under Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer left Fort Abraham Lincoln, Dakota Territory, as part of a column commanded by Brigadier General Alfred H. Terry. This column, with two others already in the field led by Brigadier General George Crook and Colonel John Gibbon, was to participate in the effort to force all Sioux and Northern Cheyenne in the unceded territory back to their reservations.

When the 7th Cavalry left on the expedition, it did so divided into two wings, the right under Major Marcus A. Reno and the left under Captain Frederick W. Benteen. Within the right wing were the battalions of Captain Myles W. Keogh (Companies B, C and I) and Captain George W. Yates (Companies E, F and L). The left wing was comprised of battalions under Captain Thomas B. Weir (Companies A, D and H) and Captain Thomas H. French (Companies G, K and M). The regiment consisted of approximately 750 officers and enlisted men, although the exact number is open to question, and was accompanied by a contingent of about forty Arikara Indian scouts. Also in the column were three companies of infantry and a Gatling gun platoon, all supported by wagons carrying supplies.

June 7th

On June 7, Terry's column reached the confluence of the Powder and Yellowstone Rivers from which point he left to confer with Gibbon on June 9, and then returned. The right wing of the 7th Cavalry, along with one Gatling gun, was then ordered on a scout intended to take the unit up the Powder River, then over to the Tongue River, and back to the Yellowstone. Reno exceeded, or disobeyed, those orders by proceeding further west to Rosebud Creek where he found an Indian trail. He followed the trail upstream for perhaps 45 miles before returning to the Yellowstone.


Maj. Reno

June 21st

On June 21, the remainder of the 7th Cavalry joined Reno below the mouth of the Rosebud and the whole regiment moved to the junction of that stream and the Yellowstone. On the same day, Terry, Gibbon, Custer and Major James Brisbin held a conference on board the steamer Far West. The decision reached was that Gibbon's infantry and Brisbin's 2nd Cavalry would proceed up the Yellowstone, cross and go south up the Big Horn. Custer and the 7th Cavalry were to move south along the Rosebud, then cross to the Little Big Horn, and return along that stream.

The obvious hope was that the Indians would be found in the area of the Little Big Horn and be trapped between the two columns. During the course of the meeting, Custer declined the offer of the Gatling gun battery on the grounds that it could hinder his progress. He also refused the four companies of the 2nd Cavalry under Brisbin, saying that the 7th Cavalry could handle anything it met. To assist Custer, six Crow scouts from Gibbon's command were assigned along with the famous civilian guide and scout Mitch Bouyer. George Herendeen was attached to Custer for the purpose of scouting the upper reaches of Tulloch's Fork and carrying the results of that scout to Terry. The conference resulted in the now famous "Orders" dated June 22, to Custer from Terry. The verbal and written battles waged over the meaning, force and effect of these orders began soon after the actual battle ended, and persist even today.

June 22nd

At noon on June 22, the 7th Cavalry proceeded up the Rosebud about 12 miles. While at the Yellowstone, Custer had abolished the wing/battalion assignments for reasons unknown, informing Reno that command assignments would be made on the march. That evening, Custer told his assembled officers that he expected they might face a warrior force of up to 1500, and if he got on their trail he would pursue, even if beyond the fifteen days for which they were rationed.

The regimental supplies were carried by a make-shift mule train of twelve mules per company with some additional animals to transport headquarters and miscellaneous equipment. Twelve mules each carried two 1000-round ammunition boxes, or 2000 rounds per company. Each soldier was armed with the single-shot, .45 caliber, Model 1873 Springfield carbine, and was ordered to carry 100 rounds of 45-55 carbine ammunition of which fifty rounds was to be on his person. The troopers also carried the Model 1873 Colt .45 caliber, single-action revolver with twenty four rounds of ammunition.

Despite artwork to the contrary, no sabres were carried after the expedition left the Powder River camp. It further appears from recent archeological surveys that some of the soldiers may have carried weapons other than those mentioned, and that some men and officers had "personal" weapons with them.


Capt. Benteen

June 24th

Saturday, June 24, found the regiment on the march by 5 a.m. Indian campsites were passed and examined and, after a march of some 28 miles, the command went into camp. That evening Custer called First Lieutenant Charles A. Varnum to him and stated that the Crow scouts believed the Sioux were in the Little Big Horn valley. Custer wanted someone to accompany the Crows scouts to a spot, later to become famous as the "Crow's Nest," from which the scouts said they could see the Sioux and Northern Cheyenne camp fires when started in the early morning. Custer wanted a messenger to be sent back with information as soon as possible. Varnum was to leave about 9 p.m. and Custer would follow with the regiment at 11 p.m. and thought he could be at the base of the divide between the Rosebud and Little Big Horn before morning. Varnum along with Charlie Reynolds, a white scout, some Crow and Arikara scouts left as ordered.

Custer turned the regiment westward toward the divide and marched about four hours until the weary unit halted. At this point, a message was received from Varnum stating that the scouts had seen camp fire smoke and a pony herd in the valley, and the regiment again moved out about 8 a.m. Later that morning Custer arrived at the Crow's Nest, looked through field glasses at the indicated site but, like Varnum earlier, was unable to see what the Crow scouts had seen. Although Benteen later claimed Custer did not believe the scouts' report, Custer's subsequent actions were those of a commander taking his command toward a scene of action.

Upon his return to the regiment, Custer was told that a detail of troopers, led by Sergeant William A. Curtis of F Company, had come upon an Indian trying to open a lost box or bundle of clothing. There were other reports from Herendeen and Bouyer of sightings of Indians who, it was assumed, had also discovered the regiment. Since it was the Indians' custom to scatter in the presence of troops, Custer decided to strike immediately, rather than lay concealed during June 25 and attack on the morning of the 26th.

June 25th



At about noon on June 25, at the Rosebud-Little Big Horn divide, Custer halted the regiment and proceeded to assign commands. Reno received Companies A, G and M, and Benteen, Companies D, H and K. It is probable that Captain Keogh was given Companies I, L and C, and Captain Yates, Companies E and F. Captain Thomas McDougall's Company B was assigned as packtrain guard. Furthermore, a noncommissioned officer and six privates were detailed from each company to help with company pack mules.

Benteen was ordered to scout toward a line of hills to the left front. After his departure, two messengers were sent directing him to go beyond the line of hills in view. This scout is sometimes characterized as Custer's way of appearing to comply with Terry's directive that he feel "... constantly to your left ..," but more likely represents Custer's reaction to his experience at the Washita, when he found that Indian villages camped separately along the same stream.

The balance of the regiment proceeded down Reno (or Sundance, or Ash) Creek toward the Little Big Horn, Reno's command on the left bank and Custer's two battalions on the right, with the pack train bringing up the rear. Around 2 p.m. Reno's battalion crossed over the creek to join Custer's command on the right bank. Shortly after, the combined columns arrived in the vicinity of the Lone Tepee, the location of which is still a matter of dispute.

Near this point, Fred Girard, civilian interpreter for the Arikara scouts, spotted a group of Indians fleeing toward the river, and heavy dust clouds were seen in the valley. Riding to the top of a small knoll, Girard called out to Custer, "Here are your Indians, running like devils."

Custer sent his adjutant, First Lieutenant William W. Cooke, to Reno with the order, "Custer says to move at as rapid a gait as you think prudent and to charge afterwards, and you will be supported by the whole outfit." This was the last and only order Reno ever received and, in fact, was the last communication from Custer's command.

In obedience to the order, Reno proceeded to the Little Big Horn River at a fast trot, crossed and halted on the far side of some timber to gather the companies which had lost formation in the crossing. Meanwhile, Girard still on the right bank had heard the Crow and Arikara call out that the Sioux, in large numbers, were coming up to meet Reno, an observation also made by the scout Herendeen. Thinking that Custer should know of this development, he turned back and quickly came upon Cooke who was riding toward the river. After Girard relayed his information, Cooke stated he would report to Custer and turned back immediately.

Reno advanced down the valley toward the Indian village which was about two miles from the river crossing. During this movement Reno sent two separate messages, carried by Privates Archibald McIlhargey and John Mitchell, to Custer, each with the same information that the Indians were in force in front of him.


Sitting Bull

Indians poured across Reno's front, many moving to the bluffs on his left. Reno halted and dismounted his command of 128 soldiers to fight in a skirmish line formation, with his right resting on the timber near the river, and extending to his left toward the bluffs. The line advanced about 100 yards toward the village, but no further. Reno sent the horses and G Company into the timber. Out on the valley floor the battle continued, and as the Indians moved to Reno's left, he withdrew the skirmish line to the edge of the timber. The length of the fight until the line withdrew is a matter of argument with opinions ranging from five minutes to a half-hour.

Once in the timber, the fight continued until Reno, not receiving the promised support of "the whole outfit," and concerned about the expenditure of non-replaceable ammunition, decided to withdraw to the bluffs on the east side of the river. Varnum, Lieutenant Charles C. DeRudio, and the scout Herendeen, all saw Custer and/or his command moving north along the bluffs to the east of the Little Big Horn, but no one informed Reno of Custer's movements!

Reno was able to mount most, but clearly not all, of his command in a clearing in the timber. A volley of shots rang out and the Arikara scout, Bloody Knife, at Reno's side, died from a bullet in the head, spattering blood and brains over Reno. Orders to dismount, then mount were given, and the command left the timber for the eastern heights. No organized resistance to the onslaught of the warriors took place either during the retreat or at the river crossing. This retreat, called a charge by Reno, resulted in the reported loss of three officers, at least twenty nine enlisted men, three civilians and two Arikara scouts. It terminated on the bluffs near the current Reno-Benteen battle site, and the result at the time must have appeared even worse, for in addition to those ultimately found dead, there were an officer, three civilians and fifteen soldiers missing, all but four of whom rejoined later that afternoon.

Shortly after reaching the bluffs, Reno was joined by Benteen's battalion which had returned to the trail some distance above the Lone Tepee. On his way to the river, Benteen was passed by Sergeant Daniel Kanipe of Company C who carried a message to the pack train. The message was for the train to come on across country and, in essence, not to worry about the loss of packs unless they contained ammunition.

Benteen was next met by Trumpeter John Martin of Benteen's own Company H with the now famous, and disputed, message, "Benteen, Come on. Big village, Be quick. Bring packs. W.W. Cooke. P. S. Bring Packs." The dispute over this latter message is whether or not its intent was to have Benteen bring forward only the twelve mules with all the reserve ammunition. Proponents of the "ammunition packs" theory assert that Custer intended to make a stand and would need the reserve ammunition. Opponents point out that the word "ammunition" is not used, that Custer had not yet even become engaged, and that to sequester all the ammunition implies an indifference to the fate of Reno and the pack train.

In any event, Benteen reached the river in time to see the last of Reno's "charge" to the bluffs. He joined the shattered unit and Lieutenant Luther Hare was swiftly dispatched to the pack train to bring up several mules with ammunition. At about the same time, firing down river was heard indicating that Custer was engaged. In response to this, Weir, on his own, started down river perhaps thirty- five minutes after arrival at Reno's position. Lieutenant Winfield S. Edgerly, believing Weir had permission to advance, ordered Company D to mount and follow.

This precipitated the disjointed movement by Reno's command. Upon arrival of McDougall and the pack train, Companies H, K and M followed D to a prominent point along the bluffs (today known as Weir Point) and the remainder of the command started in that direction but made little progress. The units on Weir Point abandoned that position and, again in a rather uncontrolled manner, moved back to the area occupied during the siege. The movement was prevented from becoming a disaster by Lieutenant Edward S. Godfrey, who on his own authority, dismounted K Company and covered the retreat.

Reno's command was quickly surrounded and came under heavy fire. Earlier that afternoon, when Custer gave his last order to Reno, he probably had no plan for an enveloping maneuver. However, as he approached the river he was met by Adjutant Cooke bringing Girard's information that the Indians were coming up to meet Reno. This was almost immediately reinforced by the arrival of the first of the soldiers sent by Reno with a message to the same effect. The arrival of the second soldier added emphasis to the fact that a large number of Indians were in the valley. The dust in the valley probably indicated to Custer that the noncombatants were fleeing north. A flanking maneuver to get to the women and children and, at the same time, placing the warriors between him and Reno must have seemed appropriate. In any event, Custer turned north.


Crazy Horse

Then What?

From this point on, there are few absolutes about Custer's action except its outcome. Theories abound. The last soldiers to see him were Kanipe, sent back when Custer first reached a bluff overlooking the river, and Trumpeter Martin, whose point of departure is disputed. Some writers place it in Cedar Coulee and others at the junction of Custer's northward approach and Medicine Tail Coulee, for Martin himself said they had reached a ravine which ran toward the river. There is controversy whether Custer moved along the bluffs next to the river or behind Sharpshooter's Ridge, a prominence north of the Reno-Benteen defense site. Likewise, there are differences of opinion about whether or not Custer personally went to Weir Point, the highest point nearest the river. This would have afforded Custer an unlimited view of the village had he gone there.

In opposition, there is the unquestioned fact that at least four Crow scouts were definitely on Weir Point and not one of them places Custer, or any other soldier, there at any time. Additionally, Martin testified that only the Crow scouts went to Weir Point and that Custer was never there. No matter the route, from there we know, with reasonable certainty, the location of the dead, though the theories of Custer's final actions are numerous.

Passing Sharpshooter's Ridge and proceeding down Cedar Coulee, Custer and his men arrived and halted at the junction of Cedar and South Medicine Tail Coulees. One part of Custer's command, probably Keogh's battalion, with three companies, moved north and occupied areason what is known as Nye-Cartwright Ridge. This ridge divides South Medicine Tail Coulee and North Medicine Tail Coulee, sometimes called Deep Coulee. The latter is the deep ravine at the base of the ridge which runs from Calhoun Hill toward the Little Big Horn where it joins the mouth of South Medicine Tail. Cartridge casing finds clearly indicate troops firing from that point, and any concept of Custer's final battle must include that action if it is to have any validity.

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Theories

One theory has the second part of Custer's command, probably Yates' battalion with two companies, advanced down Medicine Tail Coulee, and was either met by overwhelming force and driven to Battle Ridge, or was recalled by the firing from Keogh's battalion on Nye-Cartwright Ridge. The two battalions rejoined near Battle Ridge, continued north into the present area of the national cemetery, and were finally driven back to Battle Ridge. On the ridge, Lieutenant James Calhoun with Company L, was positioned in an area on the south end of the ridge (now called Calhoun Hill) where that company died, according to contemporary evidence, in skirmish line formation. Keogh and Company I were found on the eastern slope of the Ridge somewhat "in a bunch" which is in accord with some Indian accounts. This theory further places Companies E and C in skirmish line below the Last Stand area and Company F generally surrounding Custer and the headquarters unit on Last Stand Hill. The markers below the Calhoun position allegedly represent troopers shot down, or cut off, as the battalion made its way to its final destruction.

Another theory has Yates' battalion reconnoitering the ford at the mouth of Medicine Tail while Keogh's battalion positioned themselves on Nye-Cartwright Ridge, presumptively waiting for Benteen and the packs. Both commands then rejoined on Calhoun Hill. From there Yates' battalion moved northward as far as the flat land north and west of the Battle Ridge while Keogh's battalion remained on Calhoun Hill to await the arrival of Benteen and to cover the Medicine Tail approaches. These two battalions were then separately engaged by large numbers of Sioux and Cheyenne. Keogh's battalion died first: Company C on the lower slopes of the ridge in the Greasy Grass Ridge area; Company L on Calhoun Hill; and Company I on the eastern slope. The battalion with Custer attained the final stand position where it succumbed to the fire power of the Indian force.

Modifications and combinations of both approaches exists, and the scholar will have to arrive at an independent conclusion about any of them. The recent archaeological studies have made clear that although the Sioux and Cheyenne were not uniformly armed with rifles and pistols, there were far more firearms present than previously believed. The cartridge casings provided the evidence of a far larger number of repeating rifles among the Indian weaponry. These casings also indicate that the flow of battle moved from the Calhoun position to the Last Stand area. Furthermore, the Indian armament would have steadily improved as carbines, pistols and ammunition were taken from the dead.

Caveat and Historical Notes:



A caveat to the serious student: Although the geographical references have been the traditional ones, north (Last Stand), south (Calhoun Hill), east (Keogh's slope) and west (riverside), the Indian geography is different and Indian accounts must be perused carefully to determine which is being used. To the Indian, north is Keogh's slope; south (riverside), east (Calhoun Hill) and west (Last Stand). Once the Custer fight was finished, the Indians surrounded Reno on the evening of June 25. Reno's companies were formed in a rough horseshoe position with the open end upriver. The fire from around 7 p.m. until darkness was heavy and some eleven soldiers were killed on the bluff. A hospital was established in a swale, and the horses and mules positioned at the open side of the swale to protect the wounded.

During the night some entrenchments were dug. Packs, boxes and dead animals were dragged into position to protect the troops, particularly in Company A's area at the end of the horseshoe on the eastern side of the siege area.

On June 26, the battle commenced around 2:30 in the morning. The troops were under constant long range fire, particularly Benteen's Co. H in which there were a large number of wounded. The warriors approached Benteen closely from the river side, but a charge drove them from the surrounding knolls and ravines. This opened the way for water carrier parties to obtain some water from the Little Big Horn which then was distributed to the wounded. Late that afternoon, the troops saw a welcome sight as the entire village withdrew in an upstream direction.

It was not until the morning of June 27 that the reason for the withdrawal was clear. The Montana column led by Terry and Gibbon had camped about two miles above the Indian camp the night before, and reached the valley site the next day. On June 26, on their way to the juncture with the 7th Cavalry, three of Custer's Crow scouts had met Lieutenant James Bradley's detachment of Crow scouts and mounted infantry. The fleeing Crows told a story of disaster to Custer which was met with skepticism by the white officers but which led all of Bradley's Crows to leave immediately.



On the morning of June 27, Bradley reported to Terry and Gibbon who were then on the site of the Indian camp. He stated that he had found 197 bodies on the hills to the east. What the Gibbon men thought were dead buffalo, were the mingled bodies of dead horses and soldiers stripped of their clothing .

The two commands then moved into the river bottom, and the soldiers spent most of the day bringing the wounded down from the bluffs. Some investigation of the field was made that day, principally by Benteen, and the next day the 7th Cavalry turned to the gruesome task of burying its dead. The burials were anything but complete, consisting for the most part, of a little dirt and sagebrush thrown over the corpse.

Although the figures vary somewhat, 208 bodies were found and buried, with identification difficult, if not impossible in many cases. Many bodies had been subjected to extensive mutilation immediately after death, and all had been exposed to the hot Montana sun for three days.

On June 28, an effort was made to move the wounded to the steamer Far West, primarily using hand carried litters. The task proved impossible. The next day was given over to creating mule-borne litters with which all of the wounded were successfully carried to the waiting steamer in an all night march. There the wounded were placed on the boat for transport to Fort Abraham Lincoln. The rest of the expedition awaited reinforcements before continuing the campaign.


Click the Guidon to hear Garry Owen

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Today's Educational Sources and suggestions for further reading:

The FReeper Foxhole Remembers The BATTLE OF THE LITTLE BIG HORN - Dec. 13th, 2002

[snippy_about_it]

"...there were more Sioux than the soldiers had bullets."

Kevin M. Sullivan's Shattering the Myth: Signposts on Custer's Road to Disaster.

[snippy_about_it]

Here are the recommended holiday mailing dates for military mail this year:

For military mail addressed TO APO and FPO addresses, the mailing dates are:

• Parcel Post - November 13
• Space Available - November 27
• Parcel Airlift - December 4
• Priority Mail, First Class cards and letters - Mailing date is December 11 to all locations
  • EXCEPT for locations starting with ZIP 093. For all locations starting with ZIP 093 the mailing date is December 6.
• Express Mail - December 20 to locations where Express Mail service is available. Check with your local post office to determine which APO/FPO addresses can receive Express Mail. Note: This service is not available to ships.

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For military mail FROM APO and FPO addresses, the mailing dates are:

• Space Available - November 20
• Parcel Airlift - December 4
• Priority Mail, First Class cards and letters - December 11
• Express Mail - December 18 from APO/FPO addresses where Express Mail can be accepted. Check with your local military post office to determine if they can accept Express Mail. Note: This service is not available from ships.

Thanks for the information StayAt HomeMother

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Veterans for Constitution Restoration is a non-profit, non-partisan educational and grassroots activist organization.

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Actively seeking volunteers to provide this valuable service to Veterans and their families.

Thanks to quietolong for providing this link.

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UPDATED THROUGH APRIL 2004



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It's Friday. Good Morning Everyone.


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[SAMWolf]

Good Night, Snippy.

[Don W]

A sad story of arrogance in leadership leading to the demise of many brave troops.

Custer got what he deserved. His men suffered and died for his hubris.

A true pity.

[Soaring Feather]

Good morning everyone.
Click the Flag for a video

[quietolong]

Good work! Great Garry Owen music sight!

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Got your box mailed.
Look in the Skittles box.

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Thanks for the comment on my blog.

Go ARMY!!! 2/7 Cavalry "Gave Em Hell" In Fallujah.Report Drugged Enemy

Regiments live on, though the soldiers die. The infantry, cavalry and artillery regiments of the US Army have some of the most distinguished records of any military force in the history of warfare. In the summer of 2076, American soldiers will still be marching in review to the sound of Garry Owen.

Those who would replace brigades with Units of Action and battalions with Branch Indeterminate Generic Combat Modules seem to have forgotten the value of unit traditions, history, and esprit d' corps.

[Aeronaut]

Good morning Snippy.

[E.G.C.]

Good morning, Snippy and everyone at the Foxhole.

[alfa6]

Day 4 of 8 underway bump For the Freeper Foxhole.

Regards

alfa6 ;>}

[The Mayor]

December 3, 2004

Looking For God?

Read: Matthew 21:28-32

Tax collectors and harlots enter the kingdom of God before you. —Matthew 21:31

Bible In One Year: Ezekiel 45-46; 1 John 2

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My wife and I were having dinner with another couple at a fishing lodge in Montana. It was interrupted when a fellow fisherman in a drunken rant began to regale us with tales of the houses of ill-repute he had visited.

Though his comments were crass and offensive, I caught a note of pathos in his voice and thought of something G. K. Chesterton had said: "Even when men knock on the door of a brothel they're looking for God."

Chesterton was right. Many desires are evidence of a deeper hunger for God. This man, who seemed so far from God, was closer than he realized.

Every man knows he was made for lofty pursuits, yet he easily wanders into paths that demean and debase him. He becomes less manly than he ought to be, and he knows it. There's a nagging feeling that he ought to be something more. Some cover it up with self-righteousness, as the Pharisees did, or else they ignore it. Others know they have lost their way. That elusive feeling, when followed up, may bring them to God.

"Tax collectors and harlots enter the kingdom of God before you," Jesus told the Pharisees (Matthew 21:31). That's why I think the drunken fisherman is much more likely to repent than the Pharisees were. —David Roper

Our heart is made for God alone,
For only He can satisfy;
But oh how much we yearn for things
That in the end are but a lie. —D. DeHaan

Within each one of us there is a God-shaped vacuum that only God can fill. —Pascal

[GailA]

Good morning ALL.

[Grzegorz 246]

[xJones]

Great report as always, snippy!

I saw a History Channel show on the Little Big Horn debacle a while back, and they claimed that some of Custer's men should have saved their last bullets for themselves. Some were only wounded, and then hideously tortured to death. The Indians were experts in that particular field.

[Professional Engineer]

Good morning ladies and gent. It's Friday!

Friday Foxhole FReeper Flag-o-gram.

Today's Foxhole flag is from Snippy_about_it and SAMWolf

See your flag here! FReepmail me today.

[Valin]

On This Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on December 03:
1368 Charles VI, [the Well-Beloved], king of France (1380-1422)
1483 Nicolaus von Amsdorf, German reformation theologist
1684 Ludvig, Baron Holberg, a founder of Danish & Norwegian literature
1755 Gilbert Stuart, US, portrait painter (painted Washington)
1795 Rowland Hill, introduced 1st adhesive postage stamp (1840)
1797 Francis P Kenrick, Irish/US archbishop of Baltimore
1806 Henry Alexander Wise, Brig General (Confederate Army), died in 1876
1809 Thomas Alfred Davies, Bvt Mjr General (Union volunteers), died in 1899
1822 Charles Adam Heckman, Brig General (Union volunteers), died in 1896
1826 George Brinton McClellan, Major General (Union Army), died in 1885
1829 Green Berry Raum, Brig General (Union volunteers), died in 1909
1838 Cleveland Abbe, US, meteorologist (Father of Weather Bureau)
1838 Octavia Hill, British reformer, leader of open-space movement
1842 Ellen Henrietta Richards, US, chemist (Amer Home Eco Assn-1st Pres)
1857 Joseph Conrad, Poland, novelist (Lord Jim, Heart of Darkness)
1875 Bernhard Lichtenberg, German clergyman/antifascist
1895 Anna Freud, Austrian/English psychoanalytist/daughter of Sigmund F
1897 Kate O'Brien, Irish writer (Without My Cloak)
1900 Richard Kuhn, Austria, biochemist, worked with vitamins (Nobel 1938)
1904 Juan E Yrausquin, founder (Party of Patriot Arubans)/minister
1907 Connee Boswell, New Orleans La, singer (Pete Kelly's Blue)
1911 Dana Suesse, songwriter (You Ought to be in Pictures)
1921 Hans G Kresse, artist (Eric the Viking)
1924 John Backus, inventor (FORTRAN computer language)
1927 Ferlin Husky, country singer (Born to Lose, Gone)
1930 Andy Williams, Wall Lake Iowa, singer (Moon River, Andy Williams Show)
1930 Jean-Luc Godard, French director (Alphaville, Hail Mary)
1931 Jaye P Morgan, Mancos Colo, singer/actress (Gong Show, Night Patrol)
1934 Viktor V Gorbatko, cosmonaut (Soyuz 8, 24, 37)
1948 Ozzy Osbourne, English heavy metal musician; ate a bat (Suicide)
1951 Rick Mears, Indy-car racer (over 25 wins)
1952 Mel Smith, author (Morons From Outer Space)
1953 Franz Klammer, Austria, downhill skier (Olympic-gold-1976)
1955 Melody Anderson, Edmonton Alb, actress (Flash Gordon, Brooke-Manimal)
1965 Katarina Witt, Staaken GDR, figure skater (Olympic-Gold-1984, 88)
1981 Brian Bonsall, actor (Family Ties, Star Trek Next Generation)

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Deaths which occurred on December 03:

0450 Petrus Chrysologus, 1st archbishop of Ravenna, dies
1137 Lotharius III, of Supplinburg, Roman-German emperor (1133-37), dies
1154 Anastasius IV, Pope (1153-54), dies
1491 Thomas Basin, French historian/bishop of Lisieux, dies
1789 Claude-Joseph Vernet, French seascape painter, dies
1807 Clara Reeve, English author (old English baron), dies
1839 Frederik VI, king of Denmark (1808-39)/Norway (1803-14), dies
1857 Christian D Rauch, German sculptor, dies at 80
1894 Robert Louis Stevenson, English writer (Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde), dies
1910 Mary Baker Eddy, founder (Christian Science (Monitor)), dies
1919 Pierre A Renoir, French painter/sculptor, dies
1957 Frank E Gannett, newspaper publisher dies at 81
1967 Fred Engelen, Flemish actor/director, dies
1973 Michael O'Shea, actor (Denny- It's a Great Life), dies at 67
1985 Sam Gillman, actor (Sam-Shane), dies at 70
1991 Alex Graham, British cartoonstrip artist (Fred Basset), dies

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Reported: MISSING in ACTION
1965 JOHNSON STANLEY GARWOOD---APPLEGATE CA.

POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

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On this day...

0741 St Zachary begins his reign as Catholic Pope succeeding Gregory III
1347 Pope Clemens VI declares Roman tribunal Coke di Rienzo as heretics
1468 Lorenzo the Magnificent and his brother Giuliano succeed their father, Piero de Medici, as rulers of Florence, Italy.
1557 1st Covenant of Scottish protestants form
1586 Sir Thomas Herriot introduces potatoes to England, from Colombia
1621 Galileo perfects the telescope
1639 1st annulment by court decree passes
1678 Edmund Halley receives Master of Arts degree from Queen's College, Oxford
1685 Charles II bars Jews from settling in Stockholm Sweden
1694 English parliamentary election set for every 3 years
1699 Baron Jacob Hop appointed treasurer-General of the Hague
1762 France cedes to Spain all lands west of the Mississippi--the territory known as Upper Louisiana.
1775 1st official US flag raising (aboard naval vessel Alfred)
1818 Illinois admitted as 21st US state
1828 Andrew Jackson elected 7th President of US, John C Calhoun Vice-President
1833 Oberlin College in Ohio, 1st truly coeducational college opens
1834 1st US dental society organized (New York)
1835 1st US mutual fire insurance company issues 1st policy (Rhode Island)
1844 Roman Catholic Society Apostole of Prayer forms
1847 Frederick Douglass publishes 1st issue of his newspaper "North Star"
1863 Longstreet abandons his siege at Knoxville TN
1864 Skirmish at Thomas' Station, Georgia
1866 Paid fire department replaces volunteer companies
1868 Trial of Jefferson Davis starts; 1st blacks on US trial jury
1878 Settlers arrive at Petach Tikvah Israel
1881 Henry M Stanley finds Leopoldville/Kinshasa
1883 48th Congress (1883-85) convenes
1901 Milwaukee is dropped from the American League & replaced by St Louis Browns
1906 The U.S. Supreme Court orders Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) leaders extradited to Idaho for trial in the Steunenberg murder case.
1907 George Cohan's musical "Talk of the Town" premieres in New York NY
1910 Neon lights, 1st publically seen (Paris Auto Show)
1912 Gerrit Brinkman becomes 1st Dutch traffic officer
1912 Turkey, Serbia, Montenegro, Greece & Bulgaria sign weapons pact
1914 Netherlands army shoots up geïnterneerde Belgian soldiers: 8 killed
1920 Turkey & Armenia agree to peace treaty
1921 9th CFL Grey Cup: Toronto Argonauts defeats Edmonton Eskimos, 23-0
1922 1st successful technicolor movie (Tall of the Sea), shown in New York NY
1923 1st Congressional open session broadcast via radio (Washington DC)
1929 Boston Bruins begins then NHL record 14 game winning streak
1930 Air-borne chemicals combine with fog to kill 60 (Meuse Valley Belgium)
1930 Otto Ender forms Austrian government
1930 Richard Rodgers/L Hart's musical "Evergreen" premieres in London
1931 Alka Seltzer goes on sale
1932 General Kurt von Schleicher becomes chancellor of Germany
1933 Joe Lilliard QBs Chicago Cardinals; last NFL black until 1946
1933 Connie Mack sells Mickey Cochrane to Detroit Tigers for $100,000
1934 KYW-AM in Chicago IL moves to Philadelphia PA
1934 Italian colonial Tripoli & Cyrenaica annexed to Libya
1938 AAU's decides to continue linear measuring system over metric
1939 Dmitri Shostakovich's 6th Symphony, premieres
1941 Hitler views Poltava Ukraine
1943 9th Heisman Trophy Award: Angelo Bertelli, Notre Dame (QB)
1943 Battle of Monte Cassino, Italy begins
1944 NFL Cardinals-Pittsburgh merger dissolves
1944 British order to disarm, causes general strike in Greece
1944 Hungarian death march of Jews ends
1944 US 5th Armour division occupies Brandenburg Hürtgenwald
1946 12th Heisman Trophy Award: Glenn Davis, Army (HB)
1946 US government asks UN to order dictator Franco out of Spain
1947 Tennessee Williams play "A Streetcar Named Desire" premieres in New York NY
1948 "Pumpkin Papers" come to light (claimed to be from Alger Hiss)
1948 1st US woman army officer not in medical corps sworn-in
1948 Chinese refugee ship "Kiangya" explodes in E China Sea, killing 1,100
1949 KRLD (now KDFW) TV channel 4 in Dallas-Fort Worth TX (CBS) begins
1950 Cleveland Browns last NFL team with no-pass game (beat Philadelphia 13-7)
1950 Cleveland Browns' Horace Gillom sets club record with 12 punts
1950 Paul Harvey begins his national radio broadcast
1952 1st TV broadcast in Hawaii
1952 Marcos Perez Jiménez elected President of Venezuela
1953 "Kismet" opens at Ziegfeld Theater NYC for 583 performances
1953 Eisenhower criticizes McCarthy for saying communists are in Republican party
1953 Premier of Dmitri Shostakovich's 5th String Quartet
1956 Wilt Chamberlain's 1st collegiate basketball game (scores 52)
1956 England & France pull troops out of Egypt
1956 KFSA (now KFSM) TV channel 5 in Fort Smith AR (CBS) 1st broadcast
1957 23rd Heisman Trophy Award: John Crow, Texas A&M (HB)
1958 Indonesian parliament accepts nationalisation of Dutch businesses
1959 State of emergency on Cyprus ends
1960 Frederick Loewe/Alan Jay Lerner's "Camelot" premieres Majestic Theater NYC for 873 performances
1961 George Blanda of Houston Oilers kicks 55-yard field goal
1961 Anton Geesink becomes 1st not-Japanese judo world champion
1961 Beatles meet future manager Brian Epstein
1961 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1962 Edith Spurlock Sampson sworn-in as 1st US black female judge
1962 Pravda criticizes western art
1964 Police arrests 800 sit-in students at University of California at Berkeley
1964 "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer" 1st airs on TV
1964 KHQL (now KCAN) TV channel 8 in Albion NE (ABC) begins broadcasting
1965 USSR launches Luna 8; crashes on Moon
1965 Beatles begin final UK concert tour in Glasgow
1967 1st human heart transplant performed (Dr Christiaan Barnard, South Africa)
1967 Final run of "20th Century Limited", famed New York-Chicago luxury train
1967 Derek Clayton runs world record marathon (2:09:36.4)
1967 Ex-President Sukarno under house arrest in Indonesia
1968 Pitcher's mound drops from 15" to 10" & strike zone reduced from knees to shoulders to top of knees to armpits, to help hitters
1970 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1971 Miss Teenage America Pageant
1971 President Nixon commutes Jimmy Hoffa's jail term
1972 Convair 990A charter crashes in Tenerife Canary Island, 155 die
1973 Pioneer 10 passes Jupiter (1st fly-by of an outer planet)
1977 The State Department proposes the admission of 10,000 more Vietnamese refugees to the United States.
1979 11 trampled to death at Cincinnati Who concert
1979 Christie's auctions a thimble for a record $18,400
1979 45th Heisman Trophy Award: Charles White, Southern California (RB)
1979 Iran accepts constitution
1980 New York Federal jury finds Representatives Thompson D-NJ & Murphy, D-NY, guilty
1981 Beth Daniel/Tom Kite win LPGA J C Penney Golf Classic
1981 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1982 35.7 cm rainfall at Big Fork AR (state record)
1982 77ºF highest temperature ever recorded in Cleveland in December
1982 Tommy Hearns wins WBC Welterweight title in decision over Benitez
1983 49th Heisman Trophy Award: Mike Rozier, Nebraska (RB)
1983 France performs nuclear test at Muruora Island
1984 2,000 die from Union Carbide poison gas emission in Bhopal, India
1984 Oldest groom - Harry Stevens, 103, weds Thelma Lucas, 83, in Wisconsin
1985 23rd Shuttle Mission (61-B)-Atlantis 2-lands at Edwards AFB
1988 54th Heisman Trophy Award: Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State (RB)
1988 New York Lotto pays $45 million to twelve winner (#s are 1-8-13-18-28-48)
1989 Presidents George Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev announce the offical end to the Cold War at a meeting in Malta.
1991 Hulk Hogan defeats Undertaker to become 4th time WWF champion
1991 Muslim Shiites release US hostage Alan Steen
1991 White House Chief of Staff John Sununu resigns
1992 UN Security Council votes unanimous for US led forces to enter Somalia
1995 Northwestern South Carolina begins using new area code 864
1995 South Korean police arrested former president Chun Doo Hwan on charges of orchestrating the December 1979 military coup that brought him to power
1997 "1776" opens at Gershwin Theater NYC
1997 Golden State Warrior guard Latrell Sprewell, four-year, $32 million, contract terminated for attacking his coach P J Carlesimo
2001 Responding to a new wave of Palestinian suicide bombings, Israel struck the West Bank with planes, helicopter gunships, tanks and bulldozers, firing missiles into Yasser Arafat's headquarters.
2002 Senior U.S. officials sought Turkey's full support for a possible attack on Iraq with promises of economic, military and diplomatic rewards.

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Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Illinois : Admission Day (1818)
Philatelists : Sir Rowland Hill Day (1795/1840)
World : Heart Transplant Day (1967)
U.S. : National Roof-Over-Your-Head Day

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Religious Observances
Roman Catholic : Commemoration of St Cassian of Tangier, patron of stenographers
Lutheran, Roman Catholic : Memorial of St Francis Xavier, apostle of India & Japan

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Religious History
1170 Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Becket, 52, returned to England after six years of exile in France. (Becket would be martyred on December 29th of this year killed by soldiers sent by his former friend, English King Henry II.)
1841 Birth of Clara H. Scott, American music teacher and composer. A contributor to the collections published by Horatio R. Palmer, she is best remembered today as author and composer of the hymn, "Open My Eyes, That I May See."
1902 Birth of Mitsuo Fuchida, the pilot who flew the lead plane in Japan's air attack on Pearl Harbor (12/7/1941). Following WWII, through representatives of the Pocket Testament League, Fuchida was converted to Christianity in 1950.
1908 Birth of C.F.D. Moule, Anglican clergyman and New Testament scholar. He authored numerous autographs on Biblical studies, including "The Phenomenology of the New Testament" (1967).
1976 In Chicago, the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC) was formally organized. The bulk of membership derived from former affiliates of the Missouri Synod Lutheran Church.

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

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Thought for the day :
"Winter is nature's way of saying, "Up yours.""

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Signs You've Bought a Cheap Car...
The rear-view mirror says, "Objects in Mirror Are Better Than This Piece of Junk."

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Ads gone wrong...
Great Dames for sale

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Dictionary of the Absurd...
stratify
To pose in front of a mirror with a tennis racquet while pretending to be Eric Clapton

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Man's Answers to Every Question a Woman ever asks
WHY WON'T MEN EVER PICK UP AFTER THEMSELVES?
Why should we? It doesn't really bother us that much. Besides, we know darn well you'll pick it up.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Don W.

The truth about Custer is a lot different than what we grew up being taught. The "They Died With Their Boots On" version of history omitted his flaws and the "big picture" of the times.