Wild West – June 2019

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osted here in 1873, George and wife Libbie Custer (inset)

lived in relative contentment. Little did they know when

the lieutenant colonel led the 7th U.S. Cavalry from the fort on

May 17, 1876, bound for Montana Territory, it was the last time

the couple would see each other—this side of the divide. Two

hundred sixty-seven men died with Custer on the Little Bighorn.

After the post was decommissioned in 1891, settlers scavenged

its structures for lumber. The present-day state park [parkrec.nd.

gov/fort-abraham-lincoln-state-park] centers on reconstructed

20th-century buildings, including the 1989 Custer House.

CUSTER HOUSE, FORT

ABRAHAM LINCOLN,

NORTH DAKOTA

8 8 WILD WEST JUNE 2019

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