Custer's 7th: Thomas Weir, HIS DEATH. The Man Who Tried to Save Custer III

Mysteries continue to swirl around the death of Captain Thomas B. Weir, the one officer who publically clashed with both Major Marcus Reno and Captain Frederick Benteen about their handling of the Custer fight.

We'll review little-seen images, letters, newspaper articles, as well as touch upon the mysterious Weir "affidavit" newspapers claimed would "startle the counrty."

**Please note the second to last image-- it is a very rare mourning card (you'll notice it is lined in black) signed by Captain Weir-- one of about two dozen sent to the Dr. & Mrs. A.H. Cooke as an expression of grief over the loss of their oldest son, Lieutenant William Winer Cooke. It is part of the collection of artist, writer, and Little Bighorn scholar George Kush. The mourning card rests on a Holte sketch of the LBH valley that has Weir Point in the upper right. The image is used with kind permission by George Kush. As is the earlier framed and matted image of Captain Weir with his signature in the matting below.**

Don't forget to watch episodes I & II!

Thanks to Little Bighorn historians and researchers George Kush, Geoff Lackey, Nathan Simons, and the ever-knowledgeable Dale Kosman for their anecdotes, photos, maps, and countless suggestions in putting this Weir series together!

(PS-- Weir's friend at the end is HENRY UTLEY, not Robert Utley-- Robert Utley is the famous Western Historian who wrote quite a few excellent books about the Little Bighorn and probably said a nice thing or two about Weir too ;) )

Recommended Reading:

The Custer Myth, Colonel Graham
Vanishing Victory: Custer’s Final March, Bruce Liddic
Custer and the Little Bighorn: The Last Battle of the American West, James Donovan
Little Big Horn Diary, James Willert
March of the Columns, James Willert
The Picture Report of the Custer Fight, William Reusswig
Dr. Charles Merkel's dissertation (you can download online), Custer's Forgotten Lieutenant: Thomas B. Weir
Custer Come At Once! The Fort Hays Years of George and Elizabeth Custer, Father Blaine Burkey

For more on Weir (and the Little Bighorn in general) I recommend anything about Custer's Last Stand by Donovan, Leckie, Stiles, Frost, Utley, Graham, Carroll, Liddic, etc.

And Elizabeth Custer's memoirs are fantastic!
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To connect with other folks who love the Little Bighorn battlefield and story, please take a look at these awesome groups:

Little Bighorn Associates https://www.thelbha.com/ www.thelbha.com

Custer Battlefield Historical & Museum Association https://custerbattlefield.org

Custer Association of Great Britain www.english-westerners-society.org.uk

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I love hearing suggestions of what you’d like to see next! For more about my current work-in-progress or my published books (The Confusion of Languages and You Know When the Men Are Gone, both with Putnam/Penguin), please see my author website: www.siobhanfallon.com

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