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INDIAN ACCOUNTS ON THE LAST STAND

Crow King: “Riderless mounts scattered across the hills and ran to the river but the soldiers kept in order and fought like brave warriors.”

Moving Robe: “It was a hotly contested battle.”

Eagle Elk: “The shootings [by the soldiers] Eagle Elk had witnessed within the last minutes had been enough to convince him of the good sense in staying away from the front lines.”

Red Horse : “Even tough virtually surrounded, the soldiers put up a stiff resistance, for it was in this charge [chief Lame White Man’s charge] that the Lakotas lost more of their men. Red Horse thought that 136 Indians were killed and 160 were wounded in that phase of the battle.”

Hollow Horn Bear: “In fact, Hollow Horn Bear believed that the troops were in good order at the start of the fight, and kept their organization even while moving from point to point.”

Sitting Bull: “There was so much doubt about the outcome [of the battle] that I told the squaws to break the camp and be ready to leave.”

Red Hawk: “Here the soldiers made a desperate fight.”

Iron Hawk:”The Indians pressed and crowded right in around Custer Hill. But the soldiers weren’t ready to die. We stood there a long time.”

Thunder Hawk’s wife: “It was quite a fight” (on Custer Hill)

Wooden Leg could see “that all the soldiers were killed except for a band that remained hidden behind their dead horses.”

Flying By: “(the stand) was made in the place where Custer would be killed, down at the end of the long ridge.”

Flying Hawk: “Custer made a stand on his hill.”

Gall: Gall neared the end of the ridge where the last soldiers were making a stand. “They were fighting good” he said.

Lights: he could see the soldiers who had fled the Keogh fight joining those making the stand on the hill.

Two Eagles: The most stubborn stand the soldiers made was on Custer Hill. From his position a short way north and west of that point, Two Eagles noticed the hilltop was very level and the soldiers took the spot to continue their defense. (…) “They were killed on top of the ridge” Two Eagles declared.

Red Hawk: The bluecoats were “falling back steadily to Custer Hill where another stand was made”, said Red Hawk. “Here the soldiers made a desperate fight.”

Two Moon: (…) Two Moon turned back to watch the fight. (…) The “grey bunch” was still fighting.

Moving north along the ridge to where he could see better, Standing Bear noticed dismounted soldiers holding their horses by the bridles. “They were ready for us”, he said, and they began to shoot, “the bullets were just raining”. (…) Bear Horn rode up too close (to the last stand) and was himself shot down.

On Last Stand Hill, Iron Hawk saw about twenty men on horseback and about thirty men on foot. “The Indians pressed and crowded right in and around them on Custer Hill” But the soldiers weren’t ready to die. Said Iron Hawk,“We stood there a long time.”

Big Beaver: Big Beaver crawled back down the coulee to put a bit more distance between himself and the deadly soldiers bullets. (…) The Indians were rushing toward the hill where the soldiers were making their desperate fight.