Finding Bodies of Those Slain in Custer Massacre

No other incident in all the campaigns against hostile Indians on the plains has given rise to so much discussion by military and civilian writers as the Battle of Little Big Horn when General Custer and his entire command were annihilated not a living human being according to the best historical evidence survived.

Many claimants to being a last survivor to the Custer massacre have arisen and their false claims been exploited in the press and other news agencies only to be exploded and discredited by those really knowing the facts.

It is but natural that veterans of the old army of the plains who were in the Northwest at the time of the Battle of the Little Big Horn and are now aged and entirely incapacitated for further engagement in the business activities of life, should, as they journey down the westward slope revert back in memory and strive to reenact or to reconstruct in their albums of recollections the scenes of their experiences in those stirring and never to be forgotten events.

Winners of the West has published many letters from its subscribing comrades descriptive of special features that have come within the individual and intimate experience of the writers.

A case in point is a recent letter from Comrade Theodore W. Goldin of Troop G 7th US cavalry a congressional Medal of honor man on account of conspicuous acts of bravery while a member of the command of major Reno on the Day of the Custer Battle and immediately following.

Comrade Goldin was one of the very last men and perhaps the last one outside of Custer's individual command on that day to see Custer alive, as he was a dispatch bearer for Custer to his other commands.

However it is particularly with reference to the finding of the bodies of Custer and his men that he refers to at this time.
 

Statement of Theodore W. Goldin
I am prepared to back the statement of Lt. Bradley as outlined in Colonel Homer W Wheeler's book, The Frontier Trail.

Lt. Bradley was the first man of Terry's command to discover the bodies later on the 27th under his direction and acting as regimental clerk I visited the field with Benteen, French, and I think Weir and possibly Reno but I am not quite certain as to the later.

We rode over the entire field coming to the point where General Custer fell about the last.

We found two almost indistinct wounds both on the left side one beneath the heart which so far as I recall did not appear to have passed entirely through the body the second was not in the left temple but just back on the left ear with egress just above the ear.

To us it appeared the wounds were from both the smaller caliber bullet than the Colts 45 with which we were armed.

We conjectured they might have been made by Winchester or Henry 38.

There were no body marks about the wound in the body which might be explained by the fact that this shot was fired when he was fully clothed and therefore the powder burns if any would have shown in the clothing and not on his skin. However neither were there any powder marks around the wound in the head.

His body was leaning somewhat forward slightly resting on the bodies of two of his men who had evidently fallen with him. There was a conspicuously peaceful expression on his face, which as Lt. Bradley stated looked as if he had just laid down for a rest and had fallen asleep.