George Armstrong Custer: A Biography

Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer was only 36 years old when he rode up the ridge above the Little Bighorn River and into history and legend. The dramatic circumstances of his last battle produced a never-ending stream of speculation about that summer day in 1876. This new brief biography brings Custer’s entire life into focus, from his small-town upbringing through his war career to his life, and death, on the plains. Graduating from West Point in June, 1861, Custer literally charged into the Civil War. His leadership and rapid rise in the Union Army as well as his battle against the people of the Plains are described. Full-color photographs of the places Custer lived and fought bring the United States of a century and a half ago to life. Historical photographs of Custer show his development from cadet to celebrity and, finally, to icon. Read about the life of "Yellowhair" and see the man behind the legend.