Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument is an amazing stop in Montana. This is Day 2 of Paul and Drew’s road trip from Washington to Florida. You can read more about our road trip at: Driving from Washington to Florida in 5 Days. Driving east on I-90 through Montana, we turn south and enter the Crow Reservation. We take the next exit to Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument located in Crow Agency, Montana.
This national monument memorializes those who fought on both sides of the Battle of the Little Bighorn. This armed battle was between combined Lakota Sioux, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes and the U.S. Army’s 7th Calvary Regiment. This regiment was led by Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer, a Civil War veteran. The defeat of the 7th Calvary Regiment and Custer’s death is famously known as Custer’s Last Stand. This national monument preserves the battlefield and contains Custer National Cemetery. You can learn more about this park at: Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument (nps.gov)
Little Bighorn Battlefield Visitor Center and Last Stand Hill
On the day we arrive, there is no one collecting admission to the park. Normally it costs $25 per vehicle to enter, but we had already purchased an annual pass previously. So, we drive through the entrance to the parking lot on the right. At one end of the parking lot is the visitor center, so we walk toward it. They have a store and museum inside but today it is closed probably due to Covid. Unfortunately, we can’t check out the store or museum or go inside to get a Passport stamp for Becky’s book. But luckily they taped some pre-stamped pieces of paper to the door, so we grab one. Without obtaining more information, we decide to walk around the grounds.
Behind the visitor there is a paved walkway up to Last Stand Hill. As you walk up you see a small fenced in cemetery on your right with a granite marker at top. This cemetery marks where Custer and his men were slain and initially buried. There are white marble gravestones marking those who died here including Custer. The large granite memorial marker at the top of the hill was erected by the War department in 1881. It also lists the names of those who died here.
Horse Cemetery and Indian Memorial
As we leave Last Stand Hill, we see a white marble marker for the 7th Calvary Horse Cemetery here. There is a sign that explains more about the horses that also died and are buried here. We also pass a few dark marble markers of Cheyenne warriors who died here on the way to the Indian Memorial. We walk across the road to the Indian Memorial being careful of ice along the walkway.
You walk inside the stone circle memorial with etched marble inside. The etched marble along the interior walls explains the different Indian tribes that fought here. On the other side is an opening with the Spirit Warrior Sculpture of three horses and their riders. From here you can get a great view looking over the fields as well as back at Last Stand Hill.
Custer National Cemetery and Tour Road
We then get back in our car and decide to drive down the road. Beyond the visitor center, there is a 4.5 mile tour road to the Reno-Benteen Battlefield, a secondary battle site. Along the way there are wayside signs you can pull over and read them. You can also listen to a cell phone audio tour along the way. We go to one of the markers and read the sign. But being short on time, we decide to turn around. We head back to the other side of the parking lot to Custer National Cemetery.
Like many battlefields, Custer National Cemetery was built where the soldiers were killed in battle. It was named a national cemetery 3 years after the battle. Today it has approximately 5,000 persons buried here, but has been closed for reservations since January 1978. We walked around the cemetery with rows and rows of soldiers buried here over the years. Looking past the white grave markers you can see the rolling fields surrounding it. It was cold today and after about 30 minutes, we get back on the road.
Summary of our Little Bighorn Battlefield stop
This was a quick stop on our road trip, but we were glad we stopped. We were disappointed the visitor center store and museum were closed, but this was a great place to walk around. Walking up to Custer’s Last Stand Hill and looking down the hill was fascinating. The Indian Memorial there was informative and designed beautifully. Though we didn’t have time to do the audio tour, we could see it being very interesting. And Custer National Cemetery was amazing. You could easily spend a few hours here if everything was open and you had the time. Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument is both super interesting and a beautiful memorial to those that died here.
Other Stops This Day
Check out our other stops on our road trip at these 2 national parks:
Devils Tower National Monument Stop at Sunset
Mount Rushmore National Memorial at Night