The Lost Pipers of the Little Bighorn

For many it comes as a surprise to learn that General Custer had five pipers among his ranks when he made his legendary last stand at the Little Bighorn.  Nearly every historian of the West’s most famous and storied battle would dismiss such a claim. That is until they dig a little deeper into the lives that were lost on that grassy Montana plain, June 25, 1876.  History and its students focus on the flamboyant Custer, the Indian warriors, and the circumstances leading to the battle. Countless articles, films, and books have been produced about the battle, but few have ever examined the lowly trooper that fought under Custer’s command.

In the middle to late 1800’s, the United States Cavalry maintained a ridged standard for recruits regarding height and weight. This was done out of consideration for the mount since a horse under a great burden would not travel fast and far.  As a result the Army only produced uniforms in certain sizes as a means to enforce these standards. It is fair to say that John Wayne would never have been seen in ranks at that time.

As fate would have it the genetics of the Scots and Irish produce a stout frame that, more often than not, fit the Cavalry uniform. The result was that many immigrants from these cultures were readily recruited.  When these immigrants came, they brought with them the tunes and traditions of their fathers.  Tin whistles were easily carried on the trails and the playing of familiar tunes instilled a sense of unity. Many companies selected these traditional songs for regimental tunes.  As was customary, soldiers would compose new verse to honor specific events. Such was the case with the ‘Garryowen.’

Garryowen, sometimes spelled as ‘Garry Owen,’ is a lively Irish quickstep that can trace its origins back to the early 1860’s. Tradition holds that the tune was named for the geographical region where it was written, near the town of Limerick, Ireland. Garryowen is in fact the English amalgamation of two Irish words. Garri, the Irish word for garden, and Eoin, the Irish word for the name John. The name is in reference to the land beneath a hill upon which sits King John’s Castle.  “John’s Garden’ became a favorite holiday spot where people could pass a relaxing afternoon and enjoy simple amusement.  At some point the tune was composed, but only became popular when lyrics were added that made it a favorite drinking song. It is here that the song finds its way into our subject matter.

Just prior to Custer’s arrival in Fort Riley, Kansas, where he took command of the 7th Cavalry, Custer happened upon an Irish trooper who was “under the influence of spirits.”  The intoxicated soldier was singing the song.  As the story goes, Custer heard the melody and began to hum the tune to himself.  The Garryowen is a lively piece of music and Custer believed that its rhythm, its beat, accentuated the cadence of marching horses.  He quickly saw it adopted as the regimental tune of the 7th Cavalry and it remains in place today. The tune is easily adapted to a variety of instruments and during the Custer years it was often performed by a full military brass band during parades and formal regimental review. It fit the pipes, the tin whistle, and even the harmonica.

In the spring of 1876 it was decided that the Native American population, not yet living on government reservations, were to be rounded up. A large military force was sent and divided into three columns designed to ensnare the ‘renegade Indians.’   It was noted that ‘Garryowen’ was the last song played before Custer and his men separated from General Terry’s column at the Powder River and rode into history.

The subject of our interest lays here when the 7th began its march to the Little Bighorn. History recorded the final tune, but upon which instrument it was played remains a mystery.  It is interesting to note that the journalist recorded the tune, as being “played” not sung as the column rode off.

All might have been forgotten if not for a chance conversation in a Montana bar.  In the early 1970’s John Pearson of Missoula, Montana, was concluding his postgraduate course at Glasgow University in Scotland.  During his years spent studying abroad, he became fascinated by the pipes and learned how to play. At some point he decided to write a book about the part bagpipes had played in the history of his home state.  While still in Scotland, Mr. Pearson placed appeals in the local newspapers pressing for information about pipers and Scots immigrants to Montana.  His research continued when he returned home to Missoula.  What follows is an excerpt from an article originally run in the Scottish Sunday Express and reprinted by The Highlander Quarterly, October 1975.

The quotes are from John Pearson relating a conversation he had in a Montana bar.

“I was talking about bagpipes when this guy beside me said his brother, a researcher in the U.S. Army Department of History at Washington, had discovered in the archives a reference to highland bagpipes at the Little Bighorn, ” he said.

“I visited the scene of the battle and learned that five pipers apparently buried their bagpipes in a secret cache a day or so before the battle. I don’t think they have ever been found.”

The National Park service in Montana searched out for him the names of the Scots who died under Custer’s command. They were: Sergeants Alex Brown and James Hill; Blacksmith Andrew Hamilton; and Privates Charles Scott, James Callan, James Conlan, and Peter Thomson.

“Any of them could have been the pipers,” said Mr. Pearson.

The outcome of Mr. Pearson’s research is not known. To the best of my knowledge, having devoted some time and effort into uncovering the results, his book has never been published and may never have been completed.  However, in his obscure article he has provided seven candidates among whom five pipers could be found.  Whether or not they carried their pipes to the Little Bighorn may never be known.  That is unless someone stumbles upon a cache of buried pipes in the Bighorn River country.

What should be remembered is that it is not beyond the realm of possibility. There are plenty of precedents for pipers playing along the frontier when this country was in its infancy.  John Macgregor died defending the Alamo in 1836. It was recorded that he and Davy Crockett entertained their fellow men during the lulls in the battle; Davy on the fiddle and John on the pipes.

In another instance there is a term of treaty signed between the British and an Eastern Native American tribe during the Colonial period, in which the playing of the bagpipe was to be banned.  The Indians refused to sign without the ban being in effect. Apparently they believed the bags contained evil spirits that escaped when played.  The sound terrified them.

The list could go on, but suffice it to say that the possibility of bagpipes at the Little Bighorn exists. However, until further details come to light, the men will remain the lost pipers of the Little Bighorn. 


About The Author

Ian is an acclaimed writer, producer, and director of documentary films and multimedia events. He is also a competitive bagpiper and has produced large scale multimedia concerts and pipe band recordings. It is his combined passion for film and piping that endow him with a unique and personal perspective for the Pipes of War project.

Comments

4 Responses to “The Lost Pipers of the Little Bighorn”

  1. pferguson pferguson says:

    I love connections like these.

    The possibility that pipers served on the grounds of the Little Big Horn is indeed intriguing and the imagery and sounds that come along with thinking back to that day are equally compelling.

    So too does it remind me of an event that took place in 2005 entitled, “The Aboriginal Spiritual Journey”, which took Canadian First Nations peoples to the battlefields of Europe. The journey was, “a spiritual ceremony to call home the spirits of fallen warriors”.

    Among these spirits was a Canadian soldier whose ancestor fought at the Little Big Horn, Private Joseph Standing Buffalo, 78th Canadian Infantry Battalion, killed September 29, 1918, grandson of Sitting Bull, son of Chief Julius Standing Buffalo (Sioux Tribe of Indians, Fort Qu’Appelle, Saskatchewan, Canada).

    As the people of Europe witnessed these ceremonies, enduring memories were created of Canada’s first peoples. In one instance at the Menin Gate, the memorial to the missing of Flanders, the sound of the drum and voice, dance, traditional clothing and associated customs left not a single dry eye amongst those assembled.

    It was a powerful reminder of the day when the Menin Gate was first inaugurated July 24, 1917. At this ceremony Field Marshall Plummer attempted to provide comfort to those assembled who had lost their loved ones during the First World War, “It was resolved that here at Ypres, where so many of the ‘Missing’ are known to have fallen, there should be erected a memorial worthy of them which should give expression to the nation’s gratitude for their sacrifice and its sympathy with those who mourned them. A memorial has been erected which, in its simple grandeur, fulfils this object, and now it can be said of each one in whose honour we are assembled here today: ‘He is not missing; he is here’.”

  2. Martha williams says:

    An old family story in my ancestry is about my great grandfather who supposedly played in a band at the Rosebud battle. He was very young and ran away from home which was in Kenosha Wisconsin. He went west, took an assumed name and was in a band under Crook ” but he didn’t go to the Little Bug Horn because his horse wasn’t the right color.” The name he adopted was Henry Hickey. His father somehow found him later and took him back to Wisconsin. His real name was Henry Swift Kimball. I can not find any info to confirm or debunk this story. Any ideas? Thanks so much! Martha Williams

  3. […] Just prior to Custer’s arrival in Fort Riley, Kansas, where he took command of the 7th Cavalry, Custer happened upon an Irish trooper who was “under the influence of spirits.”  The intoxicated soldier was singing the song.  As the story goes, Custer heard the melody and began to hum the tune to himself.  The Garryowen is a lively piece of music and Custer believed that its rhythm, its beat, accentuated the cadence of marching horses.  He quickly saw it adopted as the regimental tune of the 7th Cavalry and it remains in place today. The Scots under Gen. Custer at Little Bighorn were Sergeants Alex Brown and James Hill, Blacksmith Andrew Hamilton, and Privates Charles Scott, James Callan, James Conlan, and Peter Thomson and any of these men could have been the Pipers. (thepipesofwar.com) […]

  4. Forrest Mosby says:

    Custer had an affection for all things Cavalry.He had with him his last day a veteran from Balaclava(possibly the last messenger that attempted to get through).Indian stories tell of a lone soldier with “many marks” on his sleeve(chevrons)fighting a lone battle elsewhere on the field.
    Given Custers quirks,it’s entirely possible he sanctioned the pipes.
    Interesting angle.

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