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Originally posted by BJMarkland

All that and more can be found at this URL:

http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/books/R&H/R&H-FM.htm

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Originally posted by wILD I

BJ
I doubt that photography was advanced enough then to take more than still shots.

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Originally posted by dave

Custers scout. The photo was actually taken on the Yellowstone expedition.

The ARC Identifier is: 524373

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Osteological Analysis of Human Skeletons Excavated from the Custer National Cemetery.
Willey, P. and Douglas D. Scott

Since the turn of the century, skeletons from the Little Bighorn battlefields have been recovered and placed in the associated Custer National Cemetery (CNC). Some of the battle-related skeletal specimens in the cemetery, mostly isolated elements recovered since 1950, had been analyzed previously, but the majority of the elements, those exhumed in the first half of the twentieth century, has not been described.

To complete the analysis of all battle-related specimens in the cemetery, skeletal remains of 10 individuals were exhumed from the CNC in May 1992. Included with these 10 individuals were three groups of elements that are unassignable to any of the 10. An additional individual was sent to the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument (LIBI) in December 1992 and was included with the sample. All but one of the skeletons are consistent with those of nineteenth-century cavalry troopers. Skeletal elements were variously preserved, with the larger, more proximal bones being more frequently recovered than the smaller, more distal ones. Doubtlessly this representation reflects the exhumation practices of the first half of the twentieth century.

Analysis of these skeletal remains provided information concerning elements present, age, sex, race, stature, pathological and anomalous conditions, health, and personal identification. Standard osteological techniques were employed.

The osteological consequences of the troopers' lives and lifestyles are assessed. The age distribution includes more younger and more older troopers than might be expected from enlistment records. Stature estimations range from 65 to 71 inches. Minor developmental malformations, including growth delays and possible deviated toes, are frequent. Healed fractures are common. Degenerative joint problems are overwhelming, being particularly frequent and severe in the lower to middle spinal region and in the upper limbs. Many of the fractures and degenerative changes, and possibly some articular facet extensions, are attributed to horseback riding. Dental health is generally moderate or poor as indicated by antemortem tooth loss, carious lesions, and alveolar resorption, suggesting poor dental hygiene. One cavalryman, however, had at least six fillings. All dentitions suggest habitual tobacco use.

In addition to the troopers' lifestyles, the circumstances surrounding and following their deaths can be inferred. Perimortem injuries include gunshot wounds (GSWs), blunt-force trauma, and sharpforce injuries. Several of the GSWs may have been the cause of death, although others are more likely mutilations, performed shortly after death. Blunt-force trauma is uncommon, suggesting distant, rather than close-range fighting, for the most part. Cuts are infrequent or absent on some individuals and numerous on others. One trooper, for instance, had cuts suggesting shoulder, elbow, hand, hip, and genital dismemberment-nearly 100 cuts in all.

The identities of some of the skeletons can be suggested. Farrier Vincent Charley and Cpl. George Lell are identified with fair probability. Other identities are less certain

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There's a hole in daddy's arm where all the money goes,
Jesus Christ died for nothin' I suppose.
Little pitchers have big ears,
Don't stop to count the years,
Sweet songs never last too long on broken radios.

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