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WELCOME to Conversations With Crazy Horse Source Materials. This free American history study resource features 100 Voices, the largest and most complete collection of Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Crow, Arikara and American eye-witness accounts of the Battle of the Little Bighorn available anywhere, in any form, plus a raft of other related eye-witness documents such as The Complete Crazy Horse Surrender Ledger and The Wintercount of Crazy Horse's Life, all globally searchable for the first time ever, right here. Enjoy!
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100 Voices: Full List * Crow/Arikara * Sioux/Cheyenne * American * Rosebud * Museum
Guided Tours: Crazy Horse at the Little Bighorn * Crazy Horse at the Rosebud
Features: Who Killed Custer - Top 10 List * Bogus Crazy Horse Photos * MIA Scout Mystery
Features: Woman Warriors * American Atrocities * Winter Count of Crazy Horse's Life
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Crazy Horse in Action...
Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho and American...
Eyewitness accounts of Crazy Horse at the Battle of the Little Bighorn
presented in chronological order, beginning just before the battle...
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Spotted Calf
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse declined to join the celebration on the night of June 17, 1876 after his great victory at the Battle of the Rosebud because he said he expected another battle with the Americans soon...
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Two Moon
Cheyenne war chief
Crazy Horse welcomed battle with the American invaders...
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
On the morning of June 25, 1876, the Sioux scout Fast Horn brought word to Crazy Horse and the other free Sioux and Cheyenne war chiefs that Custer's troops were at the Crow's Nest at dawn, only a few hours ride from the Indians' village on the Little Bighorn River...
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Foolish Elk
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse scrambled a party of Cheyenne decoy/scouts to intercept and engage the American soldiers, if they approached the village...
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Yellow Nose
Cheyenne holy man
Crazy Horse and Yellow Nose were bathing in the Little Bighorn River when they heard shots...
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Red Feather
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse couldn't find his horse...
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William Bordeaux
Sioux chronicler
Crazy Horse seemed uncharacteristically "nervous" after the American attack on the village began, and "rode in a feverish manner to the lodges of the various tribal leaders for brief talks with them..."
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Standing Bear
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse's warriors became "impatient..."
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Horn Chips
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse consulted with Soux holy man Long Turd...
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William Bordeaux
Sioux chronicler
Crazy Horse was again "his cool and wary self..."
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Billy Garnett
Indian Agency interpreter
Before joining the battle, Crazy Horse talked to his men, telling them to "restrain their ardor" and obey his commands...
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William Bordeaux
Sioux chronicler
Crazy Horse told his men to remember "the lives of our women and children are in danger..."
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Red Hawk
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse told his men: "Do your best and let us kill them all..."
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William Bordeaux
Sioux chronicler
Crazy Horse told his men: "As soon as you are mounted, follow me toward the river..."
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Red Feather
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse was late getting into the Reno fight...
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Ohiyesa
Sioux chronicler
Gall, Rain In The Face and Crow King led the Indians in the early fighting against Reno, halting the American advance and then forcing Reno's men to fall back into the timber along the Little Bighorn River...
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Black Elk
Sioux holy man
Reno has just retreated into the timber when Black Elk heard the "thunder of the ponies charging" and the cry "Crazy Horse is coming!"...
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Iron Hawk
Sioux warrior
"Presently, Crazy Horse, having collected his warriors, made a dash for the soldiers in the timber and ran into them..."
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Standing Bear
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse's first charge of the battle "broke Reno's left wing" in the timber...
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Red Feather
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse rode among the fleeing soldiers...
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Flying Hawk
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse killed many American soldiers as they ran for their lives...
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Eagle Elk
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse caught a loose horse...
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Daniel Kanipe
U.S. Army
Meanwhile, Custer took the bait that Crazy Horse's Cheyenne decoys offered, which separated Custer from Reno, and set up the worst military defeat in American history...
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Red Horse
Sioux war chief
"Word passed among the Indians like a whirlwind" that Custer was riding to attack the Cheyenne circle at the other end of the village...
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Foolish Elk
Sioux warrior
The Indians fighting Reno saw Custer's troops charge along the ridge and fire down into the village...
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Short Bull
Sioux warrior
Disengaging from Reno, Crazy Horse turned to attack Custer, which he predicted would be the big fight...
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White Cow Bull
Sioux warrior
Before Crazy Horse could get there, though, Custer attacked the village at Medicine Tail Coulee and was shot out of the saddle in the middle of the Little Bighorn River by White Cow Bull...
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Kill Eagle
Sioux war chief
"Vast numbers of Indians" rushed straight at Custer's now leaderless troops and drove the Americans back up the hill...
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Mrs. Spotted
Horn Bull
Sioux observer
Crazy Horse led a strong party of Cheyennes across the Little Bighorn River to flank Custer's decapitated command...
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Flying Hawk
Sioux warrior
Circling around behind Custer's troops, Crazy Horse gave his horse to Flying Hawk while he sniped the Seventh Cavalry soldiers on Calhoun Hill and studied the situation...
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Drags The Rope
Sioux youth
New recruits like Drags The Rope swelled Crazy Horse's forces...
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse led the charge that split Custer's right flank on Calhoun Hill into "two bunches"...
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Red Feather
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse rode between the split portions of Custer's right flank blowing on his eagle horn...
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Lazy White Bull
Sioux warrior
Lazy White Bull claimed he rode ahead of Crazy Horse when Crazy Horse made his famous dash between the split portions of Custer's right flank, but no one else remembered it that way...
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Foolish Elk
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse led a charge that hit a portion of Custer's disintegrating line head on, and then split and "slashed at it from both sides" as the warriors rode the length of the Bluecoats' line...
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Ohiyesa
Sioux chronicler
Crazy Horse, Ice Bear and Little Horse led the charge that annihilated the last troopers at the crest of Last Stand Hill...
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Flying Hawk
Sioux warrior
At the very end, Crazy Horse rode after, caught, and killed an American trooper who tried to escape on a fast horse...
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Water Man
Arapaho warrior
Waterman said Crazy Horse was "the bravest man" he ever saw...
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Little Soldier
Sioux warrior
Little Soldier said Crazy Horse was the "greatest warrior" at the battle...
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Crow King
Sioux war chief
Crow King said Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse were the "great chiefs" of the battle...
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Horn Chips
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse killed 16 American soldiers at the Battle of the Little Bighorn...
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Crazy Horse
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse on when Custer was killed...
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Crazy Horse in Action...
Sioux, Cheyenne and American...
Eyewitness accounts of Crazy Horse at the Battle of the Rosebud
presented in chronological order, beginning just before the battle...
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Weasel Bear
Cheyenne warrior
"Word was sent to Crazy Horse..."
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Gall
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse was the Indian commander at the Battle of the Rosebud...
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Respects Nothing
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse was the Indian commander at the Battle of the Rosebud...
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Lazy White Bull
Sioux warrior
The Sioux / Cheyenne force rode all night to strike Crook on the Rosebud...
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John Bourke
U.S. Army
Crazy Horse's plan for a grand trap at the Battle of the Rosebud...
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Anson Mills
U.S. Army
"The Indians came not in a line but in flocks or herds like buffalo, and they piled upon us until I think there must have been one thousand or fifteen hundred in our immediate front..."
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Frank Grouard
U.S. Army Scout
Half of the American soldiers would have been killed in Crazy Horse's first charge, if not for the valor of Crook's Crow and Shoshoni scouts...
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John Finerty
U.S. Army
Crazy Horse's first charge, and the Americans' counter-charge...
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Little Hawk
Cheyenne warrior
Cheyenne woman warrior, Buffalo Calf Road, rescued her brother, Comes In Sight, whose horse was shot out from under him on the first charge...
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Short Bull
Sioux warrior
"Crazy Horse, Bad Heart Bull, Black Deer, Kicking Bear and Good Weasel rallied the Sioux..."
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Young Two Moon
Cheyenne war chief
"There was now fighting all along the line..."
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John Bourke
U.S. Army
"The Sioux and the Cheyenne were extremely bold and fierce..."
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John Finerty
U.S. Army
The "wild foemen" and their savage style of fighting...
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Anson Mills
U.S. Army
"The Indians proved then and there that they were the best cavalry soldiers on earth..."
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John Finerty
U.S. Army
Humpy rescued Sgt. Van Moll...
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Lazy White Bull
Sioux warrior
One Bull rescued Rooster; Lazy White Bull rescued mortally wounded Black Sun...
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John Bourke
U.S. Army
John Bourke rescued badly wounded Trumpeter Snow...
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Young Two Moon
Cheyenne war chief
"Young Two Moon thought this was his last day..." but White Shield saved his life...
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John Finerty
U.S. Army
Crazy Horse commanded his forces by mirror flash from high ground...
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John Bourke
U.S. Army
Crazy Horse and Crook played a game of chase and retreat...
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Wooden Leg
Cheyenne warrior
Wooden Leg recalled: "Sometimes we chased them, sometimes they chased us."
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Henry Lemly
U.S. Army
"The Sioux ponies always outdistanced our grain-fed American horses..."
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Anson Mills
U.S. Army
Crook divided his command, sending Mills to capture a non-existent Indian village...
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John Bourke
U.S. Army
Crazy Horse nearly captured several American officers, including two on Crook's staff...
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John Bourke
U.S. Army
Crazy Horse's warriors shot Crook's horse out from under him......
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John Bourke
U.S. Army
Crook ordered his men to fall back, but before the order could be carried out......
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John Bourke
U.S. Army
Crazy Horse attacked Crook's flank and rear, hitting troops commanded by Royall...
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Anson Mills
U.S. Army
Crazy Horse cut Crook's over-extended flank to pieces...
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William Bordeaux
Sioux chronicler
"The attack was not staged in one mass but relayed in formations, a style of fighting initiated by Crazy Horse and sometimes successful in encircling troops."
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Anson Mills
U.S. Army
Crazy Horse's mauling of Royall forced Crook to recall Mills and the men he had sent to find the Indians' village...
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Henry Lemly
U.S. Army
As Crook consolidated his forces, Crazy Horse withdrew his forces into the Canyon of the Rosebud...
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Frank Grouard
U.S. Army Scout
Grouard warned Crook that Crazy Horse would kill every single American if they tried to follow the Indians into the Canyon of the Rosebud...
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Henry Lemly
U.S. Army
When Crook's Indian scouts flatly refused to follow the Sioux and Cheyenne into the Canyon of the Rosebud, the battle effectively ended...
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Henry Lemly
U.S. Army
"Crook's enemies say he was 'outgeneralled' by Crazy Horse..."
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Anson Mills
U.S. Army
"We had been most humiliatingly defeated..."
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Short Bull
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse showed "good judgement" at the Rosebud
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Black Elk
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse "whipped them" at the Rosebud...
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Spotted Calf
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse refused to join the celebration on the night of June 17, 1876 after his great victory at the Battle of the Rosebud because he said he expected another battle with the Americans soon...
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Crazy Horse in Action...
Sioux and Cheyenne...
Eyewitness accounts of Crazy Horse in action
against the Crow, Shoshoni, Arapaho and Ute Indians...
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Short Bull
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse's bravery against the Shoshoni when he saved the life of his younger brother, Little Hawk...
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Black Elk
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse saved the life of his brother, Little Hawk...
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Crazy Horse
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse's own account of saving Little Hawk's life...
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Eagle Elk
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse gave his younger brother, Little Hawk, his first coup in a battle against the Utes...
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Red Feather
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse and the battle called "The Time Hump Was Killed By The Crow"
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse and the battle called "The Time Hump Was Killed By The Crow"
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Short Bull
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse and the battle called "The Time Yellow Shirt Was Killed By The Crow"
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse at the battle the Sioux called "The Time They Chased The Crow Back To Camp"
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse and He Dog 's glory against the Crow
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse's bravery against the Arapaho
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Crazy Horse as a warrior...
Sioux, Cheyenne, Arapaho and American...
Eyewitness accounts of Crazy Horse as a warrior...
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse always led his men in battle, riding at the front
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Philip Sheridan
U.S. Army
Crazy Horse "always leads and he never allows his men to close up on him..."
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Eagle Elk
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse "is in front and... if he shoots down an enemy, he does not count coup."
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Anonymous Crow
Crow warrior
"We know Crazy Horse" because "whenever we have a fight, he is closer to us than to you."
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Frank Grouard
U.S. Army Scout
"Crazy Horse was the Napoleon among the Sioux..."
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse liked to have battles planned out
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Eagle Elk
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse "had an organization" of crack troops
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John Finerty
U.S. Army
At the Battle of the Rosebud, Crazy Horse controlled the free Indian forces by mirror flash
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William Bordeaux
Sioux chronicler
On the Powder River, a Socratic Crazy Horse asked his sub-commanders, "how about it?"
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Horn Chips
Sioux holy man
As a battlefield maneuver, Crazy Horse apparently trained his pony to rear and dance wildly, somewhat like levade in European dressage...
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Eagle Elk
Sioux warrior
On the Powder River, Crazy Horse said, "These soldiers like to shoot. I am going to give them a chance to do all the shooting they want to do..."
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Billy Garnett
Indian Agency interpreter
At the Little Bighorn, Crazy Horse ordered his men to let the Americans "get their guns hot so they would not work so well..."
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William Bordeaux
Sioux chronicler
At the Battle of the Rosebud, Crazy Horse's attack "was not staged in one mass but relayed in formations, a style of fighting initiated by Crazy Horse and sometimes successful in encircling troops."
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Iron Hawk
Sioux warrior
At the Battle of the Little Bighorn, Crazy Horse led the charge that smashed Reno's defensive line in the timber...
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
At the Battle of the Little Bighorn, Crazy Horse led the charge that split Custer's right flank on Calhoun Hill into "two bunches"...
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Red Feather
Sioux warrior
At the Little Bighorn, Crazy Horse rode between the split portions of Custer's right flank blowing on his eagle horn...
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Foolish Elk
Sioux warrior
At the Little Bighorn, Crazy Horse led a charge that hit a portion of Custer's disintegrating line head on, and then split and "slashed at it from both sides" as the warriors rode the length of the Bluecoats' line...
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Ohiyesa
Sioux chronicler
At the Little Bighorn, Crazy Horse, Ice Bear and Little Horse led the charge that annihilated the last troopers at the crest of Last Stand Hill...
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Flying Hawk
Sioux warrior
At the very end at the Little Bighorn, Crazy Horse rode after, caught, and killed an American trooper who tried to escape on a fast horse...
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Water Man
Arapaho warrior
Waterman said Crazy Horse was "the bravest man" he ever saw...
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Frank Grouard
U.S. Army Scout
"Crazy Horse was the bravest man he ever met..."
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse frequently dismounted to shoot for maximum accuracy
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse "always stuck close to his rifle"
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Crazy Horse descriptions...
Sioux and American...
Eyewitness accounts of Crazy Horse's appearance...
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Little Killer
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse had "brown hair like a white man's and a long straight nose..."
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Short Bull
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse had "black eyes that hardly ever looked straight at a man, but they didn't miss much that was going on, all the same..."
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New York Sun Reporter
Anonymous witness to history
Crazy Horse's "eyes are exceedingly restless and impress the beholder fully as much as does his general demeanor...."
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Black Elk
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse's "eyes looked through things and he always seemed to be thinking hard about something..."
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Susan Bordeaux Bettelyoun
Daughter of trader
James Bordeaux
Crazy Horse was "a very handsome young man..."
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Black Elk
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse would joke around in his own tepee, "but around the village he hardly ever noticed anybody, except little children..."
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Horn Chips
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse was "a quiet fellow..."
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Flying Hawk
Sioux warrior
"Crazy Horse was quiet and not inclined to associate with others..."
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Black Elk
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse "never was excited..."
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse was shot point blank in the face "just below the left nostril," scarring him for life
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Frank Grouard
U.S. Army Scout
Crazy Horse had gun "powder marks on one side of his face..."
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John Bourke
U.S. Army
Crazy Horse was "lithe and sinewy and with a scar in the face. The expression of his countenance was one of quiet dignity..."
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Lazy White Bull
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse "had white spots painted here and there on his face for protection in battle..."
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Horn Chips
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse painted red lightning on his face for war ...
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse "never wore a war bonnet..."
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Billy Garnett
Indian Agency interpreter
Crazy Horse "never wore a war bonnet..."
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Horn Chips
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse "never wore a war bonnet..."
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Eagle Elk
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse had his "eagle horn" -- his sacred eagle bone war whistle -- "with him at all times..."
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Frank Huston
U.S. Army Scout
Crazy Horse "wore the long white 'stole' over his shoulders as insignia, and also to tie himself to his planted lance in a fight to the death."
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Short Bull
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse"usually wore a Iroquois shell necklace..."
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Susan Bordeaux Bettelyoun
Daughter of trader
James Bordeaux
Crazy Horse's "scalp lock was ornamented with beads and hung clear to his waist; his braids were wrapped in fur...."
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William Bordeaux
Sioux chronicler
Crazy Horse liked to wear a red blanket he took from a frieght shipment his men intercepted in 1867 after the Fort Kearny fight...
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Frank Grouard
U.S. Army Scout
Crazy Horse "appeared much younger than his age..."
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Short Bull
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse rode a pinto at the Little Bighorn
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Black Elk
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse "never wanted to have many things for himself, and did not have many ponies like a chief..."
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Valentine McGillycuddy
U.S. Army physician and Indian Agent
"Crazy Horse... was a good man, and I would trust him anywhere..."
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Baptiste Pourier
American trader and frontiersman
"Crazy Horse was as fine an Indian as he ever knew..."
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Crazy Horse photos...
Supposed photos of Crazy Horse...
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Billy Garnett
Indian Agency interpreter
Crazy Horse "never had his picture taken...He was very peculiar about this..."
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Horn Chips
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse "never had his photo taken..."
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Valentine McGillycuddy
U.S. Army physician and Indian Agent
"I tried hard to have one taken of him in 1877," but Crazy Horse woudn't allow it...
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Short Bull
Sioux warrior
Short Bull said he had seen three photos of Crazy Horse, all showing him on horseback...
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Crazy Horse's women...
Sioux...
Eyewitness accounts of Crazy Horse's women...
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Little Killer
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse's women
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He Dog
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse's women
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Baptiste Pourier
American frontiersman
Crazy Horse's women
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Susan Bordeaux Bettelyoun
Daughter of trader
James Bordeaux
Crazy Horse's women
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Crazy Horse's Dream Visions...
Sioux and American...
Eyewitness accounts of Crazy Horse'sVisions...
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Crazy Horse
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse dreamed "I was sitting on a hill or rise, and something touched me on the head..."
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Black Elk
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse "dreamed and went into the world where there is nothing but the spirits of all things..."
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Billy Garnett
Indian Agency interpreter
Crazy Horse dreamed "a man on horseback came out of the lake..."
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Frank Grouard
U.S. Army Scout
Crazy Horse dreamed he saw "a mighty eagle soaring far above him..."
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Fool's Crow
Sioux holy man
Crazy Horse's Great Vision...
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Crazy Horse and Little Hawk...
Sioux and Cheyenne...
Eyewitness accounts of Crazy Horse and his younger brother, Little Hawk...
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Dr. Charles
Eastman
Sioux chronicler
Crazy Horse, Little Hawk and the grizzly bear...
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Short Bull
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse's bravery against the Shoshoni when he saved the life of his younger brother, Little Hawk...
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Crazy Horse
Sioux war chief
Crazy Horse's own account of saving Little Hawk's life...
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Eagle Elk
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse gave his younger brother, Little Hawk, his first coup in a battle against the Utes...
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Eagle Elk
Sioux warrior
Crazy Horse killed a horse over the grave of his brother, Little Hawk...
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