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| Above, The Custer fight (1903) by Charles Marion Russell. |
One of my "bucket list" places to visit is the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument in Montana. I tried going there in 1990, but the tent trailer at the time got damaged during a windstorm in Sheridan, Wyoming and we had to change our route. Maybe I'll go there this coming year. I have been thinking about heading there, Cody and venturing east to the Black Hills of South Dakota.
The Little Bighorn Battlefield is where Col. George Armstrong Custer engaged in a battle that killed 268 7th cavalry soldiers, civilians, and Indian scouts along with an estimated 60-100 Lakota and Cheyenne.
The National Monument is breaking ground for a new visitor center.
From the National Park Service:
CROW AGENCY, Mont. – Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument recently awarded a construction contract to replace the park’s aging visitor center built in 1951. The National Park Service is coordinating with the park's associated Tribes and stakeholders to develop interpretive exhibits that better tell the complex stories surrounding the landscape, site, and people. Work is scheduled to begin on November 25, 2024.
The nearly $14 million project is funded by the Centennial Challenge program and donations through the National Park Foundation (NPF), including a lead grant from The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust.
The new 9,000 square foot building will be constructed on the footprint of the old visitor center. Nomlaki Technologies LLC, based in West Sacramento, California, is a 100% tribally owned company of members of the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians. The new building will provide prominent views of the battlefield and will feature a roof deck, an improved parking area, accessible walkways, and enhanced visitor amenities to accommodate increased visitor use.
To read more, go here.
