Cultural depictions of George Armstrong Custer Cultural depictions of George Armstrong Custer George Armstrong Custer (1839–1876) was a United States Army cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. He was defeated and killed by the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. More than 30 movies and countless television shows have featured him as a character. He was portrayed by future U.S. president, Ronald Reagan in "Santa Fe Trail" (1940), as well as by Errol Flynn in "They Died With Their Boots On" (1941). In 1896, Anheuser-Busch commissioned from Otto Becker a lithographed, modified version of
6th Michigan Volunteer Cavalry Regiment 6th Michigan Volunteer Cavalry Regiment The 6th Regiment Michigan Volunteer Cavalry was a cavalry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was a part of the famed Michigan Brigade, commanded for a time by Brigadier General George Armstrong Custer. The 6th Michigan Cavalry was organized at Grand Rapids, Michigan, from May 28 to October 13, 1862, and mustered in October 13, 1862. Among the officers who later joined the regiment as replacements were Thomas W. Custer, who would earn two Medals of Honor while serving with the 6th in the spring of 1865. The