Flag Likely from Custer’s Last Stand Housed in Pierre
PIERRE, S.D. (AP) - A flag that might be a relic of one of the most famous battles of the Old West has found a resting place in Pierre.
The Pierre Capital Journal reports that the South Dakota State Historical Society has a guidon that most likely is from the Battle of the Little Bighorn, popularly known as Custer's Last Stand. A guidon is a swallow-tailed flag carried by individual companies in a regiment.
Lt. Col. George Custer's 7th Calvary regiment had 12 identical 33-by-27-inch silk guidons that were hand-stitched by a New York seamstress during the Civil War.
Author and re-enactor Bill Markley says the flags were used as formation markers or rallying points and it was part of a company's pride to keep its guidon safe.
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