George Armstrong Custer, the most iconic military leader in American history was brave, bold, imprudent and no doubt brilliant. Custer historians have numerous opinions of the gallant Custer, and objects associated with him are highly sought after. Personal items have been tightly held by descendants and few have ever surfaced. General Custer, his brothers Tom and Boston, and brother-in-law Lt. Calhoun, all died at the Battle of the Little Big Horn. His brother Nevin and sister Margaret remained, with Nevin being the General's only sibling to produce children. Nevin owned a large farm in Monroe, Michigan with his brother George at the time of his death. Most of the General's items were acquired by his brother Nevin or his widow Libbie, who donated the bulk of her items to The Smithsonian in 1933. Her nurse and confidante retained some small mementos, mostly letters, medals and photographs that have been sold over the years, most recently at a Spink Auction, New York in 2013. While many individual items of the Generals have been auctioned through the years, the only large family grouping ever sold was in 1989, over 27 years ago. Several direct descendants of James Calhoun Custer, 1871-1954, (Nevins only son who produced children) have retained important Custer personal objects; most of which are currently on loan to major institutions with several in need of conservation work. Family members have decided to sell this particular archive of bona fide family objects to start a fund to assure the longevity of family heirlooms. Interestingly, over the years, some objects of "supposed Custer origin" have been sold privately or at auction with no direct lineage to family members, and often for large sums of money. Indeed, Custer descendants are much attuned to objects sold, and continually wonder how some items were ever authenticated as many have never been seen by family members and are considered of questionable family origin. Major Edward S. Luce (1886-1963) was the original Superintendent of the Custer National Battlefield Monument and made notes on much of the material in the family collection. Several of the items offered here are described in his notes from when he was in charge of the park, 1941-1956. It is a rare opportunity to offer this lot which such strong provenance. 1) Mariam and Margaret Custer, sisters and grandnieces to the General, (both of whom never married), possessed a small box which contained a lock of the General's hair and a note written inside: "Gen'l Custer's hair - from Margaret and Miriam". This large lock of hair is braided at the end, measuring 2" x 6" long. "Before Lieutenant Colonel Custer left Fort Abraham Lincoln on his last campaign, his wife had a dream of her husband being scalped by the Indians. Upon her insistence, he cut his hair before his last battle. The locks of hair that he gave his wife were passed down to his descendants". One of these locks of hair braided identically, but only 1" wide, was sold by Butterfield's as Lot 88, April 4, 1995. This same lock of hair was apparently later cut into two sections and one of these sections was sold as Lot 44139, Heritage Auctions, June 22, 2013. Another lock of hair is on display at the Monroe County Historical Museum. 2) Custer's personal map he ordered of the Northern Pacific Railroad route being constructed through hostile Sioux territory. Map is inscribed and dated "TO GENERAL G. A. CUSTER USA IN REPLY TO HIS TELEGRAM DATED ELIZABETHTOWN, KY FEBY 15 1873". Map was sent from Washington "OFF. CH. OF ENGRS USA / WASHINGTON DC / FEBY 26 1873". The topographer whose initials "DC", sent map and added highlighted "BOUNDARIES AND NAMES OF THE MILITARY DEPARTMENTS". These are bordered and written in red: "ARIZONA", "TEXAS", "THE GULF" on large lower half and and partial inscriptions on the other three upper sections: "CALIFORNIA", and portions of what is missing "THE COL[ORADO]", "THE[DAKOTAS]". The two upper northeastern sections of map show "THE LAKES" and completing bottom section "THE SOUTH". Topography also highlighted in blue "MILITARY POSTS AND STATIONS, GARRISONED (AS FAR AS OUR INFORMATION EXTENDS)". The map shows in print forts established by the maps orig publication in 1868. Written in red ink with blue underline are additional western posts "FT BLISS", "CAMP CRITTENDEN", "CAMP CH'S", "CAMP VERDE", "CAMP APACHE", "CAMP TULERASA", "FT WINGATE" noting old "FT VINGATE" and others including several in San Francisco Bay, one being "ALCATRAZ". Map overall pieced together measures about 49" across and about 45" tall; large lower section of map is 49" across and 22" tall. The 3 sections of 8 missing from upper half of map would have shown the Dakotas and the site of The Little Bighorn. Percentage wise, 3 of 16 sections are missing, so map is about 82% intact, the whereabouts of the missing 3 sections are currently unknown. Custer had just been ordered to reunite the 7th US Cavalry, now stationed at various posts. Custer assembles his command in Memphis, TN where three steamboats will take them on the first leg of their journey to protect survey crews. September 23, 1873 Custer and his command return to their new post at Ft. Abraham Lincoln. This could possibly be the exact same map, as shown in photographs of Custer in his study at Ft. Abraham Lincoln, taken November 1873 by Orlando Goff. 3) Civil War era officer's sword knot. In the numerous photographs of Custer, he is shown with a sword quite often, but only one photograph shows a sword knot on his saber and that picture was taken very early in his career in May 1862 when Custer was a Lieutenant with his cavalry officer's saber with bullion knot attached. This could easily be the knot that accompanied the orig saber that was given by Custer after the Battle of Antietam to a fellow officer. This is the same style knot that would have matched the saber and accoutrements he purchased as noted in a letter Custer wrote home and cited on pg 49 in Frederick Whittaker's early biography A Complete Life of Gen. George A. Custer: Major-General of Volunteer; Brevet Major-General, U.S. Army; and Lieutenant-Colonel, Seventh U.S. Cavalry written in 1876: "I left West Point on the 18th of July, 1861, for Washington, delaying a few hours that afternoon on my arrival in New York to enable me to purchase, of the well-known military firm of Horstmanns, my lieutenant's outfit of sabre, revolvers, sash, spurs, etc." 4) Custer's personal field hand mirror. The gilded gessoed wood frame is encased in sewn leather enclosure, measuring 7" x 5" and about 1-1/4" deep. A mirror closely resembling this one belonged to Custer's brother-in-law James Calhoun, who was killed with him at the Little Bighorn. His mirror is at the Monroe County Museum in Monroe, Michigan. We can find no other comparable military field mirrors anywhere. This particular mirror was donated to the museum by Emma Mae Calhoun (1882-1960), the wife of James Calhoun's younger brother and General Custer's niece. The mirror in the Monroe Museum has "FS Calhoun" who was James' younger brother, also a Civil War and Indian War veteran, Lt. Frederic S. Calhoun (1847-1904). 5) Folding camp chair. In the numerous field photographs of Custer camps, a variety of folding camp chairs are seen, many with canvas tops like the one on view at the Monroe County Museum in Monroe, MI, but others similar to this with apparent solid seats and backs are seen in photographs of the 1860's & '70s though none can be noted to being identical. Custer and his inner circle are known to have been well supplied in camp, and this chair, of quality construction, is an example of that. 6) Rare cabinet card photograph, 6-1/2" x 4-1/4", listed by Katz in his text Custer in Photographs on pg 96 (K-112) "Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer, on or about January 24, 1872, by James A. Scholten. From the unique, original unpublished cabinet card, courtesy of Custer Battlefield National Monument." We have not seen photos from this sitting other than a couple of other variant views including one signed for his sister from the Dr. Lawrence Frost collection, which of course descended in same family grouping. 7) Large albumin photograph of General Custer and General Pleasanton mounted on 9" x 11" board as part of Alexander Gardner's "Incidents of War". The original photograph was taken October 9, 1863 at Warrenton, VA by Timothy H. O'Sullivan (ref. K-24, Katz Custer in Photographs). General Pleasanton was the first Union authority to recognize the brilliance of Custer and was one of the influential sources of his rapid climb in rank. Custer met with extreme favor under Brigadier General Alfred Pleasanton. Pleasanton quickly came to depend on Lieutenant Custer to carry out dangerous commands on the battlefield. Accordingly, Custer enjoyed a warm relationship with him resembling that of a father and son, as Pleasanton trusted Custer and even called him "boy". Custer received ample opportunities from this closeness and boasted, "I do not believe a father could love his son more than General Pleasanton loves me". Pleasanton bestowed upon Custer powers and responsibilities usually beyond those in his position. Note: the similar folding camp chair Custer is seated. SIZE: PROVENANCE: From direct family descent of Nevin Custer. CONDITION: 1) Fine "as found" in old hosiery box. Silk handkerchief appears fine and contemporary, lock of hair is also fine with few loose hairs found scattered in box. 2) Very good overall, easily discerned ink markings. Staining, foxing, especially on far left border. Linen backing is quite sound with fraying at edges. 3) Very good. Well preserved, good bullion, unsewn only at knot end. 4) Remarkably fine condition for harness leather object of this era, with scuffing, missing original sewn closure tab. But this has obviously been handled very little as hinges in casing are made simply by cutting the leather to make hinge which so easily could have been broken. The wooden frame of mirror is held by cut nails hammered through leather on each of its 4 sides. Embossed decorations still discernible. Corners are sewn, typical of Civil War/Indian War era manufacture. Sewing is broken on 2 corners. 5) Very good, functional as refinished. Missing one eyelet for corresponding locking hook. 6) Fine, light soiling and foxing, written on verso in pencil "Gen Custer 3". 7) Fine contrast and clarity, several bends, cracks and folds unaffecting content, light soiling, yellowing and foxing. 50946-1 JS (100,000-150,000)