George A. Custer Quick Facts

Name Meaning

George is of Greek origin meaning “farmer”

Vital Stats

Birthday:  December 5th, 1839
Birth Name: George Armstrong Custer
Birthplace:  New Rumley, Ohio
Date of Death:  June 25th, 1876
Cause:  Killed in action at
Battle of Little Bighorn
Place of Death: Little Bighorn
battlefield, SE Montana
Height: 5′ 11″
Nationality: American
Ancestry: German and English
Occupation before Civil War:
School teacher; student at U.S
Military Academy at West Point.
Occupation during Civil War: Cavalry
officer in Army of Potomac, rising
from 2nd Lieutenant (Regular Army)
to Major General of Volunteers
Occupation after Civil War:
Lieutenant Colonel in the
Regular U.S. Army, serving
on the Great Plains and west.

Major Battles:

First Bull Run
Peninsula Campaign
Antietam
Chancellorsville
Gettysburg
Overland Campaign
Shenandoah Valley Campaign
of 1864
Siege of Petersburg
Five Forks
Appomattox Campaign

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Relatives

Father: Emanuel Henry Custer
(Dec. 10, 1806-Nov. 27, 1892)
Mother: Maria Ward Custer
(May 31, 1807-Jan. 13, 1882)
Brother: James Custer (1836-37)
Brother: Samuel Custer (1838-38)
Brother: Nevin J. Custer
(July 29, 1842-Feb. 25, 1915)
Brother: Thomas W. Custer*
(March 15, 1845-June 25, 1876)
Brother: Boston Custer*
(Oct. 31, 1848-June 25, 1876)
Sister: Margaret Emma Custer
(Jan, 5, 1852-1910)

*Both Thomas and Boston were killed at the Battle of Little Bighorn

Romance

Married:  Elizabeth Custer 2/9/1857
(April 8, 1842-April 4, 1933)
Widely disputed reports of affair
with Mo-nah-se-tah, a Cheyenne woman

Children

None

Resources

Custer: The Controversial Life of George Armstrong Custer
by Jeffry Wert
Son of the Morning Star: Custer and the Little Bighorn
by Evan S. Connell