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Auction: 336 - The Numismatic Collector's Series Sale
Lot: 1851

Personal Diaries and Notes Written by Elizabeth Bacon Custer, and Envelopes Signed by George Armstrong Custer, Civil War Hero and Indian Fighter.
In 2012, a young lady walked into our offices on West 57th Street in New York and placed a shoe box on the table. She told us that the contents of the box all related to George Armstrong Custer, the Civil War hero and legendary Indian fighter who died in the Battle of the Little Big Horn. Showing the contents of the box, two things became clear - our consignor was knowledgeable and passionate about the life and times of General Custer and his wife "Libbie," and our consignor fully understood the significance of the items she had.

The box contained checks, drafts, military orders, and the Custer's personal account book. There were several stamped envelopes that had previously contained personal correspondence sent from the General to his wife and from her to him. The first item she showed was a letter written entirely in the General's hand. immediately convinced that it was the real thing. The last items to come out of the box were some medals and badges. She picked up the final object, placed it in my hand, and said "This just may be Libbie Custer's own Michigan 7th Cavalry Regimental badge, given to her by the General himself. Libbie Custer describes it in her book, "Tenting on the Plains," and she is seen wearing it in several photographs.
I knew I had to ask the question that was on mind from the moment she showed me the first item - "How did you come into possession of these items?"
What follows is a slightly condensed version of what she told me:
"Elizabeth Bacon Custer long outlived her husband, General George Armstrong Custer. She made her primary residence at 71 Park Avenue in New York City. Elizabeth and the General had no children, and the majority of her family resided in or around Monroe, Michigan, save for a niece in Brooklyn.
As was customary back in that time, Ms. Custer had a personal assistant (referred to frequently in news articles and other writings as a "companion" or a maid) named Margaret Flood. Margaret lived with Elizabeth until Elizabeth's death at age 91 in 1933. When she originally began working for Elizabeth, Margaret was single, and I'm sure her maiden name is somewhere in all of the notes and letters I have. However, she later married and her husband, Patrick Flood, moved in with them. I have a letter from Mrs. Custer to Patrick, asking what his intentions are for Margaret.
Margaret and Elizabeth were extremely close, as evidenced by the many pieces of personal correspondence I have. Most helpful are the letters Elizabeth wrote to Margaret while she was down in Daytona, Florida for a short period, recuperating from an illness.
Margaret was left a number of things upon Elizabeth's death, though I would assume they were nothing thought to be of particular value, at least at the time. I have a letter from an attorney to Margaret that does identify that this occurred. 'I do know Elizabeth donated General Custer's items of significance to West Point, such as his medal of honor, his sword, etc. She also donated other items, such as a desk, to the Custer Museum.
Elizabeth published the many letters she received from General Custer during wartime. The book, "The Custer Story: The Life and Intimate Letters of General George A. Custer and His Wife Elizabeth," was written by Marguerite Merington at Elizabeth's urging. It took many years and was finally completed in 1950. The whereabouts of the original letters are unknown, however, the envelopes, along with notebooks, stamps, and photos, were stored in a large cardboard box that ended up in the house in Brooklyn with Margaret and Patrick.
Many of the envelopes have Margaret Flood's handwriting on them; I would assume she helped Merington over the years in sorting through the letters. Likewise, as Merington completed the book in 1950, many years after Elizabeth's passing, it seems likely that she would have returned them to Margaret and Patrick. Elizabeth had no heirs, Margaret was still alive, and she was like family to Elizabeth. Similar to the Custers, Margaret and Patrick Flood also had no children. However, Margaret did have a niece - her sister's daughter, Mary - who moved into the Brooklyn house to care for them as they grew old. When the Floods died, they left the house and its contents to Mary, who lived there for the rest of her life. She also had no children.
My family came to know Mary many years ago when I was a young child. She was the aunt by marriage of a family friend. I came to know her as "Aunt Mary" while I was growing up, though she was of no blood relation to me. My parents remained close to Aunt Mary and saw her as regularly as if she were related to us.
As Aunt Mary advanced in age, my mother visited her more frequently. On one of my many visits, Aunt Mary gave mv mother the box containing envelopes and a box of Elizabeth Custer's personal effects. (She thought I might be interested in the envelopes and stamps because I liked "old things.") In a smaller box were some old war medals. Nothing terribly exciting, at least to any of us. Those boxes had sat in her hall closet for many years and I guess Aunt Mary no longer wanted them. In fact, the box containing the envelopes had long ago suffered water damage; I still have it in all its glory, as I stored its contents in it many years since.

Mary gave us the boxes before she passed away in 2007. My mother was appointed by Aunt Mary's will as her executor, and she settled Mary's affairs as Mary had directed her to, including the sale of the house. I was given a box of "old things" and my mother was given a box of personal effects by my "Aunt"
who was of no relation to me by blood but was as close as family. My parents cared for her in her elder years, just as she had cared for her elderly aunt and uncle, who just happened to be the caretakers of Elizabeth Custer in her elder years.
In a way, the envelopes are of most interest to me, as the letters they once contained showed the devotion of a man to his wife, and they were passed along in a chain of caring over the years. "
In August of 2012, Spink sold the medals and badges, and a representative sample of the documents and photographs. In our May, 2013 Sale, we sold most of the Custer-signed checks and documents, but our consignor seemed to indicate that she was not ready to part with any remaining items. After seeing how much interest there was in the May sale, she felt that the time had come to find a good home for what follows.
Lot XXXX Custer, Elizabeth Bacon. Diary and account book. 1926-1931. 6 ½" x 8 ¼. Approximately 200 blue lined pages. Bound in heavy brown paper with a darker spine. Most of the front cover missing. "E. B. Custer" / 1926" at the top of the first page, in Elizabeth Bacon Custer's distinctive hand. While some pages deal with mundane subjects such as the contents of a room or closet, there are several quotations that are a window into the soul of this extraordinary women. (As Freud might say "Why did she select these quotations?). Here are some prime examples, all written in Elizabeth Bacon Custer's own hand:
"The Girl Left Behind Me."
The hour was sad I left the maid,
A lingering farewell taking,
Her sighs and tears my steps delayed -
I thought her heart was breaking.
In hurried words her name I blessed
I breathed… the vows that bind me,
And to my heart in anguish pressed
The girl I left behind me.

Then to the east we bore away,
To win a name in story,
And there where dawns the sun of day,
There dawned our sun of glory,
The place in my sight,
When in the host assigned me,
I shared the glory of that fight,
Sweet girl I left behind me,
Both blazed in noon on …height,
When in the post assigned me,
I shared in the glory of that fight
The girl I left behind me.
On another page, she writes down what would have been the last song heard by General Custer and his men as they marched off to the Battle of the Little Big Horn.
"Gary-Owen" - 7th Cavalry regimental tune…named by the General"

"Our hearts so stout have got us fame
For since tis' Known from whence we came
Where'er we go they dread the name
Of Garry Owen in glory"
"The hope of final victory
Within my bosom burning
Is minded with sweet thoughts of thee
And of my fond returning.
But should I ne'er return again
Still worth thy love thou'll find me
Dishonor's breath shall never stain
The name I'll leave behind me."
As you read these words in the context of a personal notebook or diary written by the widow of George Armstrong Custer, you cannot help but feel the powerful emotions expressed.
What did Elizabeth Bacon Custer think about the way she wanted the world to view her?
These two quotations in the notebook are enlightening:
"Sunday, July 25th 1926 / "Romance is not dead - No woman has loved her life in vain who has filled the horizon of one Soul…N.Y. Times, William Bingham- New Castle Wyoming."
"Now for more than ever half a century that highly accomplished and charming gentle woman has devoted herself to the memory of General Custer in ways to merit the admiration of all who are privileged to know about…." From an article on the Little Big Horn by Robert Bruce.
"Romance is not dead -
No woman has lived her life in vain who has filled the horizon of one Soul." William Bingham, Newcastle, Wyoming.
Nearing the end of her life in 1931 she began to make notes concerning bequests. "Leave means for bed in St. Mary's Hospital in Monroe - in Auties name." (Autie was her pet name for George Armstrong Custer). She suggested leaving money to churches "with no regard to creed." She thought about the people who took care of her over the years and listed their years of service ("Margaret Flood for long & faithful service." See the introduction to this section. This entry lends credence to the provenance stated in the introduction to this section.) Libbie suggested leaving money to move and maintain Custer's statue in Monroe, Michigan (it was not prominently displayed at the time).
Custer, Elizabeth Bacon. Diary and account book. Early 1920's. 6 ½" x 8 ¼. Approximately 100 pages. This appears to be a list of donations of pamphlets, letters, and animal heads "shot by the General" (given to Museum at Grand Rapids, the State Library at Lansing, Michigan, and the Kent Scientific Museum).
Custer, Elizabeth Bacon. Diary or notebook labelled "Contents of Basement & Closets -1920.

Custer, Elizabeth Bacon. Smaller 3 ½" x 6" notebooks with black imitation leather covers. 1924 and 1927. The first page of the earlier book starts with "E. B. Custer 1924 May." The later book begins with "Tel.no[telephone number] Caledonia 4456 / E. B. Custer / 71 Park Ave. / 1927 / Sept- / 211 South / st. Daytona Beach / Mrs. Purdy." These books are filled with daily entries that record bills paid, letters received or written, possibly visitors, checks or cash given to individuals, etc. People named include military officers, numerous cousins and other relatives, Charles H. Wheaton (her attorney?), Marguerite Merrington (the biographer she hired), publishers, etc. On the last few pages are the combinations of her safes, and information concerning the sales of "B & S" (Boots & Saddles - 72,000 to date).
Custer, Elizabeth Bacon. 50 or more letters or notes on blank paper ranging from 6" x 9" to 8 ½" x 11." Most without dates, but almost certainly from the 1920's and 1930's. About half are in pencil, the others mostly written in dark ink. All in Elizabeth Bacon Custer's hand. A few are signed "Elizabeth Bacon Custer" or "E. B. C." It appears that many were drafts. Perhaps someone typed the final versions and Elizabeth signed them, retaining the drafts. Again, the subject matter ranges from very significant to the rather mundane, but nevertheless, these are all written by the widow of George Armstrong Custer, a very extraordinary woman in her own right. One page discusses the disposition of key artifacts from the surrender at Appomattox:
"Surrender table - now in Washington? Terms of Surrender of General Lee Confederate to General Grant - signed on table - General Sheridan gave the table to EBC [Elizabeth Bacon Custer] with letter - "No one has done more to bring about this glorious day than your husband…"
The location of Custer's statue in Monroe is a recurring topic:
"I am again interested in the hope of the statue being removed…"
There are notes relating to her will. She never really paid full attention to the funds accumulating from the sale of "Boots & Saddles" over the years, and she suddenly found herself under pressure to dispose of her fortune in the most intelligent manner:
"…I was making a good deal more money than I realized - but I do not ever remember ever counting it up - consequently I was surprised when one book alone brought in…"
Miscellaneous Custer Related Items. Printed image of George Armstrong Custer. June 25, 1921. Forty-fifth Anniversary of Custer's Last fight. Hardin Montana. Stains on the back; Some printed corrections to "LIFE ON THE PLAINS.," and a torn Appendix to one of Custer's books. A Times Wide World Photos image of Chief Red Wolf of the Sioux Tribe, cut from a newspaper or magazine; Customer's Receipt for the cleaning of a cushion, signed by E. B. Custer; Two typewritten pages regarding property belonging to Mrs. Elizabeth B. Custer in the house of Mr. John Bates, at Lawrence Park, New York.
Custer, George Armstrong. Two Custer related envelopes. 1) Courtship of Libbie Bacon, Civil War Era Custer Envelope. Postmarked December 30, 1862, Washington, D.C. To "Miss Libbie Bacon / Monroe / Michigan." All written in brown ink in George Armstrong Custer's distinctive hand. Portions of the envelope's flap are missing, and there are light to moderate stains over approximately half of this example.
In November of 1862, Custer was socially introduced to Elizabeth Clift Bacon, while on leave in Monroe, Michigan. At first, she was not impressed with him, and her father, Judge Daniel Bacon, concurred. Over a year went by. During this period Custer established himself as daring and resourceful military officer, earning the rank of Captain, and participating in Peninsula Campaign, the Siege of Yorktown, the Battle of Antietam, and other important engagements. He also waged a personal battle to win Libbie's hand in marriage. As part of this campaign, frequent letters were exchanged. Finally, on February 9, 1864 he succeeded.
Custer, George Armstrong. Probably Indian War Related Period. Postmarked New York, March 15, no date indicated. Addressed in General Custer's hand, in brown ink, to "Mrs Genl Custer / Fort Leavenworth / Kansas." The left end of the envelope is torn away, but otherwise in very nice condition. Buggy Whip. . Ivory handle. "Whip (1876)" is mentioned in the first notebook in this offering. Whether or not that refers to this particular example is uncertain.

Sold for
$1,900