The scout who carried the final orders that diverted him from the deadly fight at the Little Bighorn recalled the terror of the two-day battle and the grim discovery of the dead afterward. Sergeant Kanipe was one of the few survivors of the battle, having been sent back to the pack train with orders just moments before the fighting began. He was ordered back to find McDougall and the pack train, a decision he credits with saving his life. The command had marched all night on June 24th, 1876, and into the next day before reaching the junction of the Rosebud and the Little Big Horn Rivers.
General Custer took the regiment into a ravine to stay concealed, but the element of surprise was lost when two Sioux warriors were spotted. Believing the element of surprise gone, Custer prepared to attack immediately, splitting his regiment into three detachments and taking troops C, E, I, and F with him. Kanipe was with Custer’s detachment when the attack began. He described the fierce fighting, noting that the soldiers were overwhelmed by a force of thousands of warriors.
He recalled the wounded being scalped and mutilated, and the bodies of the dead being stripped of clothing and possessions. He said the soldiers had just been paid, and the Indians made off with the money. The next day, the survivors of the regiment, who had been pinned down with Major Reno’s command, discovered the full extent of the disaster. The bodies of Custer’s men lay scattered across the field, and the general himself was found dead.
Kanipe recounted the story of the horse Comanche, the only survivor of the battle, who was recovered and given a hero’s status by the army. Kanipe’s account provides a firsthand perspective on the events, including the chaos, the violence, and the devastating losses suffered by the 7th Cavalry. He remembered the constant shooting and the desperate fight for survival. He also described the scene of the dead, noting the mutilation of the fallen and the pillaging of the bodies.
His testimony remains a crucial piece of the historical record of the Battle of the Little Bighorn.