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Gen. Philip Sheridan's
Union cavalry officer Philip Henry Sheridan ranked among the top three generals in the Union army along with Ulysses S. Grant and William T. Sherman. Sheridan graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1853, ranking 34th in a class of 51. He served in the West, including California, and the first year of the Civil War found him on duty as a quartermaster captain. In spring 1862 Sheridan was appointed colonel of the 2nd Regiment Michigan Cavalry. -
Joseph Glidden
The taming of the American West depended in large part on the development of a suitable method for fencing in land without using wood or stone, both of which were in short supply on the Great Plains. Although several alternative forms of fencing were invented during the 19th century, the most successful was the style of barbed wire invented by Joseph Glidden, a 60-year-old farmer who got his idea while attending a county fair. -
Gen. Custer/Little Big horn
On June 25, 1876, Custer had a very deadly massacre with the Native Americans while traveling to Fort Bighorn. Three groups of soldiers were divided, one led by Captain Frederick W. Benteen, who went south to the Indians, the second led by Major Marcus A. Reno, who crossed the river, and the last one led by him. During the battle, Custer and all 210 men of his army were killed. -
Carlisle Indian School
Carlisle Indian INdustrial School was created for all Native Americans and became established in 1879 by Lieutenant Richard Henry Pratt. Originally, Pratt dropped out of school at age 13, and joined the United States army in the Civil War. Pratt witnessed 72 Indians imprisoned in their jail cells, then freed them out of their cells, and convinced them to be enrolled at Carlisle School. By 1894, the school had grown to 818 students from 53 nations.
