Little Big Horn Days Features Reenactment of Battle of the Little Bighorn
Updated: March 15, 2013
Little Big Horn Days Features Reenactment of Battle of the Little Bighorn
Hardin, Montana's Little Big Horn Days will be held from Wednesday, June 19th to Sunday, June 23rd, 2013. During this annual event, put on by the Hardin Area Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture, the town's population swells from 3,500 to more than triple that amount as people from around the state, the U.S. and the world gather to enjoy a celebration of local history and culture.
"Little Big Horn Days is an authentic American West experience," says Al Sargent, who chairs the event for the Hardin Chamber. "It's a terrific mix of history, music, art, food and events, and it's all family-friendly. Everywhere you look there is something to see or do."
Sargent says the crown jewel of Little Big Horn Days is the Custer's Last Stand Reenactment, held once daily on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. This reenactment features more than 300 individuals recreating the famous Battle of the Little Bighorn between the U.S. Seventh Calvary, led by Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer, and the combined forces of the Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho nations.
"The reenactment is always a huge favorite of visitors," he says. "And afterwards they stay to enjoy everything else we have to offer."
Other planned events for Little Big Horn Days include a street dance featuring country music band Confederate Railroad, a parade featuring a California-based Lamborghini Club, a demolition derby, parades, a street fair, Native American dance demonstrations, suitcase relay races, historical symposiums and exhibits, and much more.
"We are also going to bring back our military ball, which we reintroduced last year," Sargent says. "It will be held Thursday night, before the reenactments begin on Friday. We hold it under a large outdoor tent, and people wear period costumes. The men are in formal military dress and women wear long dresses with all their finery. Everybody waltzes and reels to live 1800s-era music. We also encourage spectators to watch this event."
About The Custer's Last Stand Reenactment The Custer's Last Stand Reenactment began in 1990 with the goal of telling the story of the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Featuring a script based on the notes of Crow Tribal Historian Joe Medicine Crow, the reenactment takes place six miles west of Hardin, Montana. The reenactments are the centerpiece of Little Big Horn Days, an annual event presented by the Hardin Area Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture. Additional planned events in 2013 include a street dance featuring country music band Confederate Railroad, a parade featuring a California-based Lamborghini Club, a demolition derby, parades, a street fair, Native American dance demonstrations, suitcase relay races, historical symposiums and exhibits, and much more. Entrance to the reenactment is $20 (US) per person. Learn more about the event at www.custerslaststand.org.
Visitor Information
Hardin, Montana (pop 3,500) is located in Big Horn County on the edge of the Crow Reservation in southeastern Montana. Hotels, campgrounds and other accommodations are available in Hardin for reenactment attendees. Additional hotels are available in Billings, Montana (pop. 105,000), a forty-minute drive from Hardin. Flights are available into Billings Logan International Airport.
