OCT 16: New Home at Ft. Riley
On Oct. 16, 1866, Lt. Col. George A. Custer and his wife, Libbie, arrive at Ft. Riley, Kansas, where Custer is to take command of the 7th Cavalry Division.
According to the Junction City Union newspaper, the Custers arrived on the 16th, even though Fort Riley records indicated he officially reported for duty on November 1.
Libbie and George Custer. (Credit: The National Archives)
In a letter she sent to a cousin in December 1866 (Kansas Historical Society), Libbie Custer wrote that the couple stopped in St. Louis on their way from Monroe, Michigan, to Fort Riley and attended the play “Rosedale.” She noted the performance of “the distinguished Lawrence Barrett… and after the play became acquainted with him at the hotel. He is an elegant gentleman, and do you know he actually began life as a bell boy at the Russell House in Detroit.” Barrett and George Custer struck up a lasting friendship, to the point that Custer watched Barrett perform in the play Julius Caesar approximately 40 times during visits to New York, according to author Nathaniel Philbreck in his book, “The Last Stand.”
Actor Lawrence Barrett. (Credit: Harvard Theatre Collection)
About their new home at Fort Riley, Libbie wrote: “We are living almost in luxury. It does not seem life in the army for you know I have had mostly a rough time. This is not a fort, tho' called so, it is a garrison. For there are no walls enclosing it… Our large kitchen and dining room are quite the pride of my life for the rest of the quarters haven't them as yet. Our house is so comfortable and cheery for we have the sunlight in the parlor all day. As yet we have not a house crowded with furniture, but enough to be comfortable. I have bought Autie a lovely black cane seated & backed arm chair, for him when he returns. I have an oak and green carpet -- a green & black tablecloth on a round table and albums, card basket, book rack, & on it; another round table we use for a writing table. Our chairs are quite comfortable and the wood fire in the place makes the room very cheerful. I have lace curtains like mothers and put up like hers. My easel stands by one of the windows and I am just finishing a picture for Autie when he returns, of a bulldog smoking a pipe.”
