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Perhaps the German tourists will keep it all alive. It still seems to be a big 'thing' for the Germans to experience the American West. On our trip a few years back to Death Valley it seemed at least half the RV's in the camp were German tourists in rental RV's. We planned to visit Little Big Horn on a trip to Montana as Sitting Bull was childhood hero of mine. We ended up driving by as I decided I didn't need to see that sliver of ignominious US history. But it struck me that approx 75 years had past since my youth and the actual battle and then another almost 75 years had past since I last played indians and cowboys. So that the days of my youth playing indians et al sit at the approximate half way point between the actual battle and my present life. Put in that context I had no other option than to realize...."sumbitch, I must be old"
I first visited what was then called the Custer Battlefield in 1969. I toured it again in 2000. A car trip in fall of 2019 took me right past it, but my travel companion and I decided against spending the 20 bucks (I think it was) for admission. But we bought postcards and refrigerator magnets at the trading post down by the highway. We overheard an older Indian fellow discussing Halloween decorations and firearms over his cell phone.