Two days after the battle, reinforcements arrived, and the carnage of Custer's Last Stand was discovered. The bodies of the men of the 7th Cavalry were strewn across a hillside, stripped of their uniforms, and often scalped or mutilated.
Soldiers buried the bodies, generally where they fell, and marked the graves as best they could. The names of officers were usually put on a marker, and enlisted men were buried anonymously.
This photograph depicts the grave of Myles Keogh. Born in Ireland, Keogh was an expert horseman who had been a colonel in the cavalry in the Civil War. Like many officers, including Custer, he carried a lesser rank in the postwar Army. He was actually a captain in the 7th Cavalry, but his grave marker, as was customary, notes the higher rank he carried in the Civil War.
Keogh had a prized horse named Comanche, which survived the battle at Little Bighorn despite considerable wounds. One of the officers who discovered the bodies recognized Keogh's horse, and saw to it that Comanche was transported to an Army post. Comanche was nursed back to health and was regarded as something of a living monument to the 7th Cavalry.
Legend has it that Keogh introduced the Irish tune "Garryowen" to the 7th Cavalry, and the melody became the unit's marching song. That could be true, however the song had already been a popular marching tune during the Civil War.
A year after the battle, Keogh's remains were disinterred from this grave and returned to the east, and he was buried in New York State.