A Previously Unknown Signed Brady Photograph of George Armstrong Custer

Custer is a legendary figure of the Civil War and the American West.  He graduated from West Point in June 1861 and reported immediately to the theater of war. He quickly distinguished himself as an aide-de-camp to various generals, including McClellan.  Through most of the war, however, he was a cavalry commander, a position in which he would become famous.  In 1863, he became Brigadier General and in that capacity fought in the Battle of Gettysburg. In October 1864 Custer was promoted to Major General by brevet, and in April 1865 to full Major General. He was one of Sheridan's best commanders and was with him at Five Forks, a Union victory that forced the evacuation of Petersburg and Richmond. And it was Custer's division that cut off Robert E. Lee's last avenue of escape at Appomattox, leading to his surrender to U.S Grant and the effective end of the war.  Custer's eccentric displays, strong personality, uncommon bravery, and often showy uniforms added to his image.  

Custer's success bolstered his career, and he was soon sent to Texas as part of a newly formed cavalry unit.  In 1866 he assumed command of his famed 7th Cavalry. Commanding that unit, he fought the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians, and led the Yellowstone Expedition and the Black Hills Expedition, the latter ending in the Battle of Little Big Horn, where he was killed, along with his two brothers.  His body was left in an impromptu grave, but he was later brought to West Point for a full military burial.  This episode is the subject of movies, books, and lore.  It has ensured Custer's place as an American icon.

Custer's life was cut short so his autograph is scarce in comparison with many other figures of the time.  His important documents are very hard to find, and anything not routine of Custer is a feather in the cap of any Civil War or Western collection.  Since the beginning of published records on this subject, fewer than 20 signed images of Custer have surfaced for sale, and some of those were signed on the back.  Fewer than 10 are known to survive signed on the front.  This is thus an exceptional rarity.

It was soon after Custer's first promotion that he sat for a photograph by Matthew Brady, the renowned American photographer.  CDV photograph signed, an original image taken by Brady in his Washington studios, late 1864.  "Yours truly, G.A. Custer, Major General, U.S.Caly," the final word being an abbreviation for Cavalry.  This image was presented to a member of Grant's staff, and has never before been offered for sale.

Sheridan and Custer came east from the Shenandoah Valley to aid Grant in March 1865, and Custer left for Texas after the Grand Review on May 23-24, 1865. It was during this two month time frame, while Custer and Grant were in proximity, that this previously unknown image of Custer was likely signed.