Horsemeat March

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The Horsemeat March of 1876, also known as the Starvation March, was a military expedition led by General George Crook in pursuit of a band of Sioux fleeing General Custer's defeat at the Battle of Little Big Horn. In September, after the battle of Slim Buttes, the Sioux burned the grass behind them, and the American cavalry traveled with reduced rations to allow faster pursuit. As a result, the cavalry had no food for men or horses, and the soldiers eventually had to shoot and eat their horses as they became lame or injured. The Horsemeat March ended in Deadwood, South Dakota. Many of the cavalrymen were said to have gone insane as a result of the march.

The contract surgeon, who was on the Horsemeat March and documented his experiences, was Dr. Valentine McGillycuddy.