re: Why does the Battle of Little Big Horn get so much attention?

Great answer. Plus, until that year, all efforts to clear the Northern Plains had all but failed. For 10 years, the area North of the Platte River was dominated by the Sioux, Sans Arc and Hunkpapa tribes who were able to cooperate enough in a joined effort to force the Army to try and placate the tribes below the Platte River like the Cheyenne and Arapahoe. After they were finally subdued, there was but one region left to get under complete control . Custer was the famous soldier who was expected to subdue the efforts of Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, He Dog, etc. Custer was a brash man who was a lightening rod of controversy within his own Army, in the political arena and in the publics eye. When he and his regiment went out in a massacre, it was a very big deal and the incident became a bigger story than it would have been had it been anyone else leading the expedition. You have to understand the place Custer held in our nations psyche to understand how the outcome of that massacre resonated through history.