Gordon Harper

Gordon Harper was born in Toronto in 1939 and was raised there. His interest in the Little Bighorn began in 1959 when, as a minor league baseball player, he mistakenly got off a bus at the battlefield instead of his intended destination. He immediately became captivated by the site and its history and thereafter lived near the battlefield for several months, exploring it thoroughly and becoming familiar with Cheyenne, Crow, and Lakota Indians who imparted information to him not available elsewhere. The avocation became a passion and he devoted half a century, until his death, to studying the battle. A member of Mensa, he worked as a Private Investigator, corporate security consultant, and a musician. He became well-known and highly regarded among other Little Bighorn enthusiasts and scholars, made numerous trips to the battlefield as part of research for what he intended as a complete source book on the battle, but passed away on May 17, 2009, shortly before finishing the manuscript for this book and the accompanying 1700 pages of primary source appendices on which it is based (which are available to readers, online, through his estate). He is survived by his daughter, Tori Harper, and his son, Clay Harper.