414 - Life in the Barracks

At its peak in 1873, with over 500 soldiers stationed at Fort Abraham Lincoln, there was bound to be the occasional disciplinary action served to one of soldiers out of line. It has been recorded that the miscreants charged with various violations were dealt with in a number of ways. Such as:

Being forced to carry a 30-pound log on their shoulders for hours.
Pulling weeds along the parade ground, or in the gardens,
Collecting and delivering water for the officers’ quarters and barracks as well as the bakery two times a day,
Cutting wood for the officers quarters or the bakeries,
Carrying a ball and chain (having a 12-pound ball attached to a chain that was clamped around the ankle, and often referred to as “Uncle Sam’s watch chain”,
A couple of the more sinister punishments included:
Being bucked and gagged, or shaving half of one’s head and parading around the post while a drummer played, “The Rogue’s March.”

Fair to say, toeing the line was incentivized, but it is easy to imagine life as a soldier grew tiresome if not monotonous at times, which often led to some sort of trouble. In an effort to distract oneself, soldiers were allowed occasional forms of entertainment such as poker, horseshoes, boxing, card games, and concerts, but the most popular at the time likely would have been the rivalry baseball game between the soldiers of Fort Lincoln, and the Soldiers of Fort Rice. Unfortunately for Fort Lincoln, Captain Benteen from Fort Rice was an avid baseball player, and loved nothing more than beating the men under the command of General Custer, who he detested.