The Crow Agency at Fort Custer
Throssel, Richard Ca. 1905 Courtesy of the Library of Congress
Situated about 100 miles west of Fort Custer, the Crow Agency was established for the purposes of the government to both provide treaty guaranteed supplies to the Crow tribe and to monitor the tribe’s movements. In 1879, Captain Erasmus Corwin Gilbreath was appointed inspector of supplies for the Crow Agency. His duties included providing cattle, flour, and other supplies to the Native Americans living on the Crow Reservation. As an Army officer often at the Crow Agency, he was in close contact with the tribe and present for the negotiations of treaties.