Fort McIntosh, Texas

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Fort McIntosh
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Fort McIntosh
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Fort McIntosh
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Fort McIntosh
Location Laredo Junior College campus, Laredo, Texas
Coordinates 27°30′19″N99°31′14″W / 27.50528°N 99.52056°W / 27.50528; -99.52056
Area193.8 acres (78.4 ha)
Built1853 (1853)
Architectural styleLate Victorian
NRHP reference No. 75002011 [1]
Added to NRHPJune 25, 1975
Fort McIntosh Fort McIntosh.jpg
Fort McIntosh

Fort McIntosh was a U.S. Army base in Laredo, Webb County, Texas, from 1849 to 1946.

Contents

Fort McIntosh was established on 3 March 1849 by the 1st US Infantry, under the command of Lt. E.L. Viele, [2] to guard the Texas frontier at the site of a strategic river crossing. Originally named Camp Crawford, the fort was renamed Fort McIntosh in 1850 in honor of Lieutenant Colonel James Simmons McIntosh, a hero in the Battle of Molino del Rey during the Mexican–American War.

The fort was abandoned by Federal troops at the outbreak of the American Civil War. The Battle of Laredo took place near the fort on March 19, 1864, when 72 men repelled three attacks from a force of 200 federal soldiers sent from Brownsville, Texas. On October 23, 1865, the post was reoccupied by federal troops of the 2nd Texas Cavalry.

In the late 19th century, several African-American units among them the 10th Cavalry, the "Buffalo Soldiers", were stationed at Fort McIntosh. Other forts in the frontier fort system were Forts Griffin, Concho, Belknap, Chadbourne, Stockton, Davis, Bliss, McKavett, Clark, Richardson, Inge, and Phantom Hill in Texas, and Fort Sill in Oklahoma. [3] Thesystem had "subposts or intermediate stations" including Bothwick's Station on Salt Creek between Fort Richardson and Fort Belknap, Camp Wichita near Buffalo Springs between Fort Richardson and Red River Station, and Mountain Pass between Fort Concho and Fort Griffin. [4]

During World War I, the fort was used as a training base, and had over 15,000 recruits pass through the gates. During World War II, the 8th Service Command, the 56th Cavalry Brigade, the Southern Land Frontier, the Civil Air Patrol, and battalion of military police all were stationed at the facility at one time or another.

The fort was deactivated in 1946, and the land is now part of the campus of Laredo Community College main campus. [5]

The Laredo United States Army Reserve 340th Quarter Master Company is located within the fort.

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places added Fort McIntosh (#75002011) to its registered historic districts in 1975. Its areas of historic significance are its 1850-1924 Late Victorian Architecture and Military background. All of Fort McIntosh buildings have been preserved and remodeled, and today they serve as educational buildings for Laredo Community College. [6] The former officers barracks has been renovated into Arechiga Hall, named for the third LCC president, Domingo Arechiga. [7]

Aerial view

Fort McIntosh U.S. Military Reservation 1892.JPG
The full length of the Fort McIntosh U.S. Military Reservation in 1892.

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Clark, Texas</span> United States historic place

Fort Clark was a frontier fort located just off U.S. Route 90 near Brackettville, in Kinney County, Texas, United States. It later became the headquarters for the 2nd Cavalry Division. The Fort Clark Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 6, 1979. The Commanding Officer's Quarters at Fort Clark were designated a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1988. The Fort Clark Guardhouse became a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1962. The Fort Clark Officers' Row Quarters were designated a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ramón H. Dovalina</span>

Ramón Humberto Dovalina, is the retired fifth president of Laredo Community College, a two-year institution with the main campus on the grounds of historic Fort McIntosh on the Rio Grande in his native Laredo in Webb County in South Texas. With service from July 5, 1995, until August 31, 2007, Dovalina left the position with two years remaining in his contract. Under Dovalina, the physical appearance of the college was upgraded, the scholarship endowment fund increased from $100,000 in 1995 to more than $1 million in 2007, the institution advanced a 10-year master plan for new technology, and a $50 million South Campus was opened.

The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Laredo, Texas, USA.

References

  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. Texas Historical Marker # 5479001996
  3. Carter, R.G., On the Border with Mackenzie, 1935, Washington D.C.: Enyon Printing Co., p. 48
  4. Carter, p. 49
  5. Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. "," (accessed May 22, 2008).
  6. National Register of Historic Places in Webb County
  7. "Historic Fort McIntosh Campus". Laredo Community College. Retrieved August 10, 2015.

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