Fort Quitman

Last updated
Fort Quitman
Ghost Town
Relief map of Texas.png
Red pog.svg
Fort Quitman
Location within Texas
Usa edcp relief location map.png
Red pog.svg
Fort Quitman
Fort Quitman (the United States)
Coordinates: 31°03′45″N105°35′02″W / 31.06250°N 105.58389°W / 31.06250; -105.58389
Country United States
State Texas
County Hudspeth
U.S. Army FortSeptember 28, 1858
Elevation
3,458 ft (1,054 m)
Time zone UTC-7 (Mountain (MST))
  Summer (DST) UTC-6 (MDT)
GNIS feature ID 1379791

Fort Quitman was a United States Army installation on the Rio Grande in Texas, United States, south of present-day Sierra Blanca, 20 miles southeast of McNary in southern Hudspeth County. [1] The fort, now a ghost town, was named for former Mississippi Governor John A. Quitman, who served as a major general under Zachary Taylor during the Mexican–American War.

Contents

In 1963, Recorded Historic Texas Landmark number 2007 was placed at the county courthouse, honoring Fort Quitman. [2]

Establishment

Fort Quitman was established on September 28, 1858, by units of the 8th Infantry Regiment. The first troops were under the command of Captain Arthur T. Lee and included 86 officers and men. Their mission was to protect the San Antonio–El Paso Road. It was a station on the route of the mail coaches of the San Antonio–San Diego Mail Line and later the Butterfield Overland Mail. [1]

By 1860 the garrison had been reduced to one officer Second Lieutenant Zenas Bliss (who would retire from the Army in 1897 as a brigadier general) and 20 men. On the outbreak of the American Civil War, Texas joined the Confederacy. Lieutenant Bliss and his men were ordered to march to San Antonio with other troops evacuating West Texas garrisons. They believed they would be put on ships and sent to the North, but instead were captured and held as prisoners of war. Bliss was later exchanged and rose to the rank of colonel of volunteers. His promotion to general grade was probably hindered by his having been a prisoner of war. Confederate Texas troops under Brigadier General Henry Hopkins Sibley passed through the post on their way to the New Mexico Campaign in December 1861. The remnants of his army also passed by the post after their defeat. There is no evidence that Confederate troops ever permanently garrisoned the fort. The fort was inspected by troops from the California Column looking for any evidence of further Confederate activity or stragglers in 1863, but did not see any need to garrison the post. [1]

The Fort was regarrisoned in January 1868 by Buffalo Soldiers of the 9th Cavalry Regiment and 42 Infantry under command of Major Albert Payson Morrow of the 9th Cavalry. Much of the post was in bad condition and was never fully restored. Soldiers would complain about adobe from the walls falling into their bunks as they slept due to the poor condition of the buildings. It has been stated, "No worse site for a military post could ever be conceived." It was all but totally isolated from civilization with mountain ranges running down both sides of the river. Any attempts at cultivating gardens to help with food supplies met with little success. [1]

Expeditions against the Apache in the Sacramento Mountains were mounted from Fort Quitman, but they met with little success. Gradually the garrison was reduced to a single company of infantry. The last unit, Company B of the 25th Infantry Regiment, left in January 1877. The post itself was burned later that year by an angry mob from San Elizario during the San Elizario Salt War. The rioters destroyed it in protest of federal support of a rival faction. It was temporarily reoccupied as a sub-post of Fort Davis by troops from the 10th Cavalry Regiment from 1880 to 1882 during Victorio's War. The building of the Southern Pacific Railroad through the pass in the mountains north-west of the post, effectively by-passing it, eliminated the need for this post. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hudspeth County, Texas</span> County in Texas, United States

Hudspeth County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,202. Its county seat is Sierra Blanca, and the largest community is Fort Hancock. The county is named for Claude Benton Hudspeth, a state senator and United States Representative from El Paso. It is northeast of the Mexico–U.S. border.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Bliss</span> US Army post in New Mexico and Texas, US

Fort Bliss is a United States Army post in New Mexico and Texas, with its headquarters in El Paso, Texas. Named in honor of LTC William Bliss (1815–1853), a mathematics professor who was the son-in-law of President Zachary Taylor, Ft. Bliss has an area of about 1,700 square miles (4,400 km2); it is the largest installation in FORSCOM and second-largest in the Army overall. The portion of the post located in El Paso County, Texas, is a census-designated place with a population of 8,591 as of the time of the 2010 census. Fort Bliss provides the largest contiguous tract of restricted airspace in the Continental United States, used for missile and artillery training and testing, and at 992,000 acres boasts the largest maneuver area. The garrison's land area is accounted at 1.12 million acres, ranging to the boundaries of the Lincoln National Forest and White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. Fort Bliss also includes the Castner Range National Monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Stockton, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Fort Stockton is a city in and the county seat of Pecos County, Texas, United States. It is located on Interstate 10, future Interstate 14, U.S. Highways 67, 285, and 385, and the Santa Fe Railroad, 329 mi (529 km) northwest of San Antonio and 240 mi (390 km) southeast of El Paso. Its population was 8,466 at the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Mexico campaign</span> Military operation of the trans-Mississippi theater of the American Civil War

The New Mexico campaign was a military operation of the trans-Mississippi theater of the American Civil War from February to April 1862 in which Confederate Brigadier General Henry Hopkins Sibley invaded the northern New Mexico Territory in an attempt to gain control of the Southwest, including the gold fields of Colorado and the ports of California. Historians regard this campaign as the most ambitious Confederate attempt to establish control of the American West and to open an additional theater in the war. It was an important campaign in the war's Trans-Mississippi Theater, and one of the major events in the history of the New Mexico Territory in the American Civil War.

The Battle of Devil's Backbone, also known as the Action at Devil's Backbone, was a military engagement in the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War. Devil's Backbone is a ridge in the Ouachita Mountains approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) southwest of Greenwood, Arkansas. The battle was fought on September 1, 1863, in Sebastian County, Arkansas. The Union victory ensured the safety of the Fort Smith garrison until the end of the war.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Battle of Newtonia</span> 1862 battle of the American Civil War

The First Battle of Newtonia was fought on September 30, 1862, between Confederate soldiers commanded by Colonel Douglas H. Cooper and a Union column commanded by Brigadier General Frederick Salomon near Newtonia, Missouri, during the American Civil War. Cooper's force had moved into southwestern Missouri, and encamped near the town of Newtonia. The Confederate column was composed mostly of cavalry led by Colonel Joseph O. Shelby and a brigade of Native Americans. A Union force commanded by Brigadier General James G. Blunt moved to intercept Cooper's force. Blunt's advance force, led by Salomon, reached the vicinity of Newtonia on September 29, and attacked Cooper's position on September 30. A Union probing force commanded by Colonel Edward Lynde was driven out of Newtonia by Cooper's forces on the morning of the 30th.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Davis National Historic Site</span> National Historic Site of the United States

Fort Davis National Historic Site is a United States National Historic Site located in the unincorporated community of Fort Davis, Jeff Davis County, Texas. Located within the Davis Mountains of West Texas, the historic site was established in 1961 to protect one of the best remaining examples of a United States Army fort in the southwestern United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">California in the American Civil War</span>

California's involvement in the American Civil War included sending gold east to support the war effort, recruiting volunteer combat units to replace regular U.S. Army units sent east, in the area west of the Rocky Mountains, maintaining and building numerous camps and fortifications, suppressing secessionist activity and securing the New Mexico Territory against the Confederacy. The State of California did not send its units east, but many citizens traveled east and joined the Union Army there, some of whom became famous.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pacific coast theater of the American Civil War</span> Major military operations in the American Civil War

The Pacific coast theater of the American Civil War consists of major military operations in the United States on the Pacific Ocean and in the states and Territories west of the Continental Divide. The theater was encompassed by the Department of the Pacific that included the states of California, Oregon, and Nevada, the territories of Washington, Utah, and later Idaho.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">California Column</span> Force of Union volunteers in the American Civil War

The California Column was a force of Union volunteers sent to Arizona and New Mexico during the American Civil War. The command marched over 900 miles (1,400 km) from California through Arizona and New Mexico Territory to the Rio Grande and as far east as El Paso, Texas, between April and August 1862.

The Forts of Texas include a number of historical and operational military installations. For over 200 years, various groups fought over access to or control over the region that is now Texas. Possession of the region was claimed and disputed by the European powers of Spain and France, and the continental countries of Mexico, the United States, the Republic of Texas, and the Confederate States of America. Ownership of specific lands was claimed and disputed by different ethnic groups, including numerous Native American tribes, Mexican residents, Anglo- and African-American settlers, and European immigrants. Access to and control of resources were claimed and disputed by various economic groups, including indigenous hunter/gatherers, farmers, herders, ranchers, colonists, settlers, buffalo hunters, traders, bandits, smugglers, pirates, and revolutionaries. Over the centuries, claims and disputes were enforced by Native American warriors, Spanish conquistadors, French cavaliers, Texas Rangers, local militias, and uniformed regular army regiments of Spain, Mexico, Texas, the United States, and the Confederacy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort McKavett State Historic Site</span> United States historic place

The Fort McKavett State Historic Site is a former United States Army installation located in Menard County, Texas. The fort was first established in 1852 as part of a line of forts in Texas intended to protect migrants traveling to California. The fort was deemed unnecessary and abandoned in 1859 and was occupied by settlers. From 1861 to 1863, during the American Civil War, the fort became an outpost of Confederate forces on the Texas frontier until they left for other theaters of the war. When the US Army returned to Texas in the later 1860s, the fort was reoccupied and rebuilt, and became a base for the "Buffalo Soldier", or all-African American, 24th Infantry and 9th Cavalry Regiments.

The Company A, Arizona Rangers was a cavalry formation of the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.

<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">El Paso–Las Cruces, Texas–New Mexico combined statistical area</span> Combined Statistical Area

The El Paso–Las Cruces, Texas–New Mexico, combined statistical area consists of two counties in western Texas and one in southern New Mexico. This CSA was defined as part of the United States Office of Management and Budget's 2013 delineations for metropolitan, micropolitan, and combined statistical areas.< As of the 2023 United States Census Estimate, the El Paso-Las Cruces CSA had a population of 1,098,541 making it the 56th largest combined statistical area in the United States. The statistical area consists of the metropolitan areas of El Paso, Texas and Las Cruces, New Mexico. This CSA has a GDP of about $33 billion and would rank 58th nationally among all CSA or metro areas. The total land area of the El Paso–Las Cruces combined statistical area is 9,402 sq. mi.

Birchville, or Smith Ranch, now a ghost town, was located in what is now Hudspeth County, Texas, United States. Birchville was a settlement on the San Antonio-El Paso Road in what was El Paso County. Birchville lay 35 miles northwest of the First Camp on Rio Grande and 24.8 miles southeast of San Elizario, according to the table of distances for the San Antonio-San Diego Mail Line in the Texas Almanac of 1857. Later used as a station on the Butterfield Overland Mail, the distances to the station for that line were given as 2412 miles from San Elizario, 33 miles from Fort Quitman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1st Texas Field Battery</span> Military unit

1st Texas Field Battery or Edgar's Company was an artillery battery from Texas that served in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. The artillery company formed in November 1860, but was not formally taken into Confederate service until April 1861. The unit participated in the disarming and surrender of United States soldiers and property in Texas in early 1861. The battery marched to Arkansas where in 1862 it joined the infantry division known as Walker's Greyhounds. The battery fought at Milliken's Bend and Richmond (La.), shelled a Federal river transport, and campaigned in south Louisiana in late 1863. The 1st Texas Battery was captured at Henderson's Hill in March 1864. The soldiers were later exchanged, and the unit disbanded in 1865 at the end of the conflict.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2nd Louisiana Cavalry Regiment</span> Military unit

The 2nd Louisiana Cavalry Regiment was a unit of mounted volunteers recruited in Louisiana that fought in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Breazeale's Cavalry Battalion was formed in July 1862 and was augmented by five additional companies in September 1862 to form a regiment. It served for the entire war west of the Mississippi River in the Trans-Mississippi Department. The regiment fought at Georgia Landing, Fort Bisland, Irish Bend, and Brashear City in 1863 and Henderson's Hill and Mansfield in 1864. Afterward, the regiment fought in minor skirmishes before the Trans-Mississippi's final surrender on 26 May 1865.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of McGuire's Store</span> 1862 battle of the American Civil War

The Battle of McGuire's Store was fought at McGuire, Arkansas, near Elkins, between Union forces led by Brigadier General Francis J. Herron and Confederate forces under Colonel Jesse L. Cravens during the American Civil War. The skirmish was the result of an attempt by Union Brigadier General John Schofield to trap a body of Confederate cavalry reported to be at McGuire's Store. In the event, the operation failed when Herron's column took the wrong road and approached from the west instead of the north. Herron's well-equipped troops attacked Cravens' poorly armed and demoralized Texas cavalrymen and drove them off. This minor clash and other events caused Confederate Major General Thomas C. Hindman to suspend his intended advance to recover northwestern Arkansas and withdraw to the Arkansas River. Ironically, most of Schofield's soldiers also retreated to Missouri after the fight. Though the clash was minor, it marked one pulse of the ebb and flow of the war in northwest Arkansas.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Bruce J. Dinges, "FORT QUITMAN," Handbook of Texas Online
  2. "Fort Quitman, C.S.A. - Sierra Blanca, Hudspeth County, Texas". Recorded Texas Historic Landmark. William Nienke, Sam Morrow. Archived from the original on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 19 February 2011.