Nearby History: Fascinating Fort Canby Part 2 | History The column returned to Bascom on December 20, ending the campaign. This created innumerable problems for the troops and, especially, the commanding officers in the department. Colonel Canby approved the proposal and directed Major Chapman to detail a company of volunteers to begin working on the road as soon as possible. . Paymaster Simon Rufus Marston, a native of New Hampshire, was "shocked" when he arrived at Fort Union on the evening of Sunday, January 1, 1865, "to find a Baile in full blast." It had a total of 30 officers and men. [11]. Because the design had eight points, it was later called and is still often referred to as the "star fort." They were successful early in the morning of March 26 and brought all four Confederate scouts to Chivington's camp. [83], Canby directed that all public property at the original Fort Union be moved as quickly as possible to the fieldwork. The roof was to be made of the materials comprising the roof of the old house. Carson refitted at Fort Canby, the rebuilt Fort Defiance, during October, sending out infantry patrols to harass the Indians continuously. He informed Governor John Evans, Colorado Territory, "I do not believe any considerable force from that state [Texas] will attempt to invade this country again, at least for the present." Little was done to meet the needs of the Union troops in New Mexico until Confederate troops invaded the territory, and even then the efforts were negligible. Shoemaker was charged with outfitting Carson's expedition against the Navajos. Unless the Confederacy should win the war in the East, Carleton considered the chances of another attempt to expand westward to be remote. Rather than trying a direct assault on the fort, Sibley continued north towards Colorado; Canby dispatched his militia regiments ahead of Sibley to contest his advance, while remaining at the fort in order to intercept any reinforcements and supplies bound for Sibley. As you may find some interest in ascertaining how the "Navajo Expedition," under command of Col. By March 1863 Carleton was satisfied that the Mescalero Apaches were sufficiently subjugated to proceed with the establishment of a reservation for them at Bosque Redondo near Fort Sumner. The only "excuse for such hilarity," Marston discovered, was that it was "New Years day." He had been educated at St. Louis University and had studied medicine at the New York College of Physicians and Surgeons. [195] He had some of his troops at Albuquerque to deal with Canby if he moved out of Fort Craig. "They saw no Texans, nor trails of them or any body of men and everything was quiet on their route." Although there had been much debate just prior to the Civil War about relocating the quartermaster and commissary depot and subdepot in the department and the garrison and ordnance supply depot at Fort Union, Colonel Canby concluded soon after taking command of the department that Fort Union was the best position from which to supply the other posts in the department. Nothing turned them back. The post, which had recently been "the only fort in New Mexico held by United States troops," had given false security to the people of the territory. [18], Each community of sufficient population in the territory was encouraged to raise a company for the volunteer service. Despite or because of the controversy over the location and condition of Fort Union, Colonel Canby requested that the defects in the fieldwork be corrected, that a redoubt be placed on the mesa above the old fort to prevent enemy artillery from being planted there, and that adequate quarters and storehouses be erected beyond the fieldwork ("beyond the range of any but rifled cannon"). The July 5, 1862, issue of the Republican carried an acerbic article titled "Fort Building in New Mexico.". Their destination was unknown, but the enlarged invasion had apparently begun. The Indians, he declared, "know this" and will make a peace that will last only until spring, predicting they "will be sure to commence their depredations upon the trains the moment the winter has gone by." The erection of the final Fort Union, along with the military operations of the troops stationed there after the Civil War, constitute the subjects next considered. He asked Colonel Canby for clarification of who was superior. [290] This added to the duties of the troops at Fort Union, who were primarily responsible for guarding the western portion of the supply line from the East. He was not providing much leadership for his brigade, leaving that to other officers. With renewed confidence, he recalled, . The shells could be lobbed over the walls into the fort. It was not a satisfactory arrangement. This force was to make certain that the mails and supply trains were not interrupted by Indian or Texan raiders. Canby directed Shoemaker to leave any perishable stores in the old storehouses until secure facilities were completed at the fieldwork. [166] Among the dead was Union Captain Alexander McRae, Third Cavalry, a native of North Carolina who had served at Fort Union before the war. Craig, Fort, New Mexico on the Rio Grande, 3 miles south of San Marcial. He was promoted to colonel of the 19th U.S. Infantry on May 14, 1861, and the following month commanded the Department of New Mexico. Because of his own recent narrow escape, McMullen quickly complied with orders to provide an escort of one corporal and six privates for Major Wallen and his family from Fort Union to Denver. Upon assuming command of the department, Canby was especially concerned about the "disabled condition of the mounted companies from the want of horses, and of the Quartermaster's Department from the want of draught animals." One side of the angle is composed of 3 rooms, two of which are 16 feet by 18 feet and one 12 feet by 16 feet, the other side is composed of five rooms, two of which are 14 feet by 16 feet, one 12 by 16 feet, one 16 by 16 feet, and one 8 by 16 feet. He was sorry to have lost, and reiterated, "had it not been for the devils from Pike's Peak, this country would have been ours." [128] The new route between Forts Union and Wise was later found to be 165.5 miles long, considerably shorter than the approximately 238 miles via the Mountain Route over Raton Pass. Some Confederate leaders mistakenly assumed that the New Mexicans could easily be dissuaded from their attachment to the Union. [26] These rules were founded on the premise that the volunteers might trade items of issue for food, whiskey, or prostitutes, and that they might desert if permitted to absent themselves from the post without close supervision. Some doors, shutters, and other lumber was used for coffins, bunks, and benches for the sick and wounded. [147]. We were among those taken prisoners. Confederate general Henry H. Sibley raised a brigade of Texas cavalry over the summer of 1861 and brought it to New Mexico in late January and early February 1862. As soon as the men could be spared from duty at Fort Union, Chapman was ordered to send two companies of New Mexico Volunteers to Hatch's Ranch. Very few people, in the East or in New Mexico, understood that New Mexico Territory might be a key factor in the ultimate success or failure of the Confederate States of America. Although the Confederates were able to push Slough back several miles, a smaller Union detachment was able to slip behind the Confederates and destroy their wagon train, which contained most of their supplies. Carleton directed that Davis camp near the Upper Crossing and have "carte blanche" for this assignment. Most of the officers going south themselves." For the troops at Fort Union and in the rest of the department, the primary concern, until Confederate troops invaded southern New Mexico in the summer of 1861, remained the protection of transportation routes and settlements from Indian raids. [208] Confederate Private H. C. Wright recalled many years later, "it was a great shock to us to find that after we had won the battle we had lost the victory by our supplies having been destroyed." Potter stationed a guard at the spring to see that the water flowed past the camp and protested to Major Chapman. Engineer George H. Elliot was charged with building the three batteries which were known as "Lighthouse Battery", "Left Battery" and "Center Battery". [64] These supplies would help outfit a portion the volunteers raised in the territory. Because the army would have to feed the families of the Ute warriors while they were employed, Chapman authorized the purchase of additional beef and flour to do so. He did not want the enmity between the two officers at Fort Union to disrupt the operation of either facility. With feigned praise for the "model" fortification at Fort Union, "truly a beautiful structure" where "the ditch is on the right side," all "the angles are skillfully placed, and the interior arrangement is more than could be desired," the article scathingly declared that "Ungenerous Captain" Plympton's artillery demonstration had revealed "humiliating facts." Both forces were probably surprised to meet each other in Apache Canyon about mid-afternoon. McFerran was directed to furnish the detail "with the necessary tools and transportation." [10] Loring then left department headquarters at Santa Fe and moved south to Fort Fillmore to await the decision of President Abraham Lincoln on his application for resignation. The troops sent to Hatch's Ranch were to protect that area from Indians as well as any Texas invaders and keep scouting parties out along the Canadian and Pecos valleys to watch for any movements. First named Fort Cape Disappointment and renamed Fort Canby 13 Feb 1875 by War Department General Order No. Furthermore, "foreigners and stammerers must not be received, unless they can understand and speak rapidly." [82] Upon receipt of Chapman's report on the new facility, Colonel Canby immediately sent words of thanks and praise for all who labored on the fieldwork. There his troops captured and destroyed a piece of artillery that Scurry had left behind and burned the supply train of approximately 70 wagons containing food, ammunition, clothing, baggage, forage, medical supplies, and other items. [155] Canby was especially concerned about protection of the Santa Fe Trail, the life line without which Union forces could not hope to win in New Mexico. The rough terrain and trees helped to render the artillery ineffective. [14] Shoemaker was directed to ship arms and ammunition to Albuquerque and Forts Craig and Stanton, where some of the volunteers were to be mustered into service and outfitted. One Union soldier, Private Simon Ritter, Company A, First Colorado Volunteers, was injured when the Confederate ammunition exploded. He was succeeded by Lieutenant Colonel Abreu, who took command of Fort Union and was also promoted to the rank of colonel. Colonel Scurry reported 36 killed and 60 wounded in his command and stated that Union killed must have exceeded 100. [151]. Clearly, this was not the garrison of an efficient fighting force. Some of the Comancheros reported that they had seen the Texans headed toward New Mexican settlements. One of the Texan volunteers, Private George M. Brown, who was among the prisoners taken at Apache Canyon, later explained the impact this reversal had on the rebels. Canby was confirmed as department commander with the departure of Loring. [185] Keeping the volunteers sober was not the only problem for the post commander. On September 20 Davis's command, "escorting a large number of citizen & government wagons" joined Updegraff's camp at Lower Spring. Confirmation of the Texas invasion of New Mexico came to Fort Union on August 4, 1861, when word arrived of the surrender of the garrison of Fort Fillmore by Major Isaac Lynde, Seventh Infantry, to the rebel forces commanded by Lieutenant Colonel John R. Baylor, Second Texas Mounted Rifles, CSA. According to war department regulations, "all officers and men must be sound and active, free from all malformation, defects of sight, hearing, ulcers, piles, rupture, fracture, dislocation, and disease of any kind." By July constant rumors reached Fort Union that Texan forces were on the way to capture the territory and the post. "Under such circumstances," he concluded, "failure was inevitable." [218] Major Chivington was promoted to the rank of colonel to replace Slough. Carleton believed that, "eventually, we shall have the whole tribe at Bosque Redondo, and there we can conclude a definite treaty with them." The store houses being like the quarters, mere shells afford but little protection to their contents, and are damp and without floors. Two other forts, Fort Stevens on the Oregon side and Fort Columbia on the Washington side of the Columbia River completed the Harbor Defense System. While the Union force was defeated, they were able to withdraw back into Fort Craig and refused Sibley's demand of surrender. [4] That may have been speculation on the part of Greeley. This was necessary because of the transfer of several companies from various posts to join a campaign against the Apaches in Arizona Territory. Gen. Henry H. Sibley led his force of 2,500 men across the Rio Grande River and up the east side of the river to the ford at Valverde, north of Fort Craig, New Mexico, hoping to cut Federal communications between the fort and military headquarters in Santa Fe. They enlisted for a specified period of time and could not resign. [12], On July 27, 1865 the Military Division of the Pacific was created under Major General Henry W. Halleck, replacing the Department of the Pacific, consisting of the Department of the Columbia that now consisted of the state of Oregon and the territories of Washington and Idaho and the expanded Department of California that now consisted of the States of California and Nevada under the District of Nevada, the Territory of New Mexico under the District of New Mexico and Territory of Arizona under the District of Arizona. He ordered McMullen to get things shaped up and stand another inspection. Additional troops were sent to Fort Union to provide better protection of the Santa Fe Trail, where Brigadier General Carleton understood "that the Indians of the plains are very troublesome and menace the safety of the trains coming to New Mexico." Kozlowski later submitted a claim for compensation, asking for $300 for the loss of fences and $150 for the other materials used. Then, after the Confederate advance had been countered successfully, Captain McFerran was directed "to suspend the work of building at Fort Union until further orders." The Colorado Volunteers, sometimes called the "Pike's Peakers," were ready to fight and confident of victory. On August 1 two herders were killed and an estimated 6,000 sheep were driven off near Anton Chico. Indians had killed five Americans with a wagon train near Lower Spring on the Cimarron Route in southwest Kansas and took five wagons belonging to a Mr. Allison (first name unknown). Running extremely low on supplies and deciding that capturing any further Confederates would further strain his supplies, Canby went into encampment around Fort Craig and awaited supplies. Many of the New Mexican volunteers did seem to be inadequate as soldiers because of the language barrier, lack of military experience, and, for some, an inordinate fear of Texans. [6] Intending to invade Colorado to seize the gold and silver mines located there, Sibley arrived outside Fort Craig on February 15. Many New Mexicans performed admirably in the service of the U.S., but most Anglo officers did not give them proper credit because of their preconceptions about "Mexicans" and volunteers. The camps of instruction and depots at Fort Union and Albuquerque remained under direct control of the department commander. Because of the shortage of regular army troops in New Mexico, another regiment of New Mexico Volunteers was enlisted to help deal with the Indian problems in the territory. When needed, Carleton wanted the troops at Fort Union to be ready to take the field to deal with Indians. Confederate Private Brown later informed his "dear wife," "our whole train of seventy wagons was burned by the enemy. Throughout New Mexico, recruitment of more volunteers continued. In the three-hour battle at Apache Canyon, the Confederates retreated from the field. According to the Indian, the Texans "encampment and stock covered near three miles of ground," and "they had Artillery with them." Captain Carey, depot commissary officer at Fort Union, was assigned to serve as the expedition quartermaster. Canby forwarded the information to the commanders at Hatch's Ranch and Fort Union, stating he did not consider it "reliable." The quartermaster department was directed to provide the necessary materials. Carleton directed his old friend, Captain Shoemaker at the ordnance depot at Fort Union, to outfit Carson's command with arms, ammunition, and equipment needed for a campaign. Work on the other structures could proceed at a more leisurely pace, without working 24 hours per day. He observed that even the officers "going south," with the exception of Longstreet, "urge their soldiers to remain true." He was directed by Carleton to use any of the materials gathered for the building of the new depot that might be needed to strengthen the defense of the post. Canby had a garrison of 3,810 soldiers, a mix of regular US army troops, New Mexico militia volunteers, and Dodd's company of Colorado troops. Shortly after armed conflict began, General-in-Chief Winfield Scott directed that all companies of the Fifth, Seventh, and Tenth U. S. Infantry stationed in New Mexico Territory and at other western forts be sent as soon as possible to Fort Leavenworth for reassignment. First named Fort Cape Disappointment and renamed Fort Canby 13 Feb 1875 by War Department General Order No. All that remained to make the fieldwork secure for the time being, according to Paul, was to dig "a ditch around the quarters" and throw "so much of the dirt against the outer sides as will make them cannon proof." The quarters are very objectionable, being built of unseasoned materials which are shrinking under the effects of the heat, and they are low and badly ventilated. To add teeth to his instructions, Canby issued an order to deal with the problem: The unauthorized introduction, sale, or disposal in any manner whatever of spirituous or intoxicating liquors, within or about the military reservation at Fort Union is forbidden. To help, he ordered all the supplies, clothing, and camp equipage in the department to be sent immediately to Fort Union. Major Henry R. Selden, Thirteenth Infantry, was selected to serve as colonel of the new regiment of infantry. Despite the miscalculations made by both sides, the Confederate invaders of New Mexico, although initially successful, were eventually repulsed on the Santa Fe Trail not far from Santa Fe, and the ultimate fate of the Confederate States of America was sealed before the conflict was a year old. [213] If they had captured the Union supply wagons and ammunition, which the quick action of Captain Enos prevented, Scurry might have had a second chance. [164]. [28], While volunteer troops were being raised to protect New Mexico Territory from Indians and Confederates, the need for such protection was made clear by the theft of the army's beef cattle herd being pastured near Galisteo on June 4, 1861. Because this was the most comprehensive narration found, even though it overrated the defensibility of the post and made it seem quite formidable, it follows as originally printed: New Fort Union, situated one mile due east of the old fort, is considering its position and the material at hand, one of the best pieces of engineering ever done in America. A detachment from Fort Union was sent to accompany a supply train of commissary stores, traveling on the Mountain Route, into the post. . Carleton sent four companies of the First New Mexico Volunteers, under Lieutenant Colonel Chavez, to establish Fort Wingate in Navajo country. The troops at Hatch's Ranch were directed, if "threatened by a superior force" to retreat to Fort Union rather than fight. If the Texans chose to bypass the settlements and strike directly at Fort Union, the troops at Union would have to push them back. . By August 15 these parties had seen "no body of Texans, Indians nor their trails." This would help ensure the safe arrival of supplies for the department.' . Until the trenches and earth walls were completed, little else was done at the post. Major Chapman ordered that a detail from the volunteers stationed at Hatch's Ranch be sent to arrest Giddings and return him to Fort Union. Indians were probably far from the minds of the troops at Fort Union when they celebrated the opening of 1865 with a gala event designed to escape from the conditions and isolation of their situation. Fort Canby State Park (Ilwaco) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go [66] Fortunately for the Union troops in the department, the supply trains from Fort Leavenworth kept coming. Kit Carson, First Cavalry, N.M. The primary reason New Mexicans joined the army was for the pay ($13.00 per month) and a bounty of $100 for those who signed up for three years.
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