USA > Kansas > Kansas; a cyclopedia of state history, embracing events, institutions, industries, counties, cities, towns, prominent persons, etc. with a supplementary volume devoted to selected personal history and reminiscence, Voilume I > Part 79
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Some years before this, thoughtful men foresaw what the result would be if the extravagance was allowed to go on, and in 1876 the commis- sioner of agriculture authorized an inquiry into lumbering methods. In 1882 the American Forestry Association was organized and it has been effective in arousing a sentiment in favor of forest preservation. The Montana State University established a chair of forestry-one of the first practical courses in the country-and in 1891 the first practical demonstration of forestry was given on the Biltmore estate near Ashe- ville, N. C. Ten years later (1901) the United States bureau of forestry
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was established. It consists of six departments, viz: I. Management, which has to do with the regulation of lumbering methods; 2. Exten- sion, which aids and encourages the planting of artificial groves and for- ests ; 3. Measurements, which prepares maps, etc., of the forest reserves ; 4. Products, which has to do with the examination of timber, its quali- ties, etc .; 5. Dendrology, which is devoted to the names and natural history of trees; 6. Records, which carries on the routine work of the bureau.
The first white men who settled in Kansas found the country fairly well supplied with timber, especially along the water-courses, as far west as the junction of the Republican and Smoky Hill rivers. As civilization pushed its way westward the pioneers saw that in a few years the natural timber supply would become exhausted, and to encour- age tree planting a timber culture law was passed, giving 160 acres of land to any one who would plant a certain number of trees. The law was a failure, the man who entered a claim under it caring more for the title to the land than for the timber. Consequently the species of trees selected were usually those that could be secured at the least expense, without regard to their adaptability to Kansas soil and climate. After various amendments, the law was finally repealed.
Then the bounty system was tried. In 1865 the legislature passed an act providing that any person who planted and successively culti- vated 5 or more acres of trees should be entitled to a bounty of 50 cents an acre, "to be paid out of the county treasury in which the trees were located, for a term of 25 years," beginning two years after said trees had been planted. The next legislature raised the bounty to $2 an acre, and also provided a bounty of $2 for each half-mile of trees planted along any public highway. As a further stimulus to tree culture, the legislature of 1867 enacted a law providing that timbered land should be assessed no higher than open land adjoining.
Forest extension was introduced in the Arkansas valley in 1873 by the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad company. Trees were planted at Hutchinson, Sterling. Ellinwood, Garfield, Spearville and some other points as far west as the state line. The varieties used were chiefly catalpa, Russian mulberry, white maple, elm and cottonwood. Twelve years later a report stated that most of the trees were in healthy con- dition and their growth had been rapid. At that time nearly 150,000 trees had been planted in the state, and the people were beginning to learn that the climate and rainfall could be modified by the presence of tracts of timbered land. The legislature of 1887 therefore created the office of commissioner of forestry, who was directed to establish two forestry stations in the western part of the state, where trees were to be planted and issued free of charge to any resident of the state under certain conditions.
One station was located near Dodge City, Ford county, and the other near Ogallah, Trego county. The trees planted were cottonwood, black and honey locust, box-elder, catalpa, Russian and common mul-
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berry and the osage orange. On Oct. 20, 1887, the commissioner reported that he had received over 1,000 applications for the young trees, the applications coming from 73 counties, showing that the peo- ple of the state were interested in the subject of forestry. In 1907 a forest commissioner was provided for at each station, and in 1909 a division of forestry was established in connection with the agricultural college, the regents being authorized to appoint a state forester who should have charge of all the experiments made at the station. The act provided that the state forester should "promote practical forestry in every possible way, compile and disseminate information relative to forestry, and publish the results of such work through bulletins, press notices, and in such other ways as may be most practicable to reach the public, and by lecturing before farmers' institute associations," etc. The stations.at Ogallah and Dodge City were transferred to the care of the agricultural college and experiment station.
Through the influence of the United States bureau of forestry, the government has established a "forest reserve" of 70,000 acres near Garden City, Finney county, where experiments in tree culture are carried on under the supervision of a forester appointed by the United States authorities. This forest reserve is an object lesson in many ways, and its influence is already being felt in the western part of the state.
Formoso, an incorporated town of Jewell county, is located on the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific R. R. 12 miles east of Mankato, the county seat, and 5 miles from Courtland. It has banking facilities, a weekly. newspaper (the New Era), telegraph and express offices, and an international money order postoffice with three rural routes. The population in 1910 was 475.
Forsha, a hamlet in Reno county, is located 11 miles south of Hutch- inson, the county seat, from which place its mail is distributed by rural delivery. It is 5 miles east of Castleton, on the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe R. R., which is its nearest railroad station and shipping point. Forsha has a flour mill and is a trading center for the neigh- borhood.
Forts .- As the white man pushed his way westward from the first settlements along the Atlantic coast, a chain of military posts marked the line of demarcation between civilization and savagery. The rifle and the stockade led the advance into the wilderness and paved the way for the home' and the husbandman. Sometimes these forts were erected by the great fur companies-great for that day, at least ; some- times by a detachment of soldiers as temporary quarters while on a march or a campaign; sometimes by order of the war department; probably more frequently by the pioneer settlers as a place of shelter and defense in the event of an Indian attack. Usually they were of the stockade or palisade type, constructed of stakes set upright, close together, and sharpened at the top to make the attempt to scale the walls more difficult. The form was generally that of a square or a
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rectangle, with a blockhouse at each corner, though often the block- house feature was ommitted.
Much of the history of the country centers about these military establishments. Where is the school boy who does not feel a thrill of patriotism as he reads of Washington's march through the unbroken wilds and his founding of Fort Necessity, the valiant deed of Sergeant Jasper in nailing the flag to the mast under fire at Fort Moultrie, or the gallant defense of Fort Sumter by Maj. Anderson and his little band of heroes at the beginning of the Civil war? Some of the prin- cipal cities of the country owe their origin to the establishment of a military post. Pittsburgh, Pa., had its beginning in the founding of Fort Duquesne, and the great city of Chicago, Ill., grew up around old Fort Dearborn.
As the red man retired before the advance of a superior race, the necessity for the stockade and the blockhouse no longer existed, and the frontier forts gradually fell into decay. A few have been main- tained by the government as permanent institutions, not so much as a means of defense against hostile aborigines as for quarters of detach- ments of the regular army and schools for the soldier. These per- manent army posts are usually elaborate affairs, equipped with approved modern appurtenances for the comfort and convenience of the gar- rison. Two of them-Fort Leavenworth and Fort Riley- are located in the State of Kansas. Following is a brief sketch of each of the principal military posts in the state, and each of which in its day played its part toward making Kansas a great commonwealth. (See also Camps.)
Fort Atkinson, one of the early military posts erected along the line of the Santa Fe trail, was located on the Arkansas river, about 26 miles below "The Crossing." The place known as "The Crossing" was not far from the present town of Cimarron, the county seat of Gray county, hence the location of Fort Atkinson was in what is now Ford county, some 6 or 8 miles up the river from Dodge City. On Aug. 8, 1850, Col. E. V. Sumner established "Camp Mackay" on the site, after a "treaty talk" had been held there with the Indians. Col. Sumner notified the war department on Sept. 10, 1850, that the spot was a suit- able location for a permanent post. It was approved by General Order No. 44, dated Dec. 16, 1850, and Maj. Hoffman, with Company D, Sixth United States infantry, was ordered to begin the erection of the fort "as soon as the weather will permit." The fort was built of sod, covered with poles, brush, sod and canvas, and when completed was garrisoned by a detachment of the Sixth infantry commanded by Capt. Buckner. The post continued to be known as Camp Mackay until June 25, 1851, when the name was changed to Fort Atkinson. The soldiers quartered there gave it the name of "Fort Sod," and later "Fort Sodom," the latter no doubt having been inspired by the unsanitary conditions of the place and the fact that it was infested with vermin. While it was occupied by Capt. Buckner and his men, the fort was besieged by
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a large body of Comanches and Kiowas, who surrounded the fort and endeavored to cut off supplies. The garrison was relieved by the timely arrival of Maj. Chilton with a detachment of the First dragoons. Fort Atkinson was occupied by garrison until Sept. 22, 1853, when it was abandoned. It was temporarily reoccupied in June, 1854, by Com- panies F and H of the Sixth infantry, but on Oct. 2, 1854, the post was abandoned and the buildings destroyed to prevent their occupancy by the Indians. On Aug. 4, 1855, a postoffice was established at Fort Atkinson, with Pitcairn Morrison as postmaster, but it was discontinued on June 5, 1857.
Fort Aubrey .- About the close of the Civil war a number of volun- teer regiments were ordered to the western frontier to quell Indian uprisings, and these men erected several temporary fortifications at various points along the border of civilization. One of these was Fort Aubrey, which was located on section 23, township 24, range 40 west, on Spring creek, about two and a half miles from its mouth, not far from the present village of Mayline in Hamilton county. It was built by Companies D and F, Forty-eighth Wisconsin infantry, under the command of Capt. Adolph Whitman. The exact date of its establish- ment is not certain, but it was late in August or early in Sept., 1865. It was abandoned on April 15, 1866.
Fort Bain, a famous rendezvous for John Brown and Capt. James Montgomery during the years 1857-58, was a log cabin built by a set- tler named Bain, and was located in the northern part of Bourbon county, on the north side of the Osage river, about 7 or 8 miles from the Missouri line. Redpath, in his life of John Brown, says 50 men in Fort Bain could have resisted a force of 500. According to the same authority, it was here that John Brown planned his invasion of Mis- souri in Dec., 1858. After the troubles of the territorial days were set- tled by the admission of Kansas, Fort Bain continued to be occupied as a peaceful residence for some years, when it gave way to a better structure.
Fort Baxter, a military post at Baxter Springs, was established by Gen. James G. Blunt in May, 1863. Connelley says it "consisted of some log cabins with a total frontage of about 100 feet, facing east toward Spring river. . Back of the fort, and of the same width, was a large space enclosed by embankments of earth thrown up against logs and about 4 feet high." The west wall of this embankment was torn out on Oct. 5, 1863, for the purpose of extending the north and south walls some 200 yards farther west, and the fort was in this con- dition when it was attacked by Quantrill's forces the next day. (See Baxter Springs.)
Fort Blair, one of three lunettes or blockhouses erected at Fort Scott in the spring of 1861, stood at the corner of Second street and National avenue. It was built under the same conditions as Fort Henning (q. v.) and was equipped with two 24-pounder siege guns. The govern- ment failed to furnish fixed ammunition for these guns, and Peter (I-42)
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Riley, of the Sixth Kansas, then a clerk in the ordnance department at Fort Scott, made sacks of flannel and filled them with powder to be used in charging the guns. At the time of Price's raid these two pieces of artillery stood at the point of the mound north of the plaza, where they could be seen by the enemy, and no doubt served to deter the Confederate general from attacking Fort Scott.
Fort Carondelet .- About the year 1787, Pierre Chouteau established a trading post on the high ground afterward known as Halley's bluff, on the Osage river, in what is now Vernon county, Mo. Later the post became known as Fort Carondelet, so named for Baron de Caron- delet, the Spanish governor of Louisiana. Early settlers in that local- ity found the remains of a stone wall, which is belived to have been the ruins of the old fort. From old documents at St. Louis, it has been learned that the armament of the fort consisted of four small cannon, but no accurate description of the fort itself has been found. It was probably the customary log trading-house, a blockhouse, a cabin or two, surrounded by palisades, and garrisoned by a dozen or more of the employees of the trading company, of which Chouteau was the representative. At the time it was established it was the farthest west of any of the trading posts founded by white men in what is now the State of Missouri, and it is quite likely that some of the Indians of southeastern Kansas traded there at that early day.
Fort Clark .- This post was located on the bluff overlooking the Missouri river, about 40 miles below the mouth of the Kansas, and not far from the present town of Sibley. Lewis and Clark's Journal (Coues' edition) for June 23, 1804, mentions the fact that the expedi- tion was compelled to lie to at a small island during the day, owing to a high wind, and contains this entry: "Directly opposite, on the south, is a high commanding position, more than 70 feet above high- water mark, and overlooking the river, which is here but of little width. This spot has many advantages for a fort and trading house with the Indians."
Gen. William Clark again passed the place in 1808 with a troop of cavalry on his way to make a treaty with the Osage Indians, and on his return selected it as a site for a fort. The bluff became known as "Fort Point," and in Sept., 1808, the government erected there a fort and named it Fort Clark. Biddle says a factory was also erected by the government, but does not tell what was manufactured there. The fort was occupied by a garrison until 1813, after which the Osage In- dian agency was maintained there for several years, and the post became known as Fort Osage. Later it took the name of Fort Sibley, for Maj. Sibley, who was the agent of the Osages from 1818 to 1825. The place was permanently abandoned when Fort Leavenworth was founded in 1827.
Fort Cobb, at the junction of Pond creek and the Washita river, in the Indian Territory, was established on Oct. 1, 1859, and was one of the early frontier posts erected and garrisoned for the purpose of
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maintaining order among the Indian tribes. Gen. Custer's command, in which was the Nineteenth Kansas, was encamped at Fort Cobb from Dec. 18, 1868, to Jan. 6, 1869. On March 12, 1869, the fort was abandoned.
Fort Dodge .- In its day, this fort was one of the most important military establishments on the western frontier. It was located on the north bank of the Arkansas river, a short distance southeast of the present Dodge City, on the site of the "Caches" (q. v.), which had been a favorite camping ground for freighters and hunters from the time of the opening of the Santa Fe trail. Some authorities state that a fort was located here in 1835 by Col. Henry I. Dodge, after whom the fort was named. Col. Dodge did erect some sort of a fort in this im- mediate locality, but the reports of the United States war department say that the Fort Dodge of later days was established by Gen. Gren- ville M. Dodge in 1864, and that the site was selected by Col. Ford, of the Second Colorado cavalry. The first buildings were of adobe, but in 1867 several new structures were erected at a considerable outlay of money. The sanitary arrangements at Fort Dodge were of the best character, and the fort usually boasted one of the finest gar- risons in the country. At one time Gen. George A. Custer was the commanding officer of the post. When the fort was abandoned in 1882, the government left the property in charge of a custodian, who allowed the inclosure to be used as a cattle corral, and the buildings fell into decay.
The reservation-originally about 30,000 acres-was purchased from the Osage Indians. By an act of Congress, approved Dec. 15, 1880, all that portion of the reservation lying north of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe railroad was ordered to be surveyed, as other public lands, and sold to actual settlers, not more than 160 acres to any one pur- chaser. The Kansas legislature in' 1886 adopted a resolution asking the Kansas delegation in Congress "to secure, at as early a day as possible, the survey and sale as public lands the military reservation in Ford county, Kan., known as Fort Dodge." Three years later, in 1889, the legislature adopted another resolution requesting Congress to donate the remainder of the reservation to the state, to be used as a site for a soldiers' home. On March 2, 1889, President Cleveland approved an act of Congress authorizing the secretary of the interior to sell and convey to the State of Kansas lots numbered 3. 5, 6 and 7, of section 3. township 27 south, range 24 west, on condition that the state pay for the same within twelve months from the passage of the act at the rate of $1.25 an acre, and establish a soldiers' home thereon within three years. The Kansas Historical Collections (vol. ix, p. 567) says that the entire reservation was opened to settlement except about 127 acres, which was bought by the citizens of Dodge City, under the provisions of the above act, and presented to the state for a soldiers' home (q. v.).
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Fort Dodge, a town of Ford county, is located on the Arkansas river about 4 miles below Dodge City, the county seat and most convenient railroad station. It has a money order postoffice, telephone connec- tions, and some general stores, and is a trading center for the neighi- borhood. The state soldiers' home is located here.
Fort Downer .- The Western Kansas World, published at Wakeeney, says: "About 1863 Fort Downer, named from a captain in the United States army, was established, giving the name to the stream (Downer's creek). Here in 1866 occurred the Fort Downer massacre, in which all but one man were killed. Here Custer was encamped, and from this point and Fort Hays made several raids upon the wary red-skins."
The fort was located on the Smoky Hill route, 50 miles west of Fort Hays and 182 miles from Fort Riley. It was an eating station on the Butterfield Overland Despatch line until the buildings were burned in 1867, and on May 28, 1868, the fort was abandoned.
Fort Ellsworth .- (See Fort Harker.)
Fort Fletcher .- (See Fort Hays.)
Fort Hamilton .- Tomlinson, in his "Kansas in 1858," mentions this fort as the "stronghold of the robber Hamilton." Early in the year 1858 Charles A. Hamilton (correct spelling Hamelton), the leader of the pro-slavery mob that perpetrated the Marais des Cygnes massacre, built a substantial log cabin not far from the elevation known as Sugar Mound in Linn county. Later in the year it was taken by free-state men and in May was occupied by Capt. Weaver's company. of some 30 men, who named it "Fort Hamilton."
Fort Harker .- The original site of this post was on the north bank of the Smoky Hill river, at the crossing of the old Santa Fe stage road, about 4 miles southeast of the present town of Ellsworth, where it was established in Aug., 1864, under the name of Fort Ellsworth. It is said to have been commenced by a detachment of Iowa volunteer troops, who erected the first buildings and garrisoned the place until the fall of 1865, when they were relieved by a portion of the Thirteenth United States infantry. On Nov. 11, 1866, the name was changed to Fort Harker, and in Jan., 1867, a new site was selected, about a mile northeast of the old fort. For a long time Fort Harker was the ship- ping point of freight bound for New Mexico. The report of Surgeon B. E. Fryer, of the United States army, in May, 1870, gives a good description of the construction and sanitary condition of the fort at that time, as well as a mention of the cholera visitation of 1867. (See Cholera.) The report says: "Fort Harker is used as a base by troops not belonging to it for operations in the field, and many sick from commands in the vicinity have been sent here at various times for treat- ment or discharge. The sick-list is often enlarged in this way. There are two out of five men in hospital at the present time who belong to commands which have never been at the post nor attached to it."
Fort Harker was abandoned as a military establishment in April, 1872. On Feb. 11, 1876, the Kansas house of representatives adopted
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a resolution asking Congress to donate the reservation of 10,240 acres (16 square miles) to the state, to be used for educational purposes. The request was not granted, and the reservation was finally opened to settlement by the act of June 15, 1880.
Fort Hays .- This post was established on Oct. II, 1865, and was first named Fort Fletcher, in honor of ex-Gov. Fletcher of Missouri. It was located on Big creek, about 14 miles southeast of the present Hays City, and continued to be known as Fort Fletcher until Nov. 17, 1866, when the name was changed to Fort Hays, for Gen. Isaac G. Hays, who was killed at the battle of the Wilderness. In the summer of 1867 the post was flooded by an overflow of Big creek, and Gen. Gibbs, then a major in the Seventh United States cavalry, selected a new site by order of Gen. Hancock. The new location was about three- fourths of a mile from Hays City, where a reservation of 7.500 acres in the form of an irregular triangle was laid out and substantial build- ings were erected. Gen. Sheridan's headquarters were at Fort Hays at the time of the Black Kettle raid in 1868. By the act of March I, 1876, the Kansas legislature ceded to the United States jurisdiction over the reservation, which continued to be used as a military post until June 1, 1889. Early in that year it became known that the fort was to be abandoned, and the Kansas legislature adopted a resolution ask- ing Congress to donate the site to the state for a soldiers' home. No action was taken by Congress on the resolution, and in 1895 the legis- lature again asked that the reservation be donated to the state as a location for a branch of the state agricultural college, a branch of the state normal school, and a public park. Again no action was taken, and in 1899 a subordinate of the interior department declared the land opened for settlement, but in March, 1900, the Kansas delegation in Congress managed to secure the land and buildings for educational purposes. A branch of the state normal school is now established there, and the agricultural college maintains an experiment station on the reservation.
Fort Henning .- Shortly after President Lincoln's second call for volunteers in the spring of 1861, three blockhouses were erected at Fort Scott for the purpose of guarding quartermaster's, hospital and ordnance stores. Fort Henning, one of these blockhouses, stood at the corner of Scott avenue and First street, on the site afterward occupied by the postoffice building. It was built under the supervision of Capt. Wil- liam Holcke, an engineer of the United States army, who also superin- tended the erection of the other two blockhouses. Some years after the war Fort Henning was purchased by Dr. W. S. McDonald and removed to the lot immediately south of his residence, in order that it might be preserved as a historic relic of the war. On Dec. 3, 1904, a flag was raised over old Fort Henning in its new location with appropriate ceremonies. While the fort was used for military pur- poses it was garrisoned by troops belonging to the Sixth Kansas, under command of Lieut. C. H. Haynes. (See also Forts Blair and Insley.)
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