Wagon Wheel
by Cheryl McClure
Title
Wagon Wheel
Artist
Cheryl McClure
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
This beautiful old wagonwheel was photographed at Fort Martin Scott, a restored United States Army outpost near Fredericksburg in the Texas Hill Country, United States, that was active from 1848 until 1853. It was part of a line of frontier forts established to protect travelers and settlers within Texas.
The fort was originally established as Camp Houston on December 5, 1848, and quartered Companies D and H, First United States Infantry. It was located two miles (3 km) southeast of Fredericksburg on Baron's Creek and eventually consisted of a complex of twenty-one buildings. The soldiers patrolled the Fredericksburg-San Antonio road and surrounding area. One mission of the outpost was to protect settlers from Indian depredations.
The Eighth Military Department renamed the camp in December 1849 for Major Martin Scott, who was killed at the Battle of Molino del Rey in the Mexican War in 1847. The forces stationed at the fort began alternating between a company of infantry and one of dragoons. As the settlers pushed farther west, Fort Martin Scott lost its strategic significance. In 1853, Army inspectors recommended that the fort be closed. The Eighth Military Department ordered that Fort Martin Scott close in December 1853.
Uploaded
September 5th, 2012
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Viewed 129 Times - Last Visitor from Fairfield, CT on 04/25/2024 at 5:59 AM
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