Today was an "R and R"
day in Fort Stockton, TX. We decided to take a break from the long travel
drives back to CA, do laundry, relax awhile, and do a little sightseeing in
Fort Stockton.
After the
laundry was done, we drove into downtown Fort Stockton, about 4 miles west of
the RV park. We had lunch at a local Mexican restaurant (it was
excellent authentic Mexican food).
We then
visited the local tourist information center. It is located in the old
train depot near the center of town and has been recently upgraded to a very
nice facility for starting a visit and getting an introduction to the town and
surrounding area. There are various displays around the depot depicting the history
of the Fort Stockton area. A special feature of the area
is a number of life-sized black metal silhouettes, depicting people and scenes from Fort
Stockton's history. There are also two groups of silhouettes on each side of
town, one depicting a Calvary troop, the other a group of Comanche Indians.
Each one is about one mile east and west of town and also has an
adjoining sign saying Fort Stockton, also in silhouette.
Fort
Stockton has an interesting history and played an important role in the
development of the west. The area was originally the site of Comanche
Springs, a natural water source that was an oasis for Native
American tribes, notably Comanche and Apache, on their migratory travels
through the area. As European settlers arrived it also became an
important stop on the migrants trail west. Before the Civil War a fort
was established to protect the settlers from the Indians who weren't too
excited about the new neighbors. During the Civil War, Fort Stockton,
along with other forts in the area were abandoned by Union forces. The
Confederates didn't have the people and resources to maintain the forts and the
Comanche and Apaches reclaimed the area. After the war, the U.S.
reclaimed the forts to protect the settlers (again). The troops used were Black
soldiers, most who fought in the Civil War for the Union and had few other
options after the war. They had White officers and gained fame here and
further west later on as he "Buffalo Soldiers in the 9th and 10th Calvary
Regiments. The area was considered pacified by 1890 and the area forts
were closed and the troopers moved west. Fort Stockton subsequently
deteriorated and was only partially restored beginning in the 1980's.
We're back on the road tomorrow to Las Cruces, NM, then to Phoenix, AZ on Saturday.
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