In 1819, the United States Congress decided that the upper Red River area needed
protection; not for Anglo American settlers, but for Native people who faced
violence in this frontier region. Building the fort was difficult, though, because
materials had to be either ferried over non-existent roads across the rapids of the
Cassotot and Little Rivers, or via steam boat, which the Great Raft of the Red River
made near impossible to do. But, by 1823, the fort was finally operational.
The small garrison had to deal with a lot of scuffles between Arkansas and Texas
Anglos who wanted to settle in the fertile valley. The military sided with the Native
peoples, as many had come to the Red River Valley due to previous treaties that the
U.S., at least at this time, wanted to honor, and the Anglos were trying to pre-empt
legitimate land claims. So, because they were squatting on Indian land, the white
men decided that instead of acquiescing to federal control, they'd just burn down
the fort, which they did in 1829. The fort rebuilt in 1830 and was dubbed "Camp
Phoenix."
As the displaced Indians moved in and established towns like Doaksville (the first
Choctaw capital) and Boggy Depot, the fort stayed active but relatively small. In
1840, it housed the troops that would later fight in the Mexican War (1846-1848), but
was permanently closed in 1856. During the Civil War, General Sam Bell Maxie used
the old fort as a command post, and General Stand Watie of the Confederate
Cherokees made it a staging area for his guerrilla raids on Union troops. General
Watie, in fact, was the last Confederate Commander to surrender, doing so in
Doaksville in 1865.
Fort Towson is now a small historic site managed by the Oklahoma Historical
Society. The fort consists of ruins, as latter-day settlers dismantled the stone
buildings to use in their own houses. A small interpretive center and store houses
some interesting artifacts found around the fort.
protection; not for Anglo American settlers, but for Native people who faced
violence in this frontier region. Building the fort was difficult, though, because
materials had to be either ferried over non-existent roads across the rapids of the
Cassotot and Little Rivers, or via steam boat, which the Great Raft of the Red River
made near impossible to do. But, by 1823, the fort was finally operational.
The small garrison had to deal with a lot of scuffles between Arkansas and Texas
Anglos who wanted to settle in the fertile valley. The military sided with the Native
peoples, as many had come to the Red River Valley due to previous treaties that the
U.S., at least at this time, wanted to honor, and the Anglos were trying to pre-empt
legitimate land claims. So, because they were squatting on Indian land, the white
men decided that instead of acquiescing to federal control, they'd just burn down
the fort, which they did in 1829. The fort rebuilt in 1830 and was dubbed "Camp
Phoenix."
As the displaced Indians moved in and established towns like Doaksville (the first
Choctaw capital) and Boggy Depot, the fort stayed active but relatively small. In
1840, it housed the troops that would later fight in the Mexican War (1846-1848), but
was permanently closed in 1856. During the Civil War, General Sam Bell Maxie used
the old fort as a command post, and General Stand Watie of the Confederate
Cherokees made it a staging area for his guerrilla raids on Union troops. General
Watie, in fact, was the last Confederate Commander to surrender, doing so in
Doaksville in 1865.
Fort Towson is now a small historic site managed by the Oklahoma Historical
Society. The fort consists of ruins, as latter-day settlers dismantled the stone
buildings to use in their own houses. A small interpretive center and store houses
some interesting artifacts found around the fort.
| St. Jean Baptiste Los Adaes Fort Claiborne Fort Jesup Fort Towson Fort Washita Fort Belknap Fort Phantom Hill Fort Griffin Fort Richardson Fort Sill |
| Fort Towson |
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| Fort Towson is a small place, with visible relics. The 1857 Cannon, the cistern, and flagpole grace the fort's parade grounds. |
| The well on the parade grounds has been re-constructed. Most of the fort lies in ruins. The fort was burned in the late 1820s by white settlers who resented American border patrol between the U.S. and Mexican Texas, and Indian settlement by the Shawnees, Caddos, and Choctaws. Though re-built, further destruction before and after the Civil War led locals to the conclusion that it was okay to dismantle the old structures to build their own homes. |
| Choctaws and Chickasaws settled around the fort, where they built Indian academies, churches, farms, plantations, and towns. The first major settlement around the fort was Doaksville, named after the trading post established by Josiah Doaks, a white man from Mississippi who followed the Choctaws into Indian Territory to advocate on their behalf. The village became a trading center. The need to supply Fort Towson was also the impetus to clear the Great Raft of the Red River north of Natchitoches. |
| One of Oklahoma's first historians, Grant Foreman, documented historic ruins at the turn of the 20th century. At this time, Fort Towson was eight decades old and its footprint was still clearly visible. |
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