Fort Douglas, Utah
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| Fort Douglas | |
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| (U.S. National Historic Landmark District) | |
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| Location: | Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Built/Founded: | 1862 |
| Architect: | Unknown |
| Architectural style(s): | No Style Listed |
| Added to NRHP: | June 15, 1970 |
| NRHP Reference#: | 70000628[1] |
| Governing body: | United States Army |
Camp Douglas was established in 1862 as a small military garrison about three miles east of Salt Lake City, Utah, for the purpose of protecting the overland mail route and telegraph lines along what later became known as the Oregon Trail. In 1878, the post was renamed Fort Douglas. The fort was officially closed in 1991 and most of the buildings turned over to the University of Utah. A small section of the original fort is used by the Utah National Guard, Army Reserve and includes a museum.
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[edit] Establishment
The increasing threat of violence was caused by the withdrawal of Federal troops from the West for action against the Confederacy in the Civil War. Colonel Patrick Connor was selected to establish a military presence in the Utah Territory and selected a site east of Salt Lake City, where Camp Douglas (named after Stephen A. Douglas by Abraham Lincoln) was officially established on October 26, 1862. During the Civil War, the post served as the headquarters of the District of Utah in the Department of the Pacific.
[edit] Regular Army arrives, 1866-74
Between 1866 and 1898, Fort Douglas was part of the Department of the Platte. The Fort's importance grew when the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads joined rails at Promontory Summit, Utah, on May 10, 1869, completing the Transcontinental Railroad.
[edit] 1878-1898
Through the efforts of Utah's U.S. Senator Thomas Kearns, Fort Douglas became a regimental post.
[edit] World War I
During World War I Fort Douglas was used as an internment camp for Germans living in the US and also to house German naval prisoners of war. One of the crews was from the SMS Cormoran that set sail from Tsingtao, China and was captured at Guam.
[edit] Interwar period
In 1922, Fort Douglas became the home of the 38th Infantry. The 38th remained at Fort Douglas until August 1940.
[edit] World War II
Fort Douglas then became an Army Air Field and was home to the 7th Bombardment Group (B-17s). Fort Douglas reverted to an Army base after the attack on Pearl Harbor, when fears of a Japanese attack of the U.S. mainland caused the 9th Service Command Headquarters to be moved to Fort Douglas from the Presidio in San Francisco.
[edit] Final years, 1945-1991
After World War II, the Army began a slow divestiture of its lands at Fort Douglas to the University of Utah, which is located directly adjacent to the Fort. However, the Fort maintained busy Reserve functions for several more decades, notably with the 96th ARCOM under the command of Maj. Gen. Michael B. Kauffman, who had spent much of his Army career at the Fort and was instrumental in keeping the Fort alive well past its announced closing in the 1970s. The Military Museum at Fort Douglas is housed in a building named after General Kauffman, who founded the Museum and built it into one of the United States' premier military museums featuring exhibits from all branches of the Armed Services.
On October 26, 1991, Fort Douglas officially closed, though the Utah National Guard maintained control of the Military Museum and the 96th ARCOM received the parts of the Fort which were not deeded to the University of Utah.
During the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, much of Fort Douglas was used as part of the Olympic Village for the participating athletes.
[edit] Cemetery
A cemetery was established in 1862 about a mile south of the original parade grounds. In 1864, the soldiers at the post significantly improved the cemetery. They erected a beautiful monument in the center dedicated to the memory of the men killed at Bear River. They also constructed a red sandstone wall around the cemetery, with a steel gate located at the north end. The following year, a smaller monument was added for Utah Governor James D. Doty following his death and burial in the cemetery. Later, the cemetery was expanded to accommodate a larger number of burials, not only from Fort Douglas but also from Fort Cameron following its closure. A special section of the cemetery was also added for the German prisoners of war who died here during World War I.
The Fort Douglas Cemetery continues to be an active federal military cemetery, beautifully maintained. A list of cemetery burials is available through the Utah History Research Center's cemetery database.
[edit] Museum
In 1970, a majority of the fort was designated a National Historic Landmark. Through the efforts of the Army Reserve, a museum was established in 1976 inside one of the old stone barracks. Today, the Fort Douglas Military Museum is administered by the Utah National Guard and supported by the Fort Douglas Foundation, endeavoring to tell the story of the post through artifacts and photographs.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ National Register Information System. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service (2007-01-23).
- Brigham D. Madsen, The Shoshoni Frontier and the Bear River Massacre (Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1985).
- Charles G. Hibbard, Fort Douglas, Utah, A Frontier Fort Vestige Press, 1999).
[edit] External links
- Historic Fort Douglas, University of Utah.
- Fort Douglas Military Museum Association
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