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Fort Davis National Historic Site protects a well-preserved 19th century US Army fort in West Texas. It contains over 20 restored buildings and over 100 ruins and foundations.
History of Fort Davis
Fort Davis was established in October 1854 by General Persifor Frazer Smith (1798-1858). It was named after Jefferson Davis (1808-1889), who was the US Secretary of War at the time. It sits in a canyon flanked on three sides by sheer rock walls.
Fort Davis was given to the Confederacy forces in early 1861 along with all other federal installations in Texas under General David Twiggs (1790-1862) in an act that was considered treason. It was evacuated by Union troops in April 1861 and was held by the Confederates until August 1862.
The 24th and 25th Infantry as well as the 9th and 10th Cavalry regiments, also known as the Buffalo Soldiers, were stationed there after the Civil War. The 9th Infantry was instrumental in reoccupying Fort Davis on June 29, 1867.
The fort was charged with protecting emigrants, mail coaches, and freight wagons running along the San Antonio-El Paso Road and Chihuahua Trail. It was also used to launch attacks during the Comanche Wars and Mescalero Apache Wars. Fort Davis was decommissioned in 1891 and designated a National Historic Landmark on December 19, 1960. It became a National Historic Site on September 8, 1961.
Planning Your Trip to Fort Davis National Historic Site
Before getting into the details of the fort, here’s some essential information to help you plan your trip:
Entrance Fees for Fort Davis National Historic Site
The entrance fees for Fort Davis National Historic Site varies depending on your mode of transportation. Prices are current as of December 2024:
- For private vehicles, it’s US$20.
- For motorcycles, it’s US$15.
- For visitors entering on bicycle or on foot, it’s US$10 for adults and free for kids under 16.
- Holders of any interagency pass are covered for one vehicle or four per person fees.
Entrance fees are good for seven days. The park is open year-round from 8am to 5pm. Check the official website for more information.
Accommodation at Fort Davis National Historic Site
There’s no accommodation at Fort Davis National Historic Site. Visitors can stay in the town of Fort Davis or in a nearby town. We stayed the night in Van Horn, and Marfa is even closer.
Activities at Fort Davis National Historic Site
In addition to a few hiking trails, interpreters dressed in period clothing are stationed at some of the buildings during summer months.
Visitor Center at Fort Davis National Historic Site
The park visitor center is housed in one of the restored Enlisted Men’s Barracks. It’s open during park hours and is the place to pay entrance fees. You can also get park maps, watch a short introductory video, and peruse exhibits on the history of Fort Davis.
Exhibits include artifacts used by soldiers and officers stationed at the fort as well as clothing and artifacts used by local Apaches.
Enlisted Men’s Barracks
The Enlisted Men’s Barracks housed enlisted soldiers during the fort’s active years. There were originally seven barracks but only two remain standing. They’ve both been fully restored. One of the barracks includes the park’s visitor center and office where entrance fees are collected.
The second building contains an exhibit displaying authentic wagons, tents, and other artifacts used by enlisted soldiers. The other room is decorated with cots, uniforms, and items soldiers would have kept at their bedside.
Stepping behind the building, you’ll see the foundations of what were once the kitchen and mess hall. Back inside is an office set up with period items as well as boxes of ammunition and army issued revolvers.
Continuing north from the two restored Enlisted Men’s Barracks are the foundations of four more barracks. The foundations of a fifth barracks are to the east of the visitor center.
Post Chapel
On the north side of the parade ground sit the ruins of the Post Chapel. The building was also used as a library and a schoolroom for children living at the fort. On Friday nights, officers used it as a dance hall from 8pm to midnight.
One important historic event took place at the post chapel. Henry O. Flipper (1856-1940), the first black graduate of West Point in June 1877, accepted a commission as a second lieutenant at Fort Davis a month after graduating. In 1881, after assuming the duties of Acting Commissary of Subsistence and Post Quartermaster, he was accused of embezzling government funds and conduct unbecoming of an officer and gentleman. The court martial proceedings took place at the Post Chapel, where he was found innocent of embezzlement but guilty of improper conduct in and dishonorably discharged in 1882.
Flipper stayed determined and eventually became the first prominent black civil and mining engineer in American history. He also served as the Assistant to the Secretary of the Interior from 1921 to 1923. In 1976, his descendants managed to clear the military charges against him, and the Army Board for Correction of Military Records changed his dishonorable discharge to an honorable discharge.
Officers’ Row
Officers’ Row housed US Army officers and their families at Fort Davis. It sits across the Parade Ground from the Enlisted Men’s Barracks.
Officers’ Row features 13 homes that have been renovated. Two of them were open to the public during my visit to the fort.
Shared Lieutenants’ Quarters
The first home I visited was the Shared Lieutenants’ Quarters, which is the second house from the south. It contains rooms decorated with period furniture and items the officers and their families may have used during their commission at the fort.
There are also interpretive panels discussing the original Fort Davis, which stood from 1854 to 1862, as well as profiles of selected civilians who contributed to life at the fort.
Commanding Officer’s Quarters
The second home open to the public was the Commanding Officer’s Quarters. It sits directly in the center of Officers’ Row as the seventh house from either direction.
The home was set up according to the time when Ben Grierson (1826-1911) and his family lived there, from 1882 to 1885. He lived in the house with his wife, Alice, and their two younger sons, Harry and George. Some of the furniture was personally owned by the Griersons, and an interpretive panel sheds light on what life was like for the family.
The Commanding Officer’s Quarters included much of the same items as the Shared Lieutenants’ Quarters but with more elegant furniture and decor. Grierson commanded the 10th Cavalry Regiment, also known as the Buffalo Soldiers. He modernized and expanded Fort Davis during his tenure.
Servant’s Quarters
Behind the homes on Officers’ Row are the foundations of the kitchens and Servant’s Quarters. The second house from the north includes a Servant’s Quarters that has been restored and is open to the public. It’s modestly furnished, with this particular room furnished for a woman.
Old Fort Davis
Mixed in with the foundations behind Officers’ Row are the foundations of Enlisted Men’s Barracks from the original Fort Davis. They stood from 1854 to 1862 and were originally crude wooden structures. Old Fort Davis was taken by the Confederates in April 1861 and abandoned in August 1862. Fort Davis was re-established in 1867.
Bachelor Officer Quarters
North of Officers’ Row were the Bachelor Officer Quarters. These two-story structures were used by unmarried officers. Two of the buildings have been restored while the other two are in ruins.
Post Hospital
The Post Hospital cared for ill and injured soldiers at Fort Davis. It’s located west of Officers’ Row and is one of the restored buildings open to visitors.
To make the visit to the hospital more interesting, there’s a sign along the way with the stories of five real patients treated there. It indicated their symptoms, then directed visitors to continue to the Post Hospital to see if the patients survived. The sign also listed common treatments for ailments in the 19th century
Once inside the hospital, there’s a large room furnished with historic hospital beds and tables. Patients admitted to the hospital would stay in this room until they were discharged.
The doctor’s office contains period furniture, books, medicine bottles, and medical instruments that would have been used in the 19th century.
Finally, there are a few interactive exhibits. One displays more 19th-century medical instruments and treatments. This is where visitors can find out if the patients on the sign outside survived. There’s also an excerpt of death records from 1880 to 1888.
The “wheel of misfortune” allows visitors to choose a patient and turn another wheel to choose a treatment. Once you’ve selected a treatment, you lift a flap to see if the treatment was effective.
Finally, just outside the hospital is the Store House. It’s where medicine and other supplies were kept.
