Fort Craig was a U.S. Army fort

Fortification

Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...

 located along El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, near Elephant Butte Lake State Park

Elephant Butte Lake State Park

Elephant Butte Lake State Park is a state park of New Mexico, USA, located north of Truth or Consequences along the shore of Elephant Butte Reservoir. It is the largest state park in New Mexico and surrounds the state's largest reservoir...

 and the Rio Grande

Rio Grande

The Rio Grande is a river that flows from southwestern Colorado in the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way it forms part of the Mexico – United States border. Its length varies as its course changes...

 in Socorro County, New Mexico

Socorro County, New Mexico

-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*75.1% White*1.1% Black*11.7% Native American*1.2% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*2.8% Two or more races*8.1% Other races*48.5% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...

.

The Fort Craig site was approximately 1,050 feet east-west by 600 feet north-south (320 by 180 m) and was located on 40 acres (16 hectares).

Before Fort Craig

The 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is the peace treaty, largely dictated by the United States to the interim government of a militarily occupied Mexico City, that ended the Mexican-American War on February 2, 1848...

 outlined plans for the construction of a series of forts along the new boundaries of Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

 and the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Apache

Apache

Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...

s and other Indian

Native Americans in the United States

Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

 groups were reportedly and harassing settler

Settler

A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. Settlers are generally people who take up residence on land and cultivate it, as opposed to nomads...

s and travelers on both sides of the border.

In 1849, an initial garrison was established at Socorro, New Mexico

Socorro, New Mexico

Socorro is a city in Socorro County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. It stands in the Rio Grande Valley at an elevation of . The population was 9,051 at the 2010 census...

, then replaced by a fort, Fort Conrad, was established along El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro at the north end of the Jornada del Muerto

Jornada del Muerto

The Jornada del Muerto in the U.S. state of New Mexico was the name given by the Spanish conquistadors to the Jornada del Muerto Desert basin, and the particularly dry stretch of a route through it.The trail lead northward from central Spanish colonial New Spain, present-day Mexico, to the farthest...

 in 1851. It only operated for a short while. Although it was an ideal location from which to launch military campaigns against the Apache

Apache

Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...

 and Navajo

Navajo people

The Navajo of the Southwestern United States are the largest single federally recognized tribe of the United States of America. The Navajo Nation has 300,048 enrolled tribal members. The Navajo Nation constitutes an independent governmental body which manages the Navajo Indian reservation in the...

, it was beset by construction problems and was under constant threat of flash floods.

Establishment

In 1853 the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment

3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment

The 3rd United States Infantry Regiment is a regiment of the US Army. It currently has three active battalions, and is readily identified by its nickname, The Old Guard, as well as Escort to the President. The regimental motto is Noli Me Tangere...

 began construction of a new fort on a bluff five miles away from Fort Conrad. The new fort, named in honor of Captain Louis S. Craig, a popular young officer of the Mexican-American War, was garrisoned in 1854 with troops from Fort Conrad.

Life at remote Fort Craig was uncomfortable and lonely at best and deadly at worst. The buildings were a constant source of misery to the soldiers and records reveal litanies of complaints about leaky roofs, crumbling walls and chimneys, crowded conditions and filth from crumbling dirt roofs and muddy floors.

Civil War

By July 1861, Fort Craig had become the largest fort in the Southwest, with over 2,000 soldiers. That same year, several regiments of New Mexico Volunteers were established to handle the new threat—the Confederate

Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

 Army of New Mexico

Army of New Mexico

The Army of New Mexico was a small Confederate army in the American Civil War. It operated in Confederate Arizona and New Mexico Territory during the New Mexico Campaign in late 1861 and early 1862, before it was transferred to Louisiana. At first the force was tasked with securing Confederate...

.

In September 1861, a cavalry force of about 100 men set out from Fort Craig and skirmished with rebels at Canada Alamosa. This engagement is known as the Battle of Canada Alamosa

Battle of Canada Alamosa

The Battle of Canada Alamosa was a skirmish of the American Civil War on the late evening and morning of September 24 and 25, 1861. Several small battles occurred in Confederate Arizona near the border with Union New Mexico Territory, this one being the largest.-Background:The battle occurred about...

, one of several small battles to occur in Confederate Arizona.

In February, 1862, all five regiments of New Mexico Volunteers were sent south from Fort Union to reinforce Fort Craig and to wait for the Confederate

Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

 advance up the Rio Grande

Rio Grande

The Rio Grande is a river that flows from southwestern Colorado in the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way it forms part of the Mexico – United States border. Its length varies as its course changes...

.

After capturing several military installations in the newly established Confederate Territory of Arizona

Arizona Territory (CSA)

The Territory of Arizona was a territory claimed by the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War, between 1861 and 1865. It consisted of the portion of the New Mexico Territory south of the 34th parallel north including parts of the modern states of New Mexico and Arizona. Its...

, Brigadier General Sibley

Henry Hopkins Sibley

Henry Hopkins Sibley was a brigadier general during the American Civil War, leading the Confederate States Army in the New Mexico Territory. His attempt to gain control of trails to California was defeated at the Battle of Glorieta Pass...

 led his enthusiastic but poorly equipped brigade of about 2,500 Confederate

Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

 Army of New Mexico

Army of New Mexico

The Army of New Mexico was a small Confederate army in the American Civil War. It operated in Confederate Arizona and New Mexico Territory during the New Mexico Campaign in late 1861 and early 1862, before it was transferred to Louisiana. At first the force was tasked with securing Confederate...

. On February 7, 1862, the Army of New Mexico left Fort Fillmore

Fort Fillmore

Fort Fillmore was a fortification established by Col Edwin Vose Sumner in September of 1851 near Mesilla in what is now New Mexico, primarily to protect settlers and traders traveling to California. Travelers in the Westward Migration were under constant threat from Indian attack, and a network of...

 and headed north towards Fort Craig but marched well around the fort.

On Fort Craig's massive gravel bastions were mounted "Quaker guns" (fake wooden cannons) with empty soldiers' caps alongside the real cannons and real Union

Union (American Civil War)

During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...

 troops. This impressive ruse squelched Sibley's

Henry Hopkins Sibley

Henry Hopkins Sibley was a brigadier general during the American Civil War, leading the Confederate States Army in the New Mexico Territory. His attempt to gain control of trails to California was defeated at the Battle of Glorieta Pass...

 plans for a direct assault on Fort Craig.

On February 21, 1862, the Union troops led by Colonel Edward Canby

Edward Canby

Edward Richard Sprigg Canby was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War, Reconstruction era, and the Indian Wars...

 and the Confederate Army of New Mexico of Brigadier General Sibley

Henry Hopkins Sibley

Henry Hopkins Sibley was a brigadier general during the American Civil War, leading the Confederate States Army in the New Mexico Territory. His attempt to gain control of trails to California was defeated at the Battle of Glorieta Pass...

 first met at the Battle of Valverde

Battle of Valverde

The Battle of Valverde, or the Battle of Valverde Ford from February 20 to February 21, 1862, was fought near the town of Valverde at a ford of Valverde Creek in Confederate Arizona, in what is today the state of New Mexico. It was a major Confederate success in the New Mexico Campaign of the...

, a crossing of the Rio Grande

Rio Grande

The Rio Grande is a river that flows from southwestern Colorado in the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way it forms part of the Mexico – United States border. Its length varies as its course changes...

 just north of the fort. Both sides took heavy casualties. At the end of the day, the Confederates held the field of battle, but the Union still held Fort Craig.

The Battle of Valverde is considered a Confederate victory and forced a Union tactical retreat. However, the New Mexico Volunteers, under the command of Colonel Miguel Pino, found the Confederates' supply wagons and burned them. Sibley was forced to march further north without the supplies he had hoped to take from Fort Craig. On February 23, 1862, the Confederate forces marched around the Union Army and headed for Albuquerque

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...

.

Indian Wars

Between 1863 and 1865, Fort Craig was headquarters for U.S. Army campaigns against the Gila and Mimbres Apache

Apache

Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...

s.

Fort Craig was permanently abandoned in 1885.

Fort Craig National Historic Site

In 1894, Fort Craig was sold at auction to the only bidder, the Valverde Land and Irrigation Company.
Fort Craig was listed on the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

 in 1970. The property was eventually donated to Archaeological Conservancy by the Oppenheimer family and transferred to the Bureau of Land Management

Bureau of Land Management

The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...

 in 1981.

In 2008, it emerged that 20 bodies had been looted from the cemetery at Fort Craig, and 67 were exhumed and removed by Federal archaeologists to prevent further looting. The exhumations conducted from August to October removed 67 skeletons—39 men, 2 women and 26 infants and children.

Fort Craig is located 105 miles (170 km) north of Las Cruces, New Mexico

Las Cruces, New Mexico

Las Cruces, also known as "The City of the Crosses", is the county seat of Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 97,618 in 2010 according to the 2010 Census, making it the second largest city in the state....

 and 32 miles (52 km) south of Socorro, New Mexico

Socorro, New Mexico

Socorro is a city in Socorro County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. It stands in the Rio Grande Valley at an elevation of . The population was 9,051 at the 2010 census...

, between Exits 115 and 124 along Interstate 25

Interstate 25

Interstate 25 is an Interstate Highway in the western United States. It is primarily a north–south highway. I-25 stretches from Interstate 10 at Las Cruces, New Mexico, , to Interstate 90 in Buffalo, Wyoming, .Interstate 25 is the main north–south expressway through...

. A small visitor center is located at the Fort Craig National Historic Site.

External links

• Bureau of Land Management Fort Craig site
• Fort Craig, New Mexico
• Fort Craig National Historic Site (webpage with multiple recent photos)
• Fort Tours Fort Craig history page
• FORT CRAIG UNITS, 1854-1884