Fort Ellis was an early United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

 outpost established August 27, 1867 to the eastern side of present-day Bozeman, Montana

Bozeman, Montana

Bozeman is a city in and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. The 2010 census put Bozeman's population at 37,280 making it the fourth largest city in the state. It is the principal city of the Bozeman micropolitan area, which consists...

. The fort was established to protect and support settlers moving into the Gallatin Valley. The post was named for Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

 Colonel

Colonel (United States)

In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...

 Augustus van Horne Ellis who was killed in action in 1863 at the Battle of Gettysburg

Battle of Gettysburg

The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...

. Five companies of the 2nd Cavalry were garrisoned at the post, in addition to infantry companies. Nearby Fort Elizabeth Meagher

Fort Elizabeth Meagher

Fort Elizabeth Meagher, named for the wife of Thomas F. Meagher, secretary and former acting governor of the Montana Territory, was established in May, 1867 eight miles east of the town of Bozeman, Montana at the mouth of Rocky Creek by Brigadier General Thomas Thoroughman and Colonel Walter W. De...

 which was established in the spring of 1867 on Rocky Creek was abandoned when Fort Ellis was built.

Fort Ellis was an important post during the prominent Indian conflicts of the 19th century as well as a base of operations for exploring the region now known as Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...

. In January 1870 Major Eugene M. Baker led a group of Cavalry forces to track down the leaders of the Piegan tribe which culminated in the Marias Massacre

Marias Massacre

The Marias Massacre was a massacre of Piegan Blackfeet Indians by the United States Army which took place in Montana during the late nineteenth century Indian Wars.-Background:...

 on the Marias River

Marias River

The Marias River is a tributary of the Missouri River, approximately 210 mi long, in the U.S. state of Montana. It is formed in the Blackfeet Indian Reservation in Glacier County, in northwestern Montana, by the confluence of the Cut Bank Creek and the Two Medicine River...

 in Montana. In April 1876 General John Gibbon

John Gibbon

John Gibbon was a career United States Army officer who fought in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars.-Early life:...

 departed Fort Ellis with 400 infantry and cavalry as the "Montana Column" during the summer campaign of the Great Sioux War of 1876-77. Troops from Fort Ellis also participated in the Nez Perce War

Nez Perce War

The Nez Perce War was an armed conflict between the Nez Perce and the United States government fought in 1877 as part of the American Indian Wars. After a series of battles in which both the U.S. Army and native people sustained significant casualties, the Nez Perce surrendered and were relocated...

 of 1877.

The fort provided military escorts for a number of prominent expeditions into Yellowstone. In 1870, Lieutenant Gustavus C. Doane

Gustavus Cheyney Doane

Gustavus Cheyney Doane was a U.S. Army Cavalry Captain, explorer, inventor and Civil War soldier who played a prominent role in the exploration of Yellowstone as a member of the Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition.-Early life:...

 and five cavalrymen escorted Henry Washburn

Henry D. Washburn

Henry Dana Washburn was a U.S. Representative from Indiana and a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Biography:...

 and eight other civilians from Helena, Montana

Helena, Montana

Helena is the capital city of the U.S. state of Montana and the county seat of Lewis and Clark County. The 2010 census put the population at 28,180. The local daily newspaper is the Independent Record. The Helena Brewers minor league baseball and Helena Bighorns minor league hockey team call the...

 on the Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition

Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition

The Washburn Expedition of 1870, explored the region of northwestern Wyoming that a couple years later became Yellowstone National Park. Led by Henry Washburn, Nathaniel P. Langford and under U.S. Army escort led by Lt. Gustavus C...

. Doane would also accompany expeditions in 1871 and 1875, as well as an ill-fated expedition of the Snake River

Snake River

The Snake is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean...

 in 1876.

The fort had an ambivalent relationship with the nearest civilian town of Bozeman, located 3 miles to the west of the fort. On 11 December 1867 and again 14 December 1867, soldiers of the 13th US Infantry destroyed buildings in and around the town that were found to be selling alcohol to the soldiers. Through the post's history, the settlers of Bozeman enjoyed the federal money brought to the city by contracts and payroll, but often acted nefariously as they competed amongst themselves for those dollars

Commanding officers

• 1867 - 1869 Captain R. S. LaMotte
• 1869 - 1870 Colonel A. G. Brackett
• 1870 - 1873 Major E. M. Baker
• 1873 - 1876 Major N. B. Sweitzer
• 1876 - 1877 Captain D. W. Benham
• 1877 - 1880 Major J. S. Brisbin
• 1880 - 1881 Lieutenant Colonel A. J. Alexander
• 1881 - 1884 Major D. S. Gordon
• 1884 - 1887 Major G. G. Hunt

Decommissioning

Since the post was located on prime agricultural land, many settlers in Bozeman petitioned to have the post closed. Documents indicate that the post would likely have remained active for several more years but since Gen. Sherman struggled to find posts to close for fiscal reasons in the face of strong political pressure, he seized the opportunity to close the post. The post was decommissioned on August 2, 1886 (S.O. No. 73, Headquarters Department of Dakota

Department of Dakota

A subdivision of the Division of the Missouri, the Department of Dakota was established by the United States Army on August 11, 1866 to encompass all military activities and forts within Minnesota, Dakota Territory and Montana Territory. The Department of Dakota was initially headquartered at Fort...

, Fort Snelling, Minnesota

Fort Snelling, Minnesota

Fort Snelling, originally known as Fort Saint Anthony, was a military fortification located at the confluence of the Minnesota River and Mississippi River in Hennepin County, Minnesota...

) and was abandoned by the Army by the end of August 1886. After decommissioning, the parade ground was used for sometime by the Montana Militia. As of August, 1924 many of the fort's buildings remained intact, including a two-story house that was the Commanding Officer's quarters. That building today has been renovated and is occupied by the Agricultural Experimental Station operated by Montana State University.