Misc
"Fort Banishment"
POST SOUTH LOUP FORK; "FORT BANISHMENT"
Lat: 41.01N, Lon: 98.9W
One mile SE of Ravenna on Hwy 2, Buffalo County, Marker 361
The Union Pacific Railroad was completed across Buffalo County in the years 1866-67. Some of the tribes of Indians, more especially the Sioux in North-western Nebraska, were not friendly to the building of the railroad; in order protect the workmen, the general Government stationed troops in the territory to the north and small army posts (forts they were called locally) were built for the comfort and convenience of the troops. Buffalo County was the home and hunting grounds of the Pawnee Indians. The territory of the Sioux was a little farther west, but was close enough for them to fight the peaceable Pawnee tribes for hunting grounds and to steal their horses. When settlers began to come into the area along the Platte River, the Pawnee, who were never a match in battle with the Sioux, were glad to be on friendly terms with the white settlers. Prior to 1864 there were no settlers in Buffalo County except a few on the Wood River. When the Civil War broke out and troops were withdrawn from Fort Kearny and other protective forts, the Indians became unruly. Large numbers of travelers on the trails - invading their hunting grounds - and the planned building of the railroad along the Platte valley added fuel to the fire.
One of these frontier posts was located on the south bank of the South Loup River in the center of section 16, town No. 12, range No. 14.; not far from the present city of Ravenna. Called “ U.S. Army's Post South Loup Fork”, this small outpost of Fort Kearney was established in May 1865 by Company "E", Seventh Iowa Cavalry, under the command of Capt. Jams B. David.
Known locally as Fort Banishment or Fort Desolation, the military post was built and manned by troops from Fort Kearny, twenty miles to the south. (Sometimes it was called Post Connor in honor of Gen. Patrick Connor) Its purpose was to keep an eye on the actions of the Indians in this uninhabited area and to protect workers as the railroads planned and laid out their lines westward across this wilderness land. According to legend the post became known as “Fort Desolation” because it was about thirty miles from any settlement. It has also been termed “Fort Banishment”, because soldiers were sent there as punishment for stealing commissary whisky. Military records do not confirm this.
In July 1865 the Iowa Cavalry was replaced by Company "E" of the First Nebraska Cavalry and in August the post was abandoned. *There are other accounts that state the Fort was closed in October.
In 1866 when the Burlington surveyed the land over which their railroad line would be laid twenty years later, the surveyor noted on the survey plat, "deserted soldiers' quarters".
In 1871, considerable number of colonists (who had settled on claims in the vicinity of Gibbon) visited the South Loup country in order to view the land. The settlers used the log buildings for firewood.
S. C. Bassett, one of the Gibbon colonists who visited the site, wrote the following account in his History of Buffalo County, published in 1916, referring to the post as "Fort Banishment":
“The group camped for the night at the post known as Fort Banishment. The earthworks extended, in the form of a square, from the bank of the river to the south. Within the enclosure were buildings constructed of oak logs; the roofs were of poles and willow brush covered with sod and dirt. It is recalled that nailed on the outer walls of the buildings were a score or more of the feet of timber wolves, the feet being much larger than the feet of coyotes. It might be mentioned that below the fort, on the south side of the river, was an island several acres in size. On this island (protected from prairie fires) was a considerable growth of oak; many of the trees two to three feet in diameter. It seemed that the trees to build the fort came from this island, access to which was by means of a beaver-dam bridge over which could be driven teams with loaded wagons. When the courthouse was built at Gibbon in 1872, wood to burn the brick was hauled from the South Loup River, and practically all the trees on the island were made into cord wood and hauled away. Much of the timber (cottonwood and oak) along the South Loup - a size suitable for ties - had been cut and used in the building of the railroad.”
T. H. McClintock, who later came to Litchfield, had been a member of Company E, Seventh Iowa Cavalry stationed at the Fort. In an article in the Ravenna News of May 18, 1894, he relates that in the spring of 1864 the Company commenced the building of the sod fortification. He further stated that: “Company E was one of the companies stationed at that time at Fort Kearny. As punishment for stealing a barrel of commissary whisky and declaring mutiny, the Company was banished to the then barren and desolate region of the South Loup. The Company was required to stay four months and thoroughly scout the Loup Country which at that time was infested by a large number of hostile Indians. The men suffered great privations and their lives were in constant danger. The only man of the Company who was killed by the Indians, however, was M. S. Grubb, Mr. McClintock's bunk mate and intimate friend. Grubb was killed by Indians near Buckeye Valley, which was between here (Ravenna) and Gibbon while on his way to Fort Kearny with the mail.”
Similar accounts have been related by others as to the men assigned to duty at the outpost, and as to the killing of Mr. Grubb while in service at the fort. The military installation has been described as an "emergency" post, as an "outpost for disciplinary purposes", and as "sort of a penal colony, and soldiers guilty of infraction of the rules ... were detailed for duty at Fort Desolation or Fort Banishment." The official name of Post South Loup Fork was apparently unknown, at least never used, locally.
"On August 22, 1864, Maj. Gen. Curtis arrived with a cavalry regiment and one ten-pound cannon. The General inspected the fortifications and praised the settlers for their skill in the work. Believing the settlement at Grand Island to be safe, Gen. Curtis pushed on to Fort Kearny ... Soon after the visit of Gen. Curtis, a detachment of twenty men, of Company E, Seventh Iowa Cavalry, under Capt. J. B. David, was stationed at the fortification at the "O.K. Store”, to help protect the settlement ... there was never any attack. There were, however, a great many depredations committed by the soldiers themselves. Several of them took grain and cattle by force and it was impossible to secure their punishment ... There was general happiness throughout the settlement when they were afterwards ordered away to a station on the Loup River, familiarly known among the old settlers and soldiers as Fort Desolation on account of the loneliness of the station, there being no settlement in the region."
William Stolley, one of the leaders of the German Colony above referred to, corroborates the story, writing that "Captain Davis and his men were ordered away from here and had to set up camp about thirty-five miles up the South Loup River in the wilderness ... at that time this place was generally called Fort Desolation."
Yet another name for the Fort is found in one of the army reports of July 1865 where reference is made to "Camp Conner." General Patrick Conner was then in charge of the Military District of the Plains, which included Fort Kearney and Post South Loup Fork.
Ravenna people knew about the old fort and generally called it Fort Banishment. It was there before Erastus Smith settled on Beaver Creek in 1874 and before the town was founded in 1886. The old fort grounds at the bend of the river just south of town was a scenic place, a place for swimming, for school picnics and other outdoor gatherings. Children loved to play around the sod embankments. A few artifacts have been found over the years - a bullet, shell casing, percussion cap, mule shoe nail, and square nails. Erosion from floods gradually destroyed the fort site, and finally, the flood of 1947 took away the little evidence remaining that there had been a military post at that place.
A historical society group found the site of Ft. Banishment on August 22, 1982. The group included Paul Toukey and Roy Lindsey whose specialty was frontier military forts and was in charge of Fort Hartsiff for many years.
It was located on the north side of the Loup River on a school land section. No public access to the site. All traces washed away by shifting of the river bed over the years and by the flood in 1947. Just a small piece of the embankment remains, at about 75’. They dug a hole 2 ½ foot deep where a furrier’s fire had been, and found a tinned can (which was described as a Civil War version of MRE), a bullet casing, a bullet & a percussion cap. It was mentioned that it was unusual to find these three pieces of ammunition together in one site.
Lat: 41.01N, Lon: 98.9W
One mile SE of Ravenna on Hwy 2, Buffalo County, Marker 361
The Union Pacific Railroad was completed across Buffalo County in the years 1866-67. Some of the tribes of Indians, more especially the Sioux in North-western Nebraska, were not friendly to the building of the railroad; in order protect the workmen, the general Government stationed troops in the territory to the north and small army posts (forts they were called locally) were built for the comfort and convenience of the troops. Buffalo County was the home and hunting grounds of the Pawnee Indians. The territory of the Sioux was a little farther west, but was close enough for them to fight the peaceable Pawnee tribes for hunting grounds and to steal their horses. When settlers began to come into the area along the Platte River, the Pawnee, who were never a match in battle with the Sioux, were glad to be on friendly terms with the white settlers. Prior to 1864 there were no settlers in Buffalo County except a few on the Wood River. When the Civil War broke out and troops were withdrawn from Fort Kearny and other protective forts, the Indians became unruly. Large numbers of travelers on the trails - invading their hunting grounds - and the planned building of the railroad along the Platte valley added fuel to the fire.
One of these frontier posts was located on the south bank of the South Loup River in the center of section 16, town No. 12, range No. 14.; not far from the present city of Ravenna. Called “ U.S. Army's Post South Loup Fork”, this small outpost of Fort Kearney was established in May 1865 by Company "E", Seventh Iowa Cavalry, under the command of Capt. Jams B. David.
Known locally as Fort Banishment or Fort Desolation, the military post was built and manned by troops from Fort Kearny, twenty miles to the south. (Sometimes it was called Post Connor in honor of Gen. Patrick Connor) Its purpose was to keep an eye on the actions of the Indians in this uninhabited area and to protect workers as the railroads planned and laid out their lines westward across this wilderness land. According to legend the post became known as “Fort Desolation” because it was about thirty miles from any settlement. It has also been termed “Fort Banishment”, because soldiers were sent there as punishment for stealing commissary whisky. Military records do not confirm this.
In July 1865 the Iowa Cavalry was replaced by Company "E" of the First Nebraska Cavalry and in August the post was abandoned. *There are other accounts that state the Fort was closed in October.
In 1866 when the Burlington surveyed the land over which their railroad line would be laid twenty years later, the surveyor noted on the survey plat, "deserted soldiers' quarters".
In 1871, considerable number of colonists (who had settled on claims in the vicinity of Gibbon) visited the South Loup country in order to view the land. The settlers used the log buildings for firewood.
S. C. Bassett, one of the Gibbon colonists who visited the site, wrote the following account in his History of Buffalo County, published in 1916, referring to the post as "Fort Banishment":
“The group camped for the night at the post known as Fort Banishment. The earthworks extended, in the form of a square, from the bank of the river to the south. Within the enclosure were buildings constructed of oak logs; the roofs were of poles and willow brush covered with sod and dirt. It is recalled that nailed on the outer walls of the buildings were a score or more of the feet of timber wolves, the feet being much larger than the feet of coyotes. It might be mentioned that below the fort, on the south side of the river, was an island several acres in size. On this island (protected from prairie fires) was a considerable growth of oak; many of the trees two to three feet in diameter. It seemed that the trees to build the fort came from this island, access to which was by means of a beaver-dam bridge over which could be driven teams with loaded wagons. When the courthouse was built at Gibbon in 1872, wood to burn the brick was hauled from the South Loup River, and practically all the trees on the island were made into cord wood and hauled away. Much of the timber (cottonwood and oak) along the South Loup - a size suitable for ties - had been cut and used in the building of the railroad.”
T. H. McClintock, who later came to Litchfield, had been a member of Company E, Seventh Iowa Cavalry stationed at the Fort. In an article in the Ravenna News of May 18, 1894, he relates that in the spring of 1864 the Company commenced the building of the sod fortification. He further stated that: “Company E was one of the companies stationed at that time at Fort Kearny. As punishment for stealing a barrel of commissary whisky and declaring mutiny, the Company was banished to the then barren and desolate region of the South Loup. The Company was required to stay four months and thoroughly scout the Loup Country which at that time was infested by a large number of hostile Indians. The men suffered great privations and their lives were in constant danger. The only man of the Company who was killed by the Indians, however, was M. S. Grubb, Mr. McClintock's bunk mate and intimate friend. Grubb was killed by Indians near Buckeye Valley, which was between here (Ravenna) and Gibbon while on his way to Fort Kearny with the mail.”
Similar accounts have been related by others as to the men assigned to duty at the outpost, and as to the killing of Mr. Grubb while in service at the fort. The military installation has been described as an "emergency" post, as an "outpost for disciplinary purposes", and as "sort of a penal colony, and soldiers guilty of infraction of the rules ... were detailed for duty at Fort Desolation or Fort Banishment." The official name of Post South Loup Fork was apparently unknown, at least never used, locally.
"On August 22, 1864, Maj. Gen. Curtis arrived with a cavalry regiment and one ten-pound cannon. The General inspected the fortifications and praised the settlers for their skill in the work. Believing the settlement at Grand Island to be safe, Gen. Curtis pushed on to Fort Kearny ... Soon after the visit of Gen. Curtis, a detachment of twenty men, of Company E, Seventh Iowa Cavalry, under Capt. J. B. David, was stationed at the fortification at the "O.K. Store”, to help protect the settlement ... there was never any attack. There were, however, a great many depredations committed by the soldiers themselves. Several of them took grain and cattle by force and it was impossible to secure their punishment ... There was general happiness throughout the settlement when they were afterwards ordered away to a station on the Loup River, familiarly known among the old settlers and soldiers as Fort Desolation on account of the loneliness of the station, there being no settlement in the region."
William Stolley, one of the leaders of the German Colony above referred to, corroborates the story, writing that "Captain Davis and his men were ordered away from here and had to set up camp about thirty-five miles up the South Loup River in the wilderness ... at that time this place was generally called Fort Desolation."
Yet another name for the Fort is found in one of the army reports of July 1865 where reference is made to "Camp Conner." General Patrick Conner was then in charge of the Military District of the Plains, which included Fort Kearney and Post South Loup Fork.
Ravenna people knew about the old fort and generally called it Fort Banishment. It was there before Erastus Smith settled on Beaver Creek in 1874 and before the town was founded in 1886. The old fort grounds at the bend of the river just south of town was a scenic place, a place for swimming, for school picnics and other outdoor gatherings. Children loved to play around the sod embankments. A few artifacts have been found over the years - a bullet, shell casing, percussion cap, mule shoe nail, and square nails. Erosion from floods gradually destroyed the fort site, and finally, the flood of 1947 took away the little evidence remaining that there had been a military post at that place.
A historical society group found the site of Ft. Banishment on August 22, 1982. The group included Paul Toukey and Roy Lindsey whose specialty was frontier military forts and was in charge of Fort Hartsiff for many years.
It was located on the north side of the Loup River on a school land section. No public access to the site. All traces washed away by shifting of the river bed over the years and by the flood in 1947. Just a small piece of the embankment remains, at about 75’. They dug a hole 2 ½ foot deep where a furrier’s fire had been, and found a tinned can (which was described as a Civil War version of MRE), a bullet casing, a bullet & a percussion cap. It was mentioned that it was unusual to find these three pieces of ammunition together in one site.