... Preserved
Photo taken CA. 1910. 1872 Powder Magazine with 1884 Water Tower in background (the tank is removed). Just in front of the Water Tower are remains of the Pump House housing a Steam Engine used to pump water to the tank.
FORT SIDNEY
As the Union Pacific Railroad was built across Western Nebraska in 1867, Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapahoe opposition to its construction intensified. Survey and grading parties were attacked and workers killed. Horses and mules were run off with alarming frequency. In order to protect railroad employees and construction workers, increased military protection was necessary.
Army units from Fort Sedgwick
(40 miles southwest of Sidney) and Fort D.A. Russell (at Cheyenne) provided
escorts, station guards, and scouted along the route of the Union Pacific
through the Lodgepole Creek valley.In 1867, General C.C. Augur, commanding officer of the Department of the Platte, decided to establish a troop station at Sidney. Less than six months old, Sidney was a freight division point for the railroad, and the most important point between North Platte and Cheyenne. In December, Company E, 30th Infantry, under command of Captain Bernard P. Mimmack, arrived. Thus began the 26-year history of Fort Sidney.
The new post was first
designated Sidney Barracks. The initial post site was just south of the railroad
depot, in the present day main business district of town. For two years the
troops lived here in tents with several temporary buildings erected for supplies
and officer housing. In 1869 it was decided to move the embryonic post further
from the depot. The new location was some 400 yards to the southeast, on the
north bank of Lodgepole Creek. By 1870 buildings to house one company of cavalry
had been constructed.
As was typical of frontier
posts, the buildings were arranged around an open parade ground, with no
fortifications. Sidney Barracks was never directly attacked by hostiles,
although a minor raid occurred near the town in the spring of 1870. Soldiers
from the post provided guards to nearby Potter and Lodgepole Stations, and spent
much time scouting and patrolling for hostiles. In addition they pursued small
bands that were reported to have committed depredations against travelers and
setters in western Nebraska and northeastern Colorado.
In 1871 Fort Sedgwick was
abandoned and moved to Sidney Barracks. That year new buildings were added to
the post, including the extant Commanding Officer's quarters. Through the years,
the garrisons at Sidney were increased from one to four and five companies of
troops in the 1880's.The discovery of gold in the Black Hills and the beginnings of the Sidney-Deadwood Trail brought a period of boom and excitement to the town. Between 1875 and 1880, thousands of gold seekers and millions of pounds of supplies and equipment traveled north from Sidney to the Black Hills. During the same period Sidney Barracks became a receiving depot for government freight to be shipped north to military posts and Indian agencies. Soldiers escorted the large bull trains on the trail.
Units stationed at the post
were sent out for duty on the two major campaigns of 1876. Third Cavalry
companies left Sidney for the Yellowstone Expedition in May. That October, two
companies of the 23rd Infantry served with the Powder River Expedition. During
the fall and winter of 1876-77, the famed Pawnee Scouts were stationed at the
post. In 1878 the post became a staging area for army forces attempting to
intercept the Cheyenne bands that broke from their Oklahoma reservations.
After the subjugation of the
Sioux tribes to the reservations in western South Dakota, a number of frontier
posts were abandoned. However, it was determined to continue the garrison at
Sidney Barracks. In December, 1878, the post was redesigned Fort Sidney,
reflecting its more permanent status.The 1880's was a period of peace on the upper plains; Soldiers at the post spent their time with an unchanging routine of drill and fatigue duties. In 1884 Fort Sidney became regimental headquarters for the 21st Infantry. The social life of the post included countless card parties, dances, and theatrical presentations at the post theater. Citizens from the town frequently attended those events.
The monotony of garrison life was broken during the winter of 1890-91. The Ghost Dance mania brought unrest to the Sioux reservations and fear to the white settlers. Troops from Fort Sidney were sent to the Rosebud Agency until the crisis subsided.
During the 1890's it became apparent there was no longer a need to continue Fort Sidney as a military post. At this time the post consisted of some 40 buildings. The use of irrigation in the early 1870's enabled shade trees, shrubs, and a grass-covered parade ground to flourish. To the regret of the townspeople, Fort Sidney was abandoned on June 1, 1894. The buildings were sold at auction in 1899. Over the ensuing years most of the army buildings disappeared, and a residential district now obscures the site of the post. Three structures of the army period remain: the 1871 Commanding Officer's Quarters, 1872 Magazine, and the 1884 Officer's Quarters. The two officer's quarters are today maintained by the Cheyenne County Historical Society.
Officers
Quarters, An authentic restoration housing the Cheyenne County Museum 6th &
Jackson. Both are on the National Register of Historic Places.
Enter
into the living Quarters of the Post Commander during the time from
1867-1894. All furnishings before 1894. Fort Sidney Post Commanders
House is at 1108 6th Ave.