Fort Davis Texas
Volcanic eruptions formed the Davis
Mountains during the Tertiary geologic period between 35 and 65
million years ago. The Davis Mountains are a part of the most
southeastern range of the Rocky Mountains in the United States.
The earliest human habitation discovered so
far is about 7000 BC. Numerous caves and rock shelters with rock
art have been found, and anthropologists think many
archeological sites may remain undiscovered in remote mountain
areas. Indeed, the water and game of the high country made the
mountains popular with Lipan and Mescalero Apache, also the
Kiowa and the Comanche. The mountains get their name from the
Fort Davis military post, before that they were known as the
Apache Mountains.
The first Spanish expedition through what
is now, Fort Davis came in 1583; a second group followed 100
years later. Few Americans, had seen the Davis Mountains prior
to end of the war with Mexico in 1846. After the war with
Mexico, as west Texas settlements increased, and a wave of gold
seekers, settlers, and traders came through the area, the need
for a military post soon became evident. As raiding along the
San Antonio-El Paso Trail became a way of life for Apaches,
Kiowas, and Comanches.
From
1859 to 1861, Butterfield Overland Stage Line and Mail Company
coaches transported mail to California linking St. Louis, San
Antonio, Fort Davis and El Paso. The route used by the company
quickly became known as part of the Overland Trail with Fort
Davis serving as a major stopping point.
Because of the inscriptions left on the
giant cottonwoods by the native americans who traveled through
here, the Fort Davis area was initially known to many immigrant
parties as the Painted Comanche Camp or The Painted Camp on the
Limpia. As the post grew, several settlements near and adjacent
to the fort developed. The small nearby settlements along Limpia
Creek boasted about 70 residents (Limpia means "clear or clean" in Spanish--and the water in the creek is still probably some of
the cleanest in Texas). It became the town and took its name
from the post, named after the then Secretary of War, Jefferson
Davis, (later on he was to become the president of the
Confederacy). With the outbreak of the Civil War, the Union
abandoned Fort Davis. Briefly occupied by Confederate forces,
then for the next five years the military post of Fort Davis lay
abandoned.
In
1867, because of continuing bandit, Apache and Comanche raids
along the Overland Trail the Army reestablished the post.
African American troops of the Ninth U.S. Cavalry, one of two
all black cavalry regiments organized in 1866 (later to be known
by their designation by the Indians as "Buffalo Soldiers")
immediately began construction of a new post just east of the
original site.
The westward expansion of the railroads
missed Fort Davis, but linked nearby Alpine and Marfa with
larger cities. Thus, they became the commercial centers of the
area. In 1891, the military post of Fort Davis was closed and
the town of Fort Davis evolved into a ranching and tourism
center. By the early 1900s, well-to-do Texans escaping the heat
and humidity of the coast, Hill Country and East Texas came by
the hundreds thirsty for the majestic desert vistas, pure
mountain air, star-bright nights and friendly inhabitants.
After closing, the fort's dignified adobe
and stone buildings slowly deteriorated under private ownership.
In 1961, thanks to the efforts of the Fort Davis Historical
Society and area residents, Fort Davis was designated a National
Historic Site, operated by the National Park Service. In 1963,
the Fort Davis National Historic Site opened to the public year
round except on Christmas Day.
Today, ranching and tourism still reigns,
but Fort Davis is also known as the "Highest Town in Texas –
Where the Stars Come Out to Play." Located here is the
University of Texas, McDonald Observatory, the observatory hosts
the 107" Harlan J. Smith telescope located atop 6800 feet Mt.
Locke and the Hobby-Ebberly Telescope (HET) containing the
World's third largest mirror (433") made up of ninety-one
40-inch mirror segments on adjacent Mt. Fowlkes. Our unspoiled
vistas have made us a film making location "Lonesome Dove," "The
Good Old Boys," "The Streets of Laredo," "Dead Man's Walk," and
most recently. "Dancer, Texas, Pop: 81." We are the host to four
of the world's largest greenhouses at 26 acres each and--perhaps
most significantly--as one of the last unspoiled places in the
great State of Texas
