The storied past of Fort Lyon, Colorado, reveals a complex tapestry of military strategic importance, frontier conflict, and profound transformation. Originally established as Fort Wise in 1860, this pivotal outpost near Bent’s New Fort played a crucial role in safeguarding the American West.
The Origins of Fort Wise and Its Strategic Role
In 1860, the U.S. Army established Fort Wise just west of William Bent’s New Fort in Colorado. Named after Henry Wise, then governor of Virginia, this new fortification quickly became a vital military link on the demanding Santa Fe Trail. It connected distant outposts like Fort Leavenworth in Kansas and Fort Union in New Mexico, ensuring critical communication and supply lines across the vast expanse of the frontier.
Concurrent with its establishment, the Army leased William Bent’s substantial fortification, integrating its 12 rooms surrounding a central courtyard. These existing structures were efficiently repurposed to serve as the fort’s commissary and to house the Upper Arkansas Indian Agency, signifying the dual military and administrative responsibilities of the post from its inception. This early arrangement underscored the strategic importance of the location, not only for defense but also for managing relations with Native American tribes.
From Fort Wise to Fort Lyon, Colorado: A Civil War Legacy
The outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861 brought about a significant change for the outpost. In a deliberate move to disavow Confederate leaders and reinforce Union allegiance, the U.S. government officially renamed the post Fort Lyon. This renaming honored General Nathaniel Lyon, a revered Union hero who had tragically fallen at the Battle of Wilson’s Creek, Missouri, on August 10, 1861. The new name cemented the fort’s allegiance and its continued importance to the Union cause in the western territories.
Fort Lyon’s garrison actively contributed to the Union war effort. In 1862, its troops marched into New Mexico, playing a crucial part in the defeat of a Confederate force from Texas during the Battle of Glorieta Pass, a decisive engagement that secured the Southwest for the Union. For the remainder of the Civil War, Fort Lyon stood as the principal guardian of the Mountain Branch of the Santa Fe Trail. Its detachments cooperated with forces from Fort Larned, Kansas, and Fort Union, New Mexico, to escort vital traffic along the upper reaches of the Arkansas River to Raton Pass, diligently protecting settlers, supplies, and communications from both potential Confederate threats and increasingly hostile Native American incursions.
The Shadow of Sand Creek: Fort Lyon and Native American Relations
Beyond its Civil War duties, Fort Lyon, Colorado, became tragically entangled in the escalating conflicts with Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes. Tensions had been brewing for years, despite the Treaty of Fort Wise in 1861, which had seen some chiefs, pacified by Colonel Edwin V. Sumner’s 1857 campaign, cede ancestral lands and agree to settle on reservations. This treaty aimed to guarantee peace along the Santa Fe Trail, but many other chiefs refused to acknowledge its legitimacy, continuing to hunt buffalo between the Platte and Arkansas Rivers and leading to inevitable clashes with encroaching miners and settlers. The rapid influx of prospectors and homesteaders into Colorado, particularly while the territory’s regular troops were deployed in the Civil War, exacerbated these tensions.
The spring of 1864 witnessed a predictable surge in hostilities. Warriors, driven by desperation and a desire to protect their diminishing lands, launched retaliatory raids on roads and settlements throughout the summer. This effectively halted traffic on the Santa Fe Trail and intensified demands from the territorial government and frustrated populace for decisive military action against the Native American tribes. The volatile situation set the stage for one of the most infamous atrocities in American history.
The Devastation of the Sand Creek Massacre
The rising animosity reached a brutal climax in November 1864 with the Sand Creek Massacre. Approximately 40 miles down the Arkansas River from Fort Lyon, a group of peaceful Cheyenne Indians, led by Chief Black Kettle, were encamped. They had been assured of protection by military authorities at Fort Lyon and were flying both an American flag and a white flag of truce over their village, believing they were under the fort’s protection as they journeyed to a new reservation in Oklahoma. Tragically, these assurances proved false. Colonel John Chivington, leading a force of Colorado volunteer cavalry, ordered an attack. The ensuing massacre indiscriminately killed an estimated 150-200 Cheyenne and Arapaho, primarily elderly men, women, and children. This horrific event, which defied established protocols and humanitarian principles, resulted in a swift and widespread congressional investigation and ignited a national wave of public outrage. The Sand Creek Massacre stands as a stark reminder of the brutality and broken promises of frontier expansion, profoundly infuriating the Plains Indians and prompting them to launch a widespread and devastating full-scale war against American settlers and military outposts, escalating conflicts across the region for years to come.
The “New” Fort Lyon and Kit Carson’s Final Days
Due to frequent flooding of the Arkansas River, persistent unhealthful conditions, and a dwindling supply of timber at its original location, the Army decided to relocate the fort in the summer of 1867. The new post, briefly known as Fort Lyon No. 2, was established approximately 20 miles upstream on a bluff about two miles below the mouth of the Purgatoire River, east of present-day Las Animas, Colorado. The original dirt-roofed stone buildings of the first Fort Lyon found temporary use as a stage station for a Kansas City-Santa Fe line before being eventually burned by angry Native Americans, leaving no visible remains today.
By the time the new Fort Lyon became fully operational, the immediate need to protect the Mountain Branch of the Santa Fe Trail had diminished. Military focus had shifted towards Indian campaigns in Kansas and Oklahoma, reducing the fort’s direct role in frontier defense. Nevertheless, troops from the relocated fort played a minor role in General Philip Sheridan’s comprehensive Indian campaign of 1868-69, participating in efforts to quell ongoing hostilities.
The “new” Fort Lyon is also famously associated with the final days of Kit Carson. The renowned Indian scout, trapper, guide, and former U.S. Army General had resigned his commission in 1867 and moved his family to Boggsville, Colorado, a few miles south of Fort Lyon, after being appointed Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Colorado Territory. Despite his failing health and his wife Josefa’s pregnancy, Carson led a Ute delegation to Washington, D.C., in early 1868. Tragically, Josefa died in childbirth in April. With his own health rapidly deteriorating, Carson sought medical attention at Assistant U.S. Surgeon H.K. Tilden’s quarters at Fort Lyon. There, on May 23, 1868, at the age of 58, he suffered an abdominal aortic aneurysm and passed away, leaving behind an indelible mark on frontier history. His death at Fort Lyon remains a significant historical footnote, marking the end of an era for one of the West’s most iconic figures.
Transformation and Modern Legacy of Fort Lyon, Colorado
The U.S. Army officially abandoned Fort Lyon in 1897, marking the end of its military tenure. However, its story was far from over. In 1906, the U.S. Navy took over the grounds, converting the site into a tuberculosis hospital. This facility became a crucial center for treating servicemen suffering from the prevalent disease, operating until 1922. During its time as a Navy sanatorium, Fort Lyon provided specialized care in a climate believed to be beneficial for respiratory ailments, adapting its purpose from military defense to public health and welfare.
A decade later, in 1930, the property transitioned once more, this time to the Veterans Administration. It was repurposed as a hospital specifically for veterans, a mission it proudly maintained for decades. During this extensive period, many of the original adobe and stone structures were thoughtfully remodeled and updated to meet modern medical standards, yet they continued to be utilized. These included the historic commissary building, various officers’ quarters, several storehouses, and the commanding officer’s residence, all adapted to serve the evolving needs of veteran healthcare. The transition highlighted the nation’s enduring commitment to its servicemen and women, long after the frontier conflicts had subsided.
The VA hospital eventually closed in 2001, and the site was handed over to the State of Colorado. For a brief period, it functioned as a minimum-security prison, a stark contrast to its previous roles. However, that correctional facility too ceased operations, paving the way for the most recent and arguably most humanitarian transformation. Today, the site has embraced a remarkable new purpose, becoming the Fort Lyon Supportive Residential Community. This innovative initiative provides recovery-oriented transitional housing, comprehensive counseling, vital education, and essential employment services specifically for the homeless. It offers a path to stability, rehabilitation, and reintegration into society, leveraging the historical grounds for contemporary social good. This ongoing transformation underscores the enduring adaptability and importance of the Fort Lyon site to its community.
The Fort Lyon National Cemetery, established with its first burials in 1907, remains an active and sacred space, serving as the final resting place for veterans and their families. Nearby, a poignant memorial stands: a chapel constructed from the very stones of the building where the legendary Kit Carson died, a lasting tribute to his frontier spirit and the site’s rich history. Both the cemetery and the chapel serve as powerful reminders of the many lives touched by Fort Lyon, Colorado, through peace and conflict, and its continued significance today.
Locating the Historic Fort Lyon Sites
The first Fort Lyon, though privately owned with no visible remains today, is commemorated by a marker on a secondary road approximately 1.5 miles south of U.S. 50, about eight miles west of Lamar, Colorado. The site of the second, “new” Fort Lyon, Colorado, which saw Kit Carson’s final moments and later transformations, can be found on County Road 183, roughly five miles northeast of Las Animas. From a critical military outpost to a symbol of frontier conflict and eventually a place of healing and rehabilitation, the history of Fort Lyon reflects the dynamic and often tumultuous development of the American West. Its enduring legacy continues to shape the understanding of Colorado’s past and its ongoing efforts to support its citizens.
