Camp Polk was a former

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

camp in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

that was established in Deschutes County in 1865.History of a Place Timeline: Camp Polk Meadow Preserve
from

Oregon Public Broadcasting Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) is the primary television and radio public broadcasting network for most of the U.S. state of Oregon as well as southern Washington. OPB consists of five full-power television stations, dozens of VHF or UHF tra ...

's ''The Oregon Story'' It was a post of the District of Oregon. One of nine camps created during a time of conflict between settlers and Native Americans, it was located three miles northeast of the present-day city of

Sisters A sister is a woman or a girl who shares one or more parents with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to ...

.Corning, Howard M. ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956. The camp was intended to house troops who would protect

settler A settler is a person who has human migration, migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a ...

s on the

Santiam Wagon Road The Santiam Wagon Road was a freight route in the U.S. state of Oregon between the Willamette Valley and Central Oregon regions from 1865 to the 1930s. It is considered one of the most important historical routes in the state. Officially known as ...

from

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

attack. Part of Company A, a group of volunteer soldiers from the

Willamette Valley The Willamette Valley ( ) is a long valley in Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The Willamette River flows the entire length of the valley and is surrounded by mountains on three sides: the Cascade Range to the east, ...

under the command of Captain Charles La Follette, were stationed at the post. The camp was named for

Polk County Polk County is the name of twelve counties in the United States, all except two named after president of the United States James Knox Polk: * Polk County, Arkansas * Polk County, Florida * Polk County, Georgia * Polk County, Iowa * Polk Count ...

, which was the home of most of the soldiers and their captain.Camp Polk Meadow Historical Timeline
from Deschutes Basin Land Trust No attacks occurred, and the troops received orders before winter in 1865 to leave the camp. A portion of the troops remained at the post until the spring of 1866 when Camp Polk was abandoned. Later the area was homesteaded by the Hindman family. Today part of the former area of Camp Polk is preserved by the Deschutes Basin Land Trust as the Camp Polk Meadow Preserve. The Hindmans' 1871 barn on the preserve is Deschutes County's oldest structure.

References

External links

Camp Polk Meadow Preserve
from Deschutes Basin Land Trust
Camp Polk Cemetery
from U.S.genweb
Image of Hindman Barn
Snake War Protected areas of Deschutes County, Oregon Military installations in Oregon Closed installations of the United States Army American Civil War army posts Oregon in the American Civil War 1865 establishments in Oregon 1866 disestablishments in Oregon {{DeschutesCountyOR-geo-stub