Fort Zarah was a fort in

Barton County, Kansas Barton County (standard abbreviation: BT) is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 25,493. Its county seat and most populous city is Great Bend. The county is named in honor of Clara ...

, northeast of present-day

Great Bend Great Bend is a city in and the county seat of Barton County, Kansas, United States. It is named for its location at the point where the course of the Arkansas River bends east then southeast. As of the 2020 census, the population of the ci ...

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

, that was used from 1864 to 1869.

Dates of operation

In July 1864, because of frequent attacks from indigenous tribes in the area, Camp Dunlap was established 2 miles east of present-day

Great Bend, Kansas Great Bend is a city in and the county seat of Barton County, Kansas, United States. It is named for its location at the point where the course of the Arkansas River bends east then southeast. As of the 2020 census, the population of the ci ...

, where the Santa Fe Trail crossed Walnut Creek. At first the camp was a series of tents and dugouts on the riverbank close to the Rath Ranch (trading post). However work immediately started on a more permanent facility about 100 yards from the dugouts and renamed Fort Zarah. In 1866 it was replaced by a second Fort Zarah built about 1/2 mile up river. Ft. Zarah was abandoned in 1869.

Place in history

Even though Fort Zarah had a short life, it saw its share of skirmishes with local Native American tribes and colorful characters including

George Armstrong Custer George Armstrong Custer (December 5, 1839 – June 25, 1876) was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the American Indian Wars. Custer graduated from West Point in 1861 at the bottom of his class, b ...

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, Buffalo Bill Mathewson,

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, and the Kiowa chief Satank aka

Sitting Bear Satank (Set-angya or Set-ankeah, translated as chief Topinabee A quiet Sitting Bear) was a prestigious Kiowa warrior and medicine man. He was born about 1800, probably in Kansas, and killed June 8, 1871. An able warrior, he became part of the Koi ...

Name

Fort Zarah was established in 1864 by General Samuel R. Curtis and named for his son, Major H. Zarah Curtis who had been killed in the

Baxter Springs, Kansas Baxter Springs is a city in Cherokee County, Kansas, United States, and located along Spring River. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 3,888. History For thousands of years, indigenous peoples had lived along the wate ...

massacre, October 6, 1863. Major Curtis was one of 90 Union soldiers killed by

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who were disguised as Union soldiers.

Zarah town

A small town called Zarah grew up around Fort Zarah. At its peak, Zarah had a hotel, two saloons, a blacksmith shop, a livery stable, a general store, a post office, and several homes. Several thousand Texas cattle were wintered there. The town of Zarah is now a wheat field 3 miles east of Great Bend. The last citizen left Zarah in 1875 about 6 years after the fort was abandoned.

Ranch/trading post at Walnut Creek

Fort Zarah was established near a ranch (trading post) where the Santa Fe Trail crossed Walnut Creek. The ranch was established in 1855 and was known as the Allison/Boothe Ranch, the Peacock Ranch, the Rath Ranch, or the Douglas trading post, depending on who operated it. The ranch was destroyed by Indians in May 1868.Barry, op. cit.

References

External links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20070927001042/http://skyways.lib.ks.us/history/zarah.html *https://web.archive.org/web/20070102173628/http://skyways.lib.ks.us/genweb/archives/1912/f/fort_zarah.html *http://www.santafetrailresearch.com/research/fort-zarah-kansas.html {{coord, 38, 24, 10, N, 98, 43, 50, W, display=title Buildings and structures in Barton County, Kansas Zarah 1864 establishments in Kansas Santa Fe Trail