Fort Hoskins was one of three "forts" (which were actually unfortified posts) built by the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

to monitor the Coastal Indian Reservation in

Oregon Territory The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Oreg ...

(later the U.S. State of

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

) in the mid-19th century. The Fort Hoskins Site is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. Fort Hoskins was garrisoned by a number of companies of soldiers throughout its short existence, and future Union Civil War generals Christopher Columbus Augur and Phil Sheridan were stationed there.

History

Construction on the post began in 1856 on the Luckiamute River under the supervision of then Captain Christopher C. Augur.Corning, Howard M. ''Dictionary of Oregon History''. Binfords & Mort Publishing, 1956. Fort Hoskins was finished in 1857, with then-lieutenant

Philip Sheridan Philip Henry Sheridan (March 6, 1831 – August 5, 1888) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with General-i ...

in charge, and was named after Lt. Charles Hoskins, who had died in the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

. The fort was located about 19 miles northwest of Corvallis. Captain Augur was assigned to Fort Hoskins as its first post commander from 25 July 1856 to 2 July 1861. He and his growing family became the first occupants of their newly constructed residence on Fort Hoskin's "Officer's Row." 2nd Lt. Phil Sheridan oversaw the construction of Fort Hoskins during this period. Two soldiers who were stationed at the fort during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

kept journals of their experiences:

Royal A. Bensell Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, ...

and William M. Hilleary. Their accounts are of unmitigated boredom and dampness, but they provide a good picture of 19th-century life in the area. Fort Hoskins played an indirectly important role in local and state history because of the leadership of several out-of-state soldiers who decided to stay in the area after they were mustered out of the army. Several placenames in the area, such as Kings Valley, are connected with these soldiers. The fort never saw any action, though a bloodless insurrection by Native Americans at

Yaquina Bay Yaquina Bay ( ) is a coastal Estuary, estuarine community found in Newport, Oregon. Yaquina Bay is a semi-enclosed body of water, approximately 8 km2 (3.2 mi2) in area, with free connection to the Pacific Ocean, but also diluted with fre ...

was put down by the soldiers. After the Civil War ended, it was discovered that Fort Hoskins had been an outpost of interest to the former Confederate government. Fort Hoskins was abandoned in 1865.

Archeological site

The site of the fort was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. In 2002, Benton County opened the site as Fort Hoskins Historical Park. In 2012, the fort commander's house was moved back to its original site at Fort Hoskins from nearby Pedee, where it had been moved after the fort was closed. In 2015, Benton County approved funds for an exterior restoration of the house.Bennett Hall
"Commander’s House at Fort Hoskins set for major renovation"
''Corvallis Gazette-Times'', originally published January 22, 2015; updated Jan 25, 2015

Community and post office

The community of Hoskins was located at , west of

Oregon Route 223 Oregon Route 223 is a state highway in the U.S. State of Oregon, which runs between the town of Wren, Oregon and the city of Dallas, Oregon. It is known as the Kings Valley Highway No. 191 (see Oregon highways and routes) and is long. It ...

's intersection with Hoskins Road, northwest of

Wren Wrens are a family, Troglodytidae, of small brown passerine birds. The family includes 96 species and is divided into 19 genera. All species are restricted to the New World except for the Eurasian wren that is widely distributed in the Old Worl ...

and southwest of Kings Valley. Hoskins post office, named for the long-abandoned fort, was established in 1891 and ran until 1965. Hoskins was a station on and the headquarters of the

Valley and Siletz Railroad The Valley and Siletz Railroad (VS) is a defunct railroad located in Polk and Benton counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. The railroad began construction in 1912. It was long by 1915, long by 1917, and was extended to and completed later th ...

, and a mercantile community, including a tavern and a store, grew up around the railroad. Railroad infrastructure at Hoskins included a yard and a roundhouse, as well a shop building constructed around 1914. In 1915, the population of Hoskins was 150, and the community had a school. At one time there was a

covered bridge A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...

across the Luckiamute at this location. According to author

Ralph Friedman Ralph Friedman (June 3, 1916 – June 3, 1995) was an American author, best known for his books about Oregon, which included travel guides and popular histories. Born and raised to an impoverished Lithuanian Jewish immigrant family in Chicago, ...

, the yards, roundhouse, and covered bridge were all gone by 1990, and the only business remaining by 1972 was the tavern. The James Watson House, part of the National Register of Historic Places–listed Watson–Price Farmstead in Hoskins, was built in the 1850s and is thought to be the first plastered house in the state. The Samuel Frantz (Dunn-Frantz) House was converted to a residence after serving as the fort's infirmary; it is now part of the county park.

References

External links

a self-published history 1857 establishments in Oregon Territory 1865 disestablishments in Oregon

Hoskins Hoskins is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Allen Hoskins (1920–1980), American child actor who played Farina in the Our Gang series * Andrew Hoskins (born 1975), Canadian rower * Anthony Hoskins (1828–1901), Royal Navy a ...

Former installations of the United States Army County parks in Oregon

Landmarks in Oregon National Register of Historic Places in Benton County, Oregon Oregon in the American Civil War Parks in Benton County, Oregon

History

Archeological site

Community and post office

See also

References

Further reading

External links