The Salina Stockade was built in
Salina, Kansas
Salina is a city in, and the county seat of, Saline County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,889.
In the early 1800s, the Kanza tribal land reached eastward from the middle of the Kansas Territory. In 1 ...
, to provide the residents with protection from the American Indians in the area, many of whom were hostile toward white settlement. Salina had been raided in 1862 by Native Americans and then Confederate guerrillas, but it was not until May 1864 when residents decided they needed to build a
stockade for protection. On May 17, 1864, a makeshift stockade, consisting of
wagons placed in a circle around the town's flagpole, was erected. The local militia then drilled and guarded Salina. On the northeast corner of 7th Street and Iron Avenue stood a small building. Around this a permanent stockade was erected in May and June 1864.
History
The stockade, measuring by , was started on May 29, 1864. It consisted of logs set upright on end in an oval. They were long and the ends were buried into the ground.
Porthole
A porthole, sometimes called bull's-eye window or bull's-eye, is a generally circular window used on the hull of ships to admit light and air. Though the term is of maritime origin, it is also used to describe round windows on armored vehicle ...
s were cut out at short distances around the stockade to allow men to shoot through them at anyone attacking the stockade. A heavy gate was placed at the southeast corner of the stockade. The construction was completed June 8.
In June 1864, just after the completion of the stockade, the commander of
Fort Riley
Fort Riley is a United States Army installation located in North Central Kansas, on the Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, between Junction City and Manhattan. The Fort Riley Military Reservation covers 101,733 acres (41,170 ha) in Ge ...
sent twenty-five troops, commanded by Lieut. John M. Clark, to garrison the stockade. In July Capt. Henry Booth became the commander in Salina and he brought one artillery piece with him. While Booth was at Salina, he was involved in helping area settlers and friendly Indians in their conflicts with Indians opposed to white settlers. Conflicts in the area with certain Indian groups remained until at least the end of the Civil War. From October 1864 to at least March 1865, Capt. Elisha Hammer commanded Salina's post.
Meanwhile, the building inside the stockade was remodeled and in September 1864 was opened as Salina's first public school. The school term ran until March 1865. The use of the building probably continued until at least June 1865.
[Ruby P. Bramwell, ''City on the Move: The Story of Salina'' (Salina: Survey Press, 1969), p. 61.]
Troops were stationed at Salina until March 1865, when apparently they were removed. On June 20, 1865, an order was issued to place a company of troops from the 15th Kansas Cavalry at Salina, but there is no confirmation that this was done.
[Kansas Acting Asst. Adjutant-General Robert S. Roe, report, ''The War of the Rebellion'' (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1896), Series I, Vol. XLVIII, Part II, p. 949.]
See also
*
Whiteford (Price) Archeological Site
References
{{Reflist
Closed installations of the United States Army
category:Forts in Kansas
category:Saline County, Kansas
1864 establishments in Kansas