Bird's Fort was a community north of present-day
Arlington,
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
(
USA
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...
).
In 1841, when
John Neely Bryan
John Neely Bryan (December 24, 1810 – September 8, 1877) was a Presbyterian farmer, lawyer, and tradesman in the United States and founder of the city of Dallas, Texas.
Early life
Bryan was born to James and Elizabeth (Neely) Bryan in Faye ...
established Dallas, he invited the settlers at Bird's Fort to come live in his proposed city.
History
The site was named for Major Jonathan Bird, who established a
fort
A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...
there in September 1841 along the
Trinity River, for protection of the settlements along the Texas frontier.
[Fort Tour Systems, Inc. – Bird’s Fort](_blank)
/ref> The garrison was constructed after the battle of Village Creek which occurred on May 24, 1841. Bird's Fort was occupied until March 1842 when the garrison was abandoned due to the threat of a Comanche
The Comanche (), or Nʉmʉnʉʉ (, 'the people'), are a Tribe (Native American), Native American tribe from the Great Plains, Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the List of federally recognized tri ...
attack.
The military installation was the site of the 1843 treaty negotiations between tribal Indians and Anglo
Anglo is a prefix indicating a relation to, or descent from England, English culture, the English people or the English language, such as in the term ''Anglosphere''. It is often used alone, somewhat loosely, to refer to people of British d ...
settlements in the Red River counties.
On August 6, 1843, the ill-fated Snively Expedition was disbanded at Fort Bird.
Bird's Fort was recognized as a Texas historic site in 1936.
County development
Birdville, Texas, (in present-day Haltom City) was the first settlement in Tarrant County
Tarrant County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas with a 2020 U.S. census population of 2,110,640, making it the third-most populous county in Texas and the 15th-most populous in the United States. Its county seat is Fort Worth. T ...
and was named after Bird's Fort.[Hart, Brian]
Birdville, Texas
– Handbook of Texas
See also
* Treaty of Bird's Fort
The Treaty of Bird's Fort, or Bird's Fort Treaty was a peace treaty between the Republic of Texas and some of the Indian tribes of Texas and Oklahoma, signed on September 29, 1843. The treaty was intended to end years of hostilities and warfare b ...
References
External links
*
Birdville Historical Society
Forts in Texas
Populated places established in 1841
1841 establishments in the Republic of Texas
Texas–Indian Wars
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