| Fort Robinson State Park | |
|---|---|
 Post headquarters | |
  Fort Robinson State Park Location in Nebraska | |
| Location | Dawes &Sioux counties,Nebraska, United States |
| Nearest city | Crawford, Nebraska |
| Coordinates | 42°40′52″N103°29′49″W / 42.681°N 103.497°W /42.681; -103.497[1] |
| Area | 22,332.72 acres (9,037.73 ha)[1] |
| Elevation | 3,806 ft (1,160 m) |
| Established | 1956[2] |
| Administered by | Nebraska Game and Parks Commission &Nebraska State Historical Society |
| Designation | Nebraska state park |
| Website | Fort Robinson State Park |
Fort Robinson and Red Cloud Agency | |
 Site of the second Red Cloud Agency | |
| Location | Dawes andSioux counties,Nebraska, U.S. |
| Nearest city | Crawford, Nebraska |
| Area | 2,500 acres (10.1 km2)[3] |
| Built | 1873 |
| NRHP reference No. | 66000442 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | October 15, 1966 |
| Designated NHLD | December 19, 1960[4] |
Fort Robinson is a formerU.S. Army fort and now a major feature ofFort Robinson State Park, a 22,000-acre (8,900 ha) public recreation and historic preservation area located 2 miles (3.2 km) west ofCrawford onU.S. Route 20 in thePine Ridge region of northwestNebraska.
The fort was declared aNational Historic Landmark in 1960 and is part of theFort Robinson and Red Cloud Agencyhistoric district. This includes Fort Robinson and the site of the secondRed Cloud Agency (about 1.5 mi (2.4 km) to the east). The district also includes the Camp Canby site and the 1886 Percy Homestead.[3] The fort is managed by theNebraska Game and Parks Commission, with some individual buildings operated by theNebraska State Historical Society and theUniversity of Nebraska–Lincoln.[5]
In August 1873, theRed Cloud Agency was moved from theNorth Platte River to theWhite River, near what is nowCrawford, Nebraska, in the northwest corner of the state. The following March, theU. S. Government authorized the establishment of a military camp at the agency site. Some 13,000Lakota had been subject to resettlement.
The camp was named Camp Robinson in honor of Lt. Levi H. Robinson, who had been killed by Indians nearFort Laramie in February. In May, the military camp was moved 1.5 miles (2.4 km) west of the agency to its present location; the camp was renamed Fort Robinson in January 1878.
Fort Robinson was a base of US military forces and played a major role in theSioux Wars from 1876 to 1890. TheBattle of Warbonnet Creek took place nearby in July 1876. The great war leaderCrazy Horse surrendered at the fort along with his 1,100 followers on May 6, 1877,[6] and on September 5 that year, he was killed there while resisting imprisonment.[7] Upon getting outside the guardhouse door, he was bayoneted in the back by Private William Gentles. The bayonet pierced through his lung and kidney leaving behind a deadly wound. As Crazy Horse collapsed to the ground, Dr. McGillicuddy, order his body to be placed in the nearby Adjutant's Office. Near midnight on September 5th, 1877, Crazy Horse died of his wounds in the Camp Robinson Adjutant's Office. A historic plaque marks the site of his death.
On January 9th,1879, ChiefMorning Star (also known as Dull Knife) led the NorthernCheyenne in a breakout from one of the Fort Robinson Soldier barracks they were being held in. The Northern Cheyenne that were following Dull Knife surrendered to US forces on the banks of Chadron Creek and were then brought into at the time Camp Robinson in mid-October of 1878. Because the Cheyenne had refused to return toIndian Territory, on January 3rd, the military operating at Fort Robinson decided that they were going to withhold food, water and firewood to try to force the Cheyenne into a quicker submission. After arrests of Chiefs Wild Hog and Old Crow and the morning of January 9th, the young men took control and decided that night would be the best time to escape. At 10:00 pm, gunshots rang out from the barrack the Cheyenne were being held in. As the shots erupted the Cheyenne fled out of the barrack heading to Soldier Creek to the south of the fort grounds. Alerted by the gunshots, soldiers from the other barracks began pursuing the escaping, Cheyenne. U.S. soldiers began hunting down the escapees, killing men, women, and children in theFort Robinson massacre. The U.S. Supreme Court described it as a "shocking story", "one of the melancholiest of Indian tragedies".[8] The event marked the end of the Sioux and Cheyenne wars in Nebraska.
In 1885, the9th Cavalry Regiment, nicknamed theBuffalo Soldiers by Native Americans, was stationed at Fort Robinson. During the next several years, the fort was enlarged, and military training was a major activity. From 1889 to 1890, Second LieutenantCharles Young served here and later was reassigned to the regiment. A black pioneer officer who had graduated fromWest Point, he was the highest-ranking black person in the US Army throughout his career and achieved the rank of colonel.[9] From 1887 to 1898, the fort served as regimental headquarters. The post gymnasium and theatre, built in 1904, provided entertainment for the soldiers.[3]
In 1919 at the end ofWorld War I, Fort Robinson became the world's largestquartermaster remount depot. It was used as a breeding and training center for horses and mules for the military. In addition, stallions owned by the military were used to breed with local stock to improve it. During theGreat Depression, ahobo was murdered on aChicago & Northwestern freight train within the fort.[10] DuringWorld War II, the fort was the site of aK-9 corps training center and aGermanprisoner-of-war camp.[11]
The U.S. Army decided to abandon Fort Robinson in 1947; in the following year, it transferred the property to theU.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), for its Beef Cattle Research Station. After some buildings were demolished in the mid-1950s, efforts were made to preserve the fort as a historic site. In 1955, History Nebraska, formally the Nebraska State Historical Society, began to acquire property on the fort; in 1956, they opened a museum on the site. The USDA closed its operation in 1971, and transferred the property to the state of Nebraska.[3][12][11]
The Fort Robinson State Park was established in 1956 following the purchase of a parcel of land by the Nebraska Game, Forestation and Parks Commission in 1955. The park was expanded after much of the site was deeded over from the Federal government in 1964. It reached its full size with Nebraska's purchase of the adjoining James Arthur Ranch in 1972.[2]
The fort's historic buildings and sites include the 1904blacksmith shop, the 1908veterinary hospital, the 1887 officers' quarters, the 1875 guardhouse and adjutant's office, and the post cemetery. There is also a library with materials about Fort Robinson and military and western history available for research. A quartermaster's stores building is now used as a playhouse.[3]
The Fort Robinson Museum is located in the 1905 post headquarters building. Exhibits focus on the fort's history, including its role guarding theRed Cloud Agency from 1874 to 1877, up through the housing ofWorld War II German POWs from 1943 to 1946.[13] TheTrailside Museum of Natural History, operated by theUniversity of Nebraska State Museum, is located in the historic Army Theatre building.[14]
Fort Robinson is also home to The Post Playhouse, a professional theatre company that produces live theatre during summer months with creative teams of actors, musicians, and directors assembled from across the United States and nearby.[15]
| National Historic Landmark |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Historic districts | ||
| Historic properties | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This historic property also has portions in an adjacent county. | |
| National Historic Landmark |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Historic districts | ||
| Historic properties | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This historic property also has portions in an adjacent county. | |