Fort Brown facts for kids
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Fort Brown
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Period map of Fort Brown in the park exhibit.
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 Fort Brown
Location in Texas
Fort Brown
Location in the United States
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| Location | S edge of Brownsville off International Blvd., Brownsville, Texas |
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| Area | 20 acres (8.1 ha) |
| Built | 1846 |
| NRHP reference No. | 66000811 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | October 15, 1966 |
| Designated NHLD | December 19, 1960 |
Fort Brown was an important military base for the United States Army. It was located in Cameron County, Texas. The fort was active from the mid-1800s to the early 1900s.
It was first built in 1846. This made it the first U.S. Army outpost in Texas after Texas joined the United States. Soldiers from the Confederate Army fought here during the American Civil War. Later, in the early 1900s, it helped with border issues with Mexico. Today, parts of the fort are a National Historic Landmark. This means they are very important historical sites.
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Building Fort Brown
In 1846, Captain Joseph K. Mansfield helped build a fort. It was shaped like a star and could hold 800 soldiers. This fort was first called "Fort Texas." It was built on the north side of the Rio Grande river. The goal was to control the city of Matamoros across the river.
The next year, the fort was attacked. This happened at the start of the Mexican–American War. During this attack, two American soldiers died. One of them was Major Jacob Brown. To honor him, General Zachary Taylor renamed the fort "Fort Brown." In 1849, the city of Brownsville, Texas, was founded nearby. This happened after the United States won Texas in the war.
Fort Brown During the Civil War
In 1861, Confederate forces took control of Fort Brown. Colonel John Salmon Ford led these troops. They stayed at the fort until 1863.
Then, Union soldiers, led by General Nathaniel P. Banks, took over. They set up their tents at the fort. But in 1864, Confederate forces took the fort back. They held it until the war ended. After the war, Union forces returned to occupy the fort.
Fighting Yellow Fever
From 1867 to 1869, a permanent U.S. Army fort was built. Captain William A. Wainwright oversaw this construction.
In 1882, Dr. William Crawford Gorgas worked at the hospital at Fort Brown. At that time, there was a big outbreak of yellow fever. Dr. Gorgas used Fort Brown as his base. He studied the disease for several years. His work helped a lot in understanding and fighting yellow fever.
The Brownsville Incident
A group of African-American soldiers, known as Buffalo Soldiers, were stationed at Fort Brown. Some people in Brownsville did not like the Black soldiers being there. This caused problems and tensions grew.
On August 13 and 14, 1906, there was a shooting incident in Brownsville. One White man was hurt, and another, Frank Natus, was killed. People in Brownsville quickly blamed the Black soldiers. The Army investigated and decided the Black soldiers were guilty. However, their officers said the soldiers were at the fort during the incident.
William H. Taft, who was the Secretary of War, ordered all 168 Black soldiers to be discharged. This meant they were removed from the Army without honor.
Years later, in 1972, the Army looked into the incident again. They found that the Black soldiers were not responsible. They were given honorable discharges, but only two of the soldiers were still alive. These two men received money as compensation.
Historians have studied this event a lot. Some believe that people from Brownsville caused the shooting. They might have used the same type of bullets as the soldiers to make it look like the soldiers were responsible.
First Airplane Attacked by Hostile Fire
On April 20, 1915, something historic happened at Fort Brown. U.S. Signal Corps officers Byron Q. Jones and Thomas Millings flew a Martin T airplane. They were flying over the fort to watch for movements of Mexican Revolutionary leader Pancho Villa.
The plane flew very high, about 2,600 feet. It stayed in the air for 20 minutes. The plane did not cross into Mexico. However, it was shot at by machine guns and small arms from the ground. This was the first time a U.S. airplane was attacked by hostile fire. These patrols continued for six weeks. They were used even more effectively in 1916.
The 124th Cavalry Regiment
From 1929 to 1945, soldiers from the 124th Cavalry Regiment were stationed at Fort Brown. This was a Texas National Guard unit. It was one of the last cavalry regiments in the U.S. Army that still rode horses.
In November 1940, they began active military training. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the unit served in World War II. They fought in the China Burma India Theater. A soldier from this unit, Jack L. Knight, earned the only Medal of Honor in that theater.
Fort Brown During World War II
During World War II, Fort Brown was used by the U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF). This happened on July 7, 1943. The fort was used for training pilots in gunnery. This training continued until the fort was closed on February 1, 1946.
Closing of Fort Brown
On February 1, 1946, Fort Brown was officially closed. It was then given to the Army Corps of Engineers. In 1948, the City of Brownsville and Texas Southmost College took over the land.
In 1960, three areas that were once part of the fort became a National Historic Landmark District. These areas include:
- Earthworks built in 1846.
- A cavalry barracks built in 1848.
- Several buildings from 1868-1870. These include a hospital, morgue, barracks, and officers' quarters.
Recently, in 2023, a law was passed to add Fort Brown to the Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park. This will help protect its history even more.
Gallery
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Remnants of the Fort Brown earthworks form the boundary of the Fort Brown Memorial Golf Course and the driving range.
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Some of the buildings at Fort Brown
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Champion Hall, which served as the medical laboratory and isolation ward until World War I
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Monument to the fallen Maj. Brown
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Texas historical marker
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Texas historical marker commemorating the siege
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Texas historical marker explaining the dimensions of the fort
