Fort Lowell (Tucson, Arizona) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Fort Lowell
Tucson, Arizona
Ruins of the hospital at Old Fort Lowell, Tucson
Coordinates	32°15′36″N 110°52′26″W / 32.26000°N 110.87389°W / 32.26000; -110.87389
Type	Army fortification
Site information
Controlled by	Arizona
Condition	tourist attraction
Site history
Built	1873
Built by	United States
In use	1873–1891
Materials	adobe, mesquite, earth
Battles/wars	Apache Wars
Garrison information
Occupants	United States Army

Fort Lowell was an important United States Army base near Tucson, Arizona. It was used from 1873 to 1891. This fort took over from an earlier Army camp called Camp Lowell.

The Army picked this spot because it had water all year round. Two creeks, the Tanque Verde and Pantano, meet here to form the Rillito River. Long ago, the Hohokam people also lived here for the same reason. Even today, you can find pieces of Hohokam pottery in the area. The Army's land for the fort was huge, about eighty square miles!

The Story of Fort Lowell

How the Fort Started

A military post was first set up in Tucson on May 20, 1862. This happened after soldiers from California pushed Confederate troops out of the area. The post was closed for a short time but reopened in July 1865.

On August 29, 1866, it was named Camp Lowell. This honored General Charles Russell Lowell, who was hurt in a battle and later died. The camp was first in downtown Tucson. But it was moved on March 31, 1873, about 7 miles (11 km) east of town. This move was for health reasons. On April 5, 1879, the camp's name changed to Fort Lowell.

Life at the Fort During the Old West

Fort Lowell was very important during the Apache Wars. It helped protect the Tucson area. The fort was too big and had too many soldiers to be attacked directly. Instead, it sent supplies and soldiers to smaller military posts nearby.

During its 18 years of use, Fort Lowell usually had about 13 officers and 239 enlisted men. Many different Army units served there. These included the 2nd, 4th, 5th, and 6th Cavalry Regiments. Also, the 1st, 8th, and 12th Infantry Regiments were stationed there.

The fort was built around a large parade ground. It had homes for officers, storage buildings for supplies, and stables for horses. There were also living areas for soldiers and married non-commissioned officers. The most important building was the hospital. Its adobe walls still stand today under a protective roof. A road lined with cottonwood trees, called Cottonwood Lane, was in front of the officers' homes.

Some famous people served at Fort Lowell. One was Walter Reed, an Army doctor known for his research on yellow fever. Another was Charles Bendire, a bird expert. A type of bird, Bendire's thrasher, is named after him.

El Fuerte: A New Community Grows

After the Army closed Fort Lowell in 1891, the land was sold. Private farms started up again along the Rillito River. Many families from Sonora, Mexico, moved north. They used the old fort buildings as homes and found jobs on the farms.

In the early 1900s, a small village grew west of the fort's ruins. This time is known as the El Fuerte Period. The community of adobe houses kept growing. It soon included the El Callejón Fort Lowell School and two churches. These were San Pedro Chapel and the Fort Lowell Union Church. These three buildings became the center of the village, like an informal town square.

Fort Lowell Art Colony

In the 1930s, artists Nan, Pete, and Charles Bolsius rebuilt the old Post Traders Store. They made it their home and art studio. By the 1940s, more artists moved to the Fort Lowell area. This created a growing art colony. Many important artists and thinkers lived there. These included painters, sculptors, designers, and anthropologists.

The artist colony also attracted writers and poets. One famous writer was Jack Kerouac. He visited the area, and his trip is mentioned in his well-known book, On the Road.

Fort Lowell and the Boy Scouts

The Boy Scouts of Tucson had a long connection with Fort Lowell. This was explained by columnist David Leighton in the Arizona Daily Star newspaper.

The first known visit by Tucson Boy Scouts to the old fort ruins was in April 1912. The scouts marched to the abandoned fort. They were led by a member of the University of Arizona's military cadet program. During their week-long camp, the boys practiced like soldiers. They also had free time to look for Native American artifacts.

A few years later, a Fort Lowell Boy Scout troop was formed. These boys lived in the neighborhood that grew around the old fort ruins, called El Fuerte. Another farming community nearby, called Binghamton, also had a troop. The two troops played baseball games. They are thought to have used the fort area often for camping and target practice until about 1921. That's when Camp Lawton opened on Mount Lemmon. Later, the Boy Scouts of Tucson became part of the Catalina Council of the Boy Scouts of America.

As years passed, the old fort changed owners several times. At one point, the Arizona State Museum of the University of Arizona controlled it.

In 1945, with help from a local rancher named Carlos Ronstadt, the Boy Scouts bought 40 acres of the old ruins. This stopped developers from building houses where the ruins were. The Boy Scouts and volunteers put in a water system. They also got three buildings for the site. One building became the Fort Lowell Training Center. Another was used as the Ranger Station. In 1953, the scouts got money to build a roof over the remains of the old hospital. This roof is still there today. They also put up a fence and a flagpole.

Many successful scout events happened there. But by 1957, the Boy Scouts realized they didn't have enough money to keep up the site. So, they sold it to Pima County that year.

Fort Lowell Park

Fort Lowell Park
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
Fort Lowell Park Museum
Location	2900 North Craycroft Road, Tucson, Arizona
Area	20 acres (8.1 ha)
Built	1878
NRHP reference No.	78003358
Added to NRHP	1978

For many years, the fort lay in ruins. Many of its adobe buildings fell apart. Some parts of the fort were sold to families in Tucson. In 1928, the Adkins family bought a large part of the fort's land. They started a steel tank business there.

In 2006, the Adkins family gave their land (called the Adkins Parcel) to the City of Tucson. In 2009, the city and Pima County made a plan. This plan was to create and develop what is now Fort Lowell Park.

The park has many fun things to do. It features ball fields, tennis courts, and racquetball courts. There is also a large public swimming pool. The Fort Lowell Museum is also in the park. It teaches visitors about Fort Lowell's time as an active military base. Fort Lowell Park also has a large pond.

Tucson bought the former Adkins property. This land is where the last original officers' quarters stand. There were plans to open these buildings to the public as a museum. However, high levels of lead paint were found. So, the buildings were not opened. On the north side of this land, there is a pile of large stones. People say these stones were part of the guardhouse where Geronimo was held. This was before he was moved from Arizona.

The Fort Lowell Museum is in the rebuilt Commanding Officer's quarters. It is run by the Tucson Presidio Trust. The museum shows what military life was like on the Arizona frontier. The Fort Lowell Historic District is the neighborhood around the fort. It is a special historic district.

Fort Lowell was the setting for a TV show from 1957-1958. It was a Western television series called Boots and Saddles. A rebuilt Fort Lowell was also shown in the 1972 movie Ulzana's Raid. This movie starred Burt Lancaster. But the fort in the movie was actually built near Nogales, Arizona.

Historic Recognition

Fort Lowell Park and its ruins were added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 13, 1978. This means they are important historical sites. Other buildings that were part of the fort are also listed as historic. These include:

• Charles Bolsius House, a 20th-century house built around one of the fort's original storehouses.
• Fort Lowell Officer's Quarter's
• Fort Lowell Quartermaster's Quarters
• Las Saetas, Fort Lowell Post Traders Store
• El Cuartel Viejo, Fort Lowell Quartermaster and Commissary Storehouse
• Fort Lowell Quartermaster's Storehouse
• San Pedro Chapel (St. Peter's at Fort Lowell Mission)

Gallery

Structures and plaques located in Fort Lowell Park.

See also

• Presidio San Agustín del Tucsón, also known as Fort Tucson