Fort Lowell (Tucson, Arizona) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Fort Lowell |
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| Tucson, Arizona | |
Ruins of the hospital at Old Fort Lowell, Tucson
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| Coordinates | 32°15′36″N 110°52′26″W / 32.26000°N 110.87389°W |
| 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 active from 1873 to 1891. This fort was built after an earlier Army camp called Camp Lowell. The Army picked this spot because it had water all year round. It was located where the Tanque Verde and Pantano creeks meet to form the Rillito River. Long before the Army, the Hohokam people 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. It stretched east towards the Rincon Mountains.
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Fort Lowell's Beginnings
The first Army base in Tucson was set up on May 20, 1862. This happened after soldiers from California pushed Confederate forces out of the area. The base was closed in July 1864 but reopened in July 1865. On August 29, 1866, it was renamed Camp Lowell. This was to honor General Charles Russell Lowell, who died from injuries in a battle.
The first Camp Lowell was in downtown Tucson. But it was moved on March 31, 1873, because of health reasons. The new spot was about 7 miles east of town. On April 5, 1879, the name was changed again to Fort Lowell.
Life at the Fort
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 outposts. During its 18 years of operation, the fort usually had about 13 officers and 239 enlisted men.
Many different Army units served here. 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 enlisted men and married non-commissioned officers. The most important building was the hospital. Its adobe walls still stand today under a protective roof. A road called Cottonwood Lane, lined with cottonwood trees, ran 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 bird called Bendire's thrasher is named after him.
El Fuerte: A New Community
After the Army closed the fort in 1891, the land was sold. Private farms started up again along the Rillito River. Mexican families from Sonora soon moved north. They used the old fort buildings as homes and found farming jobs. In the early 1900s, a small village grew west of the fort's ruins. This time is known as the El Fuerte Period.
This small community of adobe houses kept growing. By the 1920s, it had 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, forming a kind of town square.
Fort Lowell Art Colony
In the 1930s, artists Nan, Pete, and Charles Bolsius fixed up the old Post Traders Store. They made it their home and art studio. Through the 1940s, more artists moved to the Fort Lowell area. This created a growing artist community. Many important artists and thinkers built homes and lived there.
Some of these artists included René Cheruy and Germaine Cheruy, Win Ellis, and painter Jack Maul. Others were sculptor Giorgio Belloli, Charles Bode, and designer Veronica Hughart. Anthropologists Edward H. Spicer and Rosamond Spicer, photographer Hazel Larson Archer, and weaver Ruth Brown also lived there. This artist colony even attracted famous writers like Alan Harrington and Jack Kerouac. Kerouac's visit is mentioned in his famous book On the Road.
Artists and Writers of the 20th Century
- Charles Bolsius, Painter and designer
- Nan Bolsius, Author
- Pete Bolsius, Metalworker
- Hazel Larson Archer, Photographer
- Byrd Baylor, Author
- Charles Bode, Painter
- Ruth Brown, Weaver
- Paul Clinco, Writer and filmmaker
- Gordon H. Heck, Architect and historian
- Harriet House Shoup, Artist
- Win Ellis, Artist
- Keith Martin, Furniture maker
- Giorgio Belloli, Artist and sculptor
- Ivan Burkhart, Photographer
- René Cheruy, Artist and sculptor
- Germaine Cheruy, Artist and painter
- Alan Harrington, Author
- Veronica Hughart, Architectural designer
- Barry Hughart, Novelist
- Jack Maul, Artist
- Ruth Phipps, Jewelry and iron worker
- Robert Knowe, Artist
- Edward H. Spicer, Anthropologist
- Rosamond Spicer, Anthropologist
- Nik Krevitsky, Artist and dancer
- Winnie Yates
Fort Lowell and the Boy Scouts
The Boy Scouts of Tucson had a long history with Fort Lowell. Columnist David Leighton wrote about this in the Arizona Daily Star newspaper on February 5, 2017.
The first known visit by the Tucson Boy Scouts to the old fort ruins was in April 1912. The scouts marched to the abandoned fort. A member of the University of Arizona's military cadet program led them. During their week-long camp, the boys practiced like soldiers. They also had time to look for old Native American items.
A few years later, a Fort Lowell Boy Scout troop was formed. It included boys from the El Fuerte neighborhood and a farming community called Binghamton. These two troops played a baseball game that year. They likely used the area often for camping and target practice. This continued until about 1921, when Camp Lawton opened on Mount Lemmon. A few years later, the Boy Scouts of Tucson joined the Catalina Council of the Boy Scouts of America.
Over the years, 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 local rancher 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 installed a water system. They also got three buildings and moved them to 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 post hospital. This roof is still there today. They also built a fence around the hospital ruins and put up a flagpole.
Many successful scout events happened there. But by 1957, the Boy Scouts realized they did not have enough money to keep up the site. So, they sold it to Pima County that year.
Fort Lowell Park Today
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Fort Lowell Park
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Fort Lowell Park Museum
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| Location | 2900 North Craycroft Road, Tucson, Arizona |
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| Area | 20 acres (8.1 ha) |
| Built | 1878 |
| NRHP reference No. | 78003358 |
| Added to NRHP | 1978 |
The fort lay in ruins for many years. Many of its adobe buildings fell apart. Some parts of the fort were sold to families in Tucson. The Adkins family bought large parts of the fort's land in 1928. They started a steel tank making business there. In 2006, a local developer named Jim Campbell bought this land. He then traded it to the City of Tucson. The City and County had tried to buy this land for over 30 years.
In 2009, the city and Pima County made a plan for Fort Lowell Park. The park now has ball fields, tennis and racquetball courts, and a large public swimming pool. It also has the Fort Lowell Museum. This museum is about Fort Lowell's time as an active military base. Fort Lowell Park also includes a large pond.
The land the city bought from Jim Campbell is west of Craycroft Road. The last of the original officers' quarters stand there. There were plans to open them 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. Local stories say these stones were part of the guardhouse where Geronimo was held before he left Arizona.
The Fort Lowell Museum is in the rebuilt Commanding Officer's quarters. The Tucson Presidio Trust runs it. This group also runs the Presidio San Agustín del Tucsón. The museum shows what military life was like on the Arizona frontier. The Fort Lowell Historic District is the neighborhood around Fort Lowell. It is a special historic district to protect its history.
Fort Lowell was the setting for a TV show called Boots and Saddles. This Western show was on TV from 1957 to 1958. It starred John Pickard, Patrick McVey, and Gardner McKay.
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 built near Nogales, Arizona, not at the real Fort Lowell site.
Historic Places and Protections
Fort Lowell Park and its ruins were added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 13, 1978. Other buildings that are part of the park or were once part of Fort Lowell are also listed. These include:
- Charles Bolsius House, listed December 13, 1978. This 20th-century house was built around one of the fort's original storehouses.
- Fort Lowell Officer's Quarter's, listed December 13, 1978.
- Fort Lowell Quartermaster's Quarters, listed December 13, 1978.
- Las Saetas, Fort Lowell Post Traders Store, listed December 13, 1978.
- El Cuartel Viejo, Fort Lowell Quartermaster and Commissary Storehouse, listed December 13, 1978.
- Fort Lowell Quartermaster's Storehouse, listed December 13, 1978.
- San Pedro Chapel (St. Peter's at Fort Lowell Mission), listed April 28, 1993.
City of Tucson Historic Zone
The City of Tucson created the Fort Lowell Historic Zone in 1981. This zone is larger than the National Register list. It helps protect the history and culture of the Fort Lowell area. This special zoning stops bad changes to old buildings and encourages their protection. The Fort Lowell Historic Zone Advisory Board watches over the area. They check changes to properties to make sure they stay historically accurate. The zone includes many other old buildings and cultural sites. These include traditional Sonoran adobe homes and houses designed by Charles Bolsius and Veronica Hughart. Some of these buildings are:
- El Callejón
- San Pedro Chapel, a City of Tucson Historic Landmark
- La Tiendita
- Juan Xavier House
- Cuauhtémoc García House
- Harrington House
- Spicer House
Other Important Historic Buildings
Some important historic buildings in the Fort Lowell area are not on the National Register or in the city's historic zone. This is because these lists were made many years ago. Since then, more buildings have been found to be historically important. But they are not officially protected because the old review processes did not include newer historical sites.
These buildings are still very important to the neighborhood's history and culture. Even without official protection, they help keep the area's historical feel alive.
- Adkins House
- Fort Lowell Union Church
- Hill Farm House (Designed by Josias Joesler and Arthur T. Brown)
- Pantano Farms
- Corbett Irrigation Ditch, an old water channel
Images for kids
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Entrance to Fort Lowell Park
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Statue of cavalry soldier at Fort Lowell Park.
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Ruins of the post hospital.
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The third reconstructed flagstaff in Fort Lowell
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The adobe ruins of one of two soldier barracks
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The Fort Lowell Museum.
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The Quartermaster's Quarters
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The Fort Lowell Post Traders Store and "Riallito House" located at 5425 E. Fort Lowell Rd.
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The Fort Lowell Quartermaster's Storehouse located at 5479 E. Fort Lowell Rd.
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The San Pedro Chapel, also known as the San Pedro de Fort Lowell (St. Peter's at Fort Lowell Mission).
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Second part of the previous plaque.
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Middle part of the previous plaque.
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Right half of the previous plaque.
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Left half of Quartermaster information board.
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Right half of Quartermaster information board.
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Information board detailing statue.
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Information board on officers' quarters.
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The San Pedro Chapel National Register of Historic Places Marker.
See also
- Presidio San Agustín del Tucsón, also known as Fort Tucson
