Fort Stanton was established in 1855. It was named in memory of Captain Henry Whiting Stanton of the First Dragoons, who was killed by the Apaches in the Sacramento Mountains in January of that year. Colonel Christopher (Kit) Carson, with five companies of New Mexico volunteers, was ordered to Fort Stanton in 1862 to operate against the Indians. The Indians had gone unchecked during the Confederate attempt to take the territory from the Union Army and were to be punished for their aggression.
Fort Stanton was established on May 4, 1855 to protect Hispanic settlements along the Rio Bonito from Apache raids. Home to Kit Carson, John "Black Jack" Pershing, Billy the Kid, and hundreds of Buffalo Soldiers, the fort remained an active part of the Western frontier until it was decommissioned in 1896. Fort Stanton later became America's first federal tuberculosis hospital and first German internment camp during World War II. The Fort also served as home to Japanese interned during the war, persons with mental and developmental disabilities, and State prisoners recovering from substance abuse. Visit Fort Stanton's Official Web Site
Images Below are all from Fort Stanton Live! 2003 Photography by Mickey Cochran
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