Fort Wallace

Fort Wallace (c. 1865–1882) was a US Cavalry fort built in Wallace County, Kansas to help defend settlers against Cheyenne and Sioux raids and protect the stages. It is located on Pond Creek, and it was named after General W. H. L. Wallace. There were accommodations for 500 men and the troops were scattered between Fort Hays and Fort Denver.^[1]

Fort Wallace
near Wallace, Kansas
Officers at Fort Wallace in 1867, including Theophilus H. Turner, who discovered Elasmosaurus in the area the same year, second from the left
Site information
Type	Military base
Controlled by	United States
Condition	Dismantled
Location
Fort Wallace Location in Kansas Show map of Kansas Fort Wallace Fort Wallace (the United States) Show map of the United States
Coordinates	38°54′18″N 101°33′34″W
Site history
Built	1865
Built by	U.S. Army
In use	1865-1882
Demolished	1886
Garrison information
Garrison	2nd Cavalry Regiment 5th Infantry Regiment 6th Infantry Regiment 7th Cavalry Regiment 9th Cavalry Regiment
Occupants	George Custer George Forsyth

All that remains today is the cemetery, but for a period of over a decade Fort Wallace was one of the most important military outposts on the frontier.

Fort Wallace Museum

Today, Fort Wallace is represented by a privately operated museum nearby in the town of Wallace, with relics from the fort as well as photos, reproduction items, and literature covering the post's history and the settlement of the Great Plains. A casting of the plesiosaur Elasmosaurus discovered by Turner and Scout William Comstock is also on display. Facades of some of the buildings from Fort Wallace and from the Old Town of Wallace are featured in the Milford Becker Addition opened in 2017.

Location

The old Fort Wallace cemetery still exists, and is located next to the Wallace Township Cemetery at 38°54′23″N 101°33′36″W.^[2]