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United States Army established Fort Martin Scott, which became a boon
to the local economy. Once cannibalized for its building stone, the
fort is now defined by a reconstructed building - with more planned.
Soon after the Texas legislature made Fredericksburg
the Gillespie county
seat. |
Site of Fort
Martin Scott
Centennial Marker
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1936 Centennial
Marker (on US 290)
Site of Fort
Martin Scott
Established by
the United States Army,
December 5, 1848,
as a protection to travelers and
settlers against Indian attack.
Named in honor of Major Martin Scott,
brevet lieutenant colonel,
5th United States Infantry,
killed at Molino Del Ray,
September 8, 1847.
Its garrison participated in many Indian skirmishes.
Occupied intermittently after 1852.
Held by the confederates, 1861-65.
Permanently abandoned in December, 1866. |
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Fort Martin
Scott, Texas Chronicles
Strolling
Through the Gillespie County Fair by Michael Barr
"... The Gillespie County Fair dates to 1881. John Braeutigam
hosted the first fairs at the site of old Fort Martin Scott. Braeutigam
bought the property after the army moved out in 1866.
The Breautigam family lived in one of the buildings and converted
the officers' quarters into a dancehall called Braeutigam's Garten.
It was the first dancehall in Gillespie County.
Fort Martin Scott was a natural place to hold a county fair. The
old barracks became the exhibit hall. The parade ground across the
creek was the racetrack. There were dances at Braeutigam's Garten.
Then in 1889 the Gillespie County Fair moved uptown to an area known
as Central Park..." more
Teamsters
were Fredericksburg's Lifeline
by Michael Barr
"... Before the railroad came to Fredericksburg in 1913, teamsters
were the community's lifeline. Every consumer item not produced
locally had to be freighted in over rough country from a considerable
distance.
The earliest teamsters used oxen to haul freight to Fredericksburg
and Fort Martin Scott, but by the 1880s they switched to mules and
horses. Oxen were strong, reliable and could pull a lot of weight,
but they never got in much of a hurry.
A trip by ox wagon from Fort Martin Scott to Fort Mason, a distance
of 45 miles, took most of a week. A trip from Fort Martin Scott
to Fort McKavett, a distance of 95 miles, could take 2 weeks, depending
on weather conditions..." more
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