Fort Arbuckle - Hoover, OK
Posted by: 
gparkes
N 34° 31.293 W 097° 14.855
14S E 660845 N 3821381
This marker marks the spot of where Fort Arbuckle once was, now only a marker. There are multiple connections to the American Civil War, both direct and indirect.
Waymark Code: WM6DV8
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 05/18/2009
Views: 6
FORT
ARBUCKLE
ESTABLISHED
1851
ERECTED BY
ARDMORE CHAPTER
D.A.R.
1930
Fort Arbuckle was established in 1851 by Captain R.B. Marcy. Like other forts in the area, the establishment of troops in this area was to protect the "civilized" Indian Tribes, most noteably the Chickasaw and Choctaw tribes, from the plains Indians, such as the Kiowa Comanche Indians. There were also trails in the area, and an Army precessence in the vicinity added protection to travelers going to the California gold mines and Santa Fe. These trails came from Fort Smith in Arkansas, extending out to Santa Fe.
The original size of the fort was about 12 miles by 12 miles. It was later reduced to 9 miles by 12 miles.
In 1852, Captain Marcy and Captain George B. McClellan (who would later rise to be the Commander in Chief of the Army of the Potomoc during the Civil War) set out to find the source of the Red River. An interesting point is that McClellan married Marry Ellen Marcy, one of Marcy daughters, in New York City on May 22, 1860.
On May 3, 1861, the fort was abandoned to Confederate troops, and reoccupied in 1865. Finally in 1870, the fort was abandoned again.
Today, the fort is in total ruins. Purportedly, there are foundations still visible. This information was stated, however, in 1970 when the site was added to the National Register of Historic Places.