1. Road between Kearney and old Fort Kearney, looking east. Fence on the left of the picture is from the framework of the old pontoon bridge across the Platte river.  2. Site of the sutler's post at Adobe town, one mile west of the old fort.  3. Trees around the officers' quarters, northwest of and cornering on the old fortifications -- looking east.  4. Remains of the fortifications, southeast of and cornering on the quadrangle of trees around the officers' quarters--looking a little north of west. Embankments in foreground now about five feet high. The house in the background is the home of W. O. Dungan, the present owner of the site.

about ninety miles below the junction of the forks of the Platte river, at Fort Laramie then a fur company's post -- 170 miles above the forks, and perhaps a small post higher up on the north fork.
   The second military post within the present Nebraska was established in July, 1847, near the center of the tract which subsequently became the town site of Nebraska City. It was doubtless found to be too far from any line of travel, and, there being no settlements to protect, was only occupied temporarily. The post was abandoned in May of the following year. In accordance with recommendations of General John C. Frémont, following his western explorations, Congress provided by the act of May 19, 1846, for the establishing of military posts along the Oregon route. The order issued from the war department March 30, 1849, to establish Fort Laramie, makes the following reference to the founding of Fort Kearney:
   To carry out the provisions of the 6th section of the Act of May 19, 1846, relative to establishing military posts on the Oregon route, and to afford protection to the numerous emigrants to that country and California, the first station has already been established, under instructions of the Secretary of War of June 1, 1847, on the Platte river near Grand Island, and is known as Fort Kearney. The first garrison of this post will be one company First Dragoons and two companies Sixth Infantry, to be designated by the commander of the department.
   In 1847, the war department made requisition on the state of Missouri for a battalion of mounted volunteers, "with a view to establish military posts on the Oregon route." Hitherto it had been impracticable to comply with that act, the Mexican war "demanding all the available force in that quarter." A battalion of 477 men and officers was raised, but not in time to prosecute the objects in view that year. The season was so far advanced that the troops could not proceed farther than Table creek, on the Missouri river, about 100 miles above Fort Leavenworth -- the site of old Fort Kearney and of the present Nebraska City. The commanding officer -- Lieutenant Colonel Powell -- was ordered to winter there, and as early as practicable in the ensuing spring "hasten the completion of the posts, for the establishment of which he had received special instructions from the war department." In the meantime he should punish aggressions of the Sioux and Pawnees on the peaceable bands of other tribes and the persons and property of emigrant citizens, and attend to the payment of annuities to tribes in the vicinity. "The department was prevented by the demand for troops in Mexico, during the recent

HENSON WISEMAN

Early settler, Cedar county, Nebraska, where his family was massacred by the Indians

war, from effecting much in respect to the establishment of military posts on the route to Oregon, required by the act of the 19th of May, 1946, beyond the selection of the first station on Platte river, near Grand Island and known as Fort Kearney." The post was formally established in May, 1848. As early as 1849 the garrison at Fort Kearney was used to some extent for the protection of emigrants from the then hostile Pawnees. The fort at that time is described by Stansbury, who found the famous Captain (now Colonel) Bonneville

in command with two companies of infantry and one of dragoons:

    The post at present consists of a number of long low buildings, constructed principally of adobe or sundried bricks, with nearly flat roofs; a large hospital tent; two or three work shops enclosed by canvas walls; storehouses constructed in the same manner; one or two long adobe stables with roofs of brush, and tents for the accommodation of officers and men.
   In 1849, a regiment of mounted riflemen was detailed "to establish two more of the chain of posts along the route to that terri-

MAJOR JOHN W. PEARMAN

Prominent early resident of Nebraska City

tory (Oregon) -- one to be at or near Fort Laramie, a trading station of the American Fur Company . . . . and the other at the trading establishment at Ft. Hall, on the headwaters of the Columbia river," near enough to the Mormon settlement at Salt Lake to draw supplies, "and at the same time sufficiently near the direct road to Oregon to afford a stopping place for parties of emigrants to rest, repair their wagons, etc."
   After the close of the Mexican war more attention was paid to the defense of the Indian country. In 1853 Fort Riley was established, and though situated on the Kansas river, near the site of the present Junction City, it is designated in the official report as in "Nebraska Territory."
   General troubles with the Sioux Indians, and in particular the Grattan massacre, led the war department to begin an aggressive campaign against them in the following spring, the formal order for which was issued by the secretary of war, March 2, 1855, and General William S. Harney was naturally selected to command the forces. His command comprised ten companies of the Sixth infantry, six of which were at Jefferson barracks; three were taken from Fort Laramie and one from Fort Kearney; the light battery of Fourth artillery from Fort Leavenworth; two companies of the Second infantry from Fort Riley; and four from Carlisle (Pa.) barracks; and four companies of the Second dragoons from Fort Riley. The four companies of the Second infantry from Carlisle and the two companies of infantry from Fort Riley were transported by boat up the Missouri river. The rest of the troops in question were ordered to rendezvous at Fort Kearney and Fort Laramie. General Harney marched with his forces -- about 1,200 in number -- from Fort Laramie to the battlefield of the Blue Water; and on the 19th of October he arrived at Fort Pierre after scouting the Brulé country on the White and Cheyenne rivers. General Harney's army wintered at and in the vicinity of Fort Pierre. On the 14th of April, 1855, P. Chouteau & Co. sold the trading post called Fort Pierre, which they had established in 1832, to the United States for a military post, possession to be yielded June 1, 1855. The consideration for the transaction was $45,000 on the part of the United States and little more than a collection of huts in bad repair on the part of the company; but such discrepancies were familiar incidents in the dealings of the Indian department of the western frontier. Two steamboats were bought and six others hired to transport the first garrison and their winter stores to this fort. It was situated on the west bank of the Missouri river, opposite the site of the present capital of South Dakota, of the same name. Owing to a prolonged drouth

in that part of the country it was difficult to procure the necessary supply of hay, so that it was proposed to winter part of the horses near Council Bluffs. General Harney did not approve of Fort Pierre as a permanent post, largely because the country round about it was very barren; and but little money was spent in its improvement. He preferred a location on the west bank of the Missouri river thirty miles above the mouth of the Niobrara; and through his influence all that was of value and portable belonging to Fort Pierre was moved to this location, which was named Fort Randall, after a colonel of the regular army. A part of the garrison of Fort Pierre was sent to the new post during the summer of 1856, and on the 16th of May, 1857, the fort was finally abandoned.
   During the summer of 1856 a considerable part of General Harney's command was stationed at old Fort Lookout, situated about twelve miles below the big bend of the Missouri river.
   As the political organization of Nebraska was born in the throes of a desperate national contest, so likewise the ears of its very first Settlers were attuned to war's alarms. Among the organic proclamations issued by Acting Governor Cuming was one calling for the organization of two volunteer regiments for the reason that "different tribes of Indians, within the limits of this territory, have made manifest their purpose to commit hostilities upon the pioneers of Nebraska; some of them openly threatened to root out the frontier settlements"; and "some bands of said tribes have committed frequent depredations upon parties of emigrants to Utah, Oregon, and California during the past season and have threatened to renew their attacks during the coming spring." The territory was in a state of desultory warfare with the Indians from the beginning until 1868, but hostilities were most severe in 1864 and 1867. The first regular military organization was authorized by the act of the second session of the legislature, January 23, 1856. This act provided for the formation of two brigades, the first for the North Platte and the second for the South Platte section. The governor was commander-in-chief of these forces, and a major-general and two brigadier generals were chosen at a joint session of the legislative assembly the day after the act was passed. John M. Thayer was chosen major-general; Leavitt L. Bowen, brigadier-general of the first brigade, and Hiram P. Downs brigadier-general of the second brigade.
   For the Civil war the territory furnished the remarkably large quota of 3,307 men and officers out of a total population of less than 30,000. These men were organized in the First regiment, Nebraska cavalry, 1,370 rank and file; the Second regiment, Nebraska cavalry, 1,384 rank and file; the Curtis Horse, 341 rank and file; the Pawnee Scouts, 120 rank and file; the Omaha Scouts, 92 rank and file. The First regiment, Nebraska volunteers, was organized in June, 1861, as an infantry regiment; but in November, 1863, it was changed by order of the war department to the cavalry branch of the service. The organization of the regiment was completed by the 30tb of July, 1861, with John M. Thayer, colonel; and on that date the first battalion, under command of Colonel Thayer, left Omaha by steamboat and arrived at St. Joseph, Missouri, on the 1st of August and at Independence in the same state on the 3d of August, but returned to St. Joseph on the 5th. On the 15th of August the rest of the regiment joined this battalion at Pilot Knob, Missouri. The regiment went into winter quarters at Georgetown, Missouri, but during the winter saw hard service in the field. On the 11th of February, 1862, Colonel Thayer's command arrived at Fort Henry, Tennessee, and then went to Fort Donelson and arrived there on the 13th. The regiment was assigned to a brigade which was commanded by Colonel Thayer, and it made a fine record in the attack on this fort, which resulted in its capture. This regiment also did splendid service in the famous battle of Shiloh, under the brigade command of General Thayer and in the division of General Lew Wallace. The regiment did good service campaigning in Arkansas and Missouri until August 28th, when it was ordered to St. Louis. Under its new cavalry organization it was again sent to Arkansas, where it was kept in active service until January, 1864, when the

veterans of the regiment were granted furloughs until August 13th, and they arrived at Omaha on the 28th of January. On the 18th of August these veterans were ordered to Fort Kearney and arrived there on the 23d.
   By an order dated January 31, 1865, the First battalion, Nebraska veteran cavalry, was consolidated with the First Nebraska veteran cavalry, under the name of the First Nebraska cavalry. The new regiment remained in the Plains country, scouting and fighting Indians, in which service the old organization had also been engaged, until it was mustered out at

EDWARD DE MORIN

Early Nebraska trader, scout, and guide

Omaha on the 1st of July, 1866. This regiment from the first did splendid service and won great praise from soldiers as well as civilians.
   On the 31st of July, 1862, Governor Saunders issued order No. 1, in which it was required that "all male residents of the territory between the ages of twenty-one and forty-five should forthwith enroll their names in independent or militia companies of not less than thirty-five nor more than sixty-four persons each."
   There was much resentment shown against General Lane's alleged intrusion into the territory to raise recruits, under an order of the secretary of war, dated July 22, 1862, within the department of Kansas which included Nebraska, and on the 18th of August, Governor Saunders issued a proclamation as follows:

   WHEREAS, Certain persons, representing themselves to be recruiting officers for volunteer regiments organizing in the states of Kansas and Missouri, are striving to induce citizens of this territory to enlist in said regiments; and whereas, I have been notified that officers have been detailed and will shortly arrive in the territory to recruit in our own regiment now in the field, which, together with the number necessary for our home protection, will require every volunteer that the territory can furnish: Now, therefore, I, ALVIN SAUNDERS, governor of the territory of Nebraska, do hereby give notice to all such persons that they must immediately desist from their attempts to procure enlistments in this territory for regiments organized or about to be organized in any other state or territory, and I do forbid any and all citizens of the territory to enlist in any regiment, battalion, or company not expressly authorized to be raised by this department, or to go beyond the limits of this territory to so enlist in any other state or territory.

   On the 15th of April, 1862, Colonel Robert W. Furnas, up to that time publisher of the Advertiser at Brownville, left that place with Dr. Andrew S. Holladay and Lieutenant-Colonel Stephen H. Wattles of Washington county for the headquarters of the First regiment, "Indian Home Guards," in the Indian territory of which he was colonel. Colonel Furnas was for a time acting brigadier-general of the three Indian regiments in the interior of the Indian territory and participated in several engagements. In the fall of 1862 he resigned the office of colonel of the First Indian regiment for the reason that, "such has been the course pursued toward the Indians for the past few months that he could no longer render them useful in the service." Colonel Furnas had "devoted nearly his whole time to military matters since the rebellion broke out" -- seven months in active service in the field. It was said that "to him, perhaps, more than any other man, is southern Nebraska indebted for its military ardor, and the consequent unparal-

led number of men in the field in proportion to population," and that "he has gone to work vigorously assisting to raise the second company from this section for the new cavalry regiment."
   On the 9th of September, 1862, Acting Governor Paddock sent the following telegram to Secretary Stanton of the war department:

   Powerful bands of Indians are retiring from Minnesota into the northern counties of this territory. Settlers by hundreds are fleeing. Instant action is demanded. I can turn out a militia force, a battery of three pieces of six-pounders, and from six to ten companies of cavalry and mounted infantry. The territory is without credit or a cent of money. Authorize me by telegraph to act for the general government in providing immediate defense, and I can do all that is necessary with our militia if subsisted and paid by government.
   This communication was referred to General Pope who was in command of the military department -- department of the Missouri -- with headquarters at St. Paul. Inspector General Elliott was sent to Omaha to negotiate with the governor, and the organization of the Second regiment, Nebraska cavalry, with R. W. Furnas as colonel, followed. On the 3d of September, 1863, this regiment, under command of Colonel Furnas, bore the principal part in a sharp and successful engagement with about 1,000 Indians at White Stone Hill, in what is now central South Dakota. The regiment had enlisted for nine months and was mustered out at the end of that time.
   In December, 1861, the Curtis Horse cavalry regiment, which included the Nebraska battalion commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel M. T. Patrick, was organized. Three of the companies of this battalion were recruited at Omaha and the other at Nebraska City. The regiment was ordered to Tennessee, but on the 14th of February crossed the river and went into camp at Fort Heiman, Kentucky. It was kept in active service until June 25, 1862, when it was assigned to the state of Iowa under the name of the Fifth Iowa cavalry with officers as follows: W. W. Lowe, Colonel; M. T. Patrick, lieutenant-colonel; A. B. Bracket, major; William Ashton, lieutenant and adjutant; Enos Lowe, surgeon; B. T. Wise, assistant surgeon; Charles B. Smith, quartermaster. This regiment saw constant active service until the close of the war.
   Nebraska volunteers of the Civil war were cosmopolitan in their enlistment. "Although there is in the union army but one regiment of infantry and a few companies of cavalry that bear the name of Nebraska, yet she deserves credit for contributing as large a number of soldiers, in proportion to her inhabitants, as any state or territory in the union. There is scarcely a regiment from either Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, or Illinois, without more or less from Nebraska. In reading of regiments from Ohio, Indiana and other places we frequently find names of soldiers whose home is 'in Nebraska.' A friend writes that in the regiment he belongs to (the Kansas Eighth) there are sixty-seven Nebraska boys. In the Kansas Second there is one company almost exclusively from Nebraska. In the Fifth regiment, Missouri state militia, there is another company from Nebraska. In [Benjamin F.] Loan's brigade at St. Joseph, among both officers and men there are many Nebraska boys, we know not how many, probably not less than 200. If as many have gone from other portions af (sic) the territory as from Nemaha county, there are not less than five thousand of the hardy veterans of Nebraska now fighting in the armies of their country."
   When Indian hostilities broke out in the territory in the summer of 1864 Governor Saunders called out four companies of militia and a detachment of artillery as follows: Company A, Captain Thomas B. Stevenson, 53 men rank and file, mustered into service August 12, 1864, mustered out December 21, 1864; Company B, Captain Isaac Wiles, same number of men, mustered in August 13, 1864, mustered out February 13, 1865; Company C, Captain Alvin G. White, 57 men, mustered in August 24, 1864, mustered out February 7, 1865. These companies belonged to the First regiment, Second brigade. The fourth company, Captain Charles F. Porter, was Company A of the First regiment, First brigade, 47 men, mustered in August 30, and mustered out November 12, 1864. The detachment of artillery