Published: April 27, 2009 03:47 pm      

John Watson: Fort Mason — defending Texas’ western frontier

At the time Texas became a state in 1846, San Antonio was the largest inland town in the state and the stepping off point for many settlers heading to the western part of the state.

Before Texas independence in 1836 anyone wishing to settle in Texas had to request a land grant from the Spanish governor located at San Antonio.

In 1849, after Texas became a state, during President Taylor’s administration, the federal government established a line of forts from the Red River to the mouth of the Rio Grande to protect the settlers from Indian attack and encourage settlement of the western area of Texas.

These forts were located about 50 miles apart.

In the spring 1851 Maj. William J. Hardee led about 200 men from six companies of the 2nd Dragoons from Fort Martin Scott near Fredericksburg on a scouting trip to locate the site for a post between the Pedernales and Colorado Rivers.

The expedition recognized the natural advantages of a hill just south of the present town of Mason near a free-flowing spring, and the site for the new post was selected by Bvt. Maj. H. W. Merrill and was probably named in honor of 2nd Lt. George T. Mason, who was killed near Brownsville in the skirmish that started the Mexican War.

There is still disagreement concerning the origin of the name.

The 1,100 acres of post property were never owned by the United States government but were leased from several different owners, with Gustav Schliecher of Cuero holding the largest amount of property.

Contrary to what has been shown in the movies and on TV of the cavalry returning to a stockade-style fort and having the gates opened for them, the military had no stockade-style forts on the Texas frontier.

Fort Mason’s land was used for the hundreds of horses needed for the troops. It would have been impossible to have enclosed this area in a stockade.

Fort Mason was 110 miles northwest of San Antonio on the Pinta Trail, an old Indian trail leading to the plains.

The elevated site was considered healthy and commanded an extensive view of the surrounding countryside. Stone and lime for construction purposes were abundant in the immediate vicinity, and an unfailing supply of pure water was within 400 yards.

The post was formally established on July 6, 1851.

Merrill and his troops built the fort with the assistance of civilian masons and carpenters. Logs were cut from local timber, and red sandstone rocks were chiseled from rocks on or near what is currently known as Post Hill.

By 1852, construction of the post was well along, with several buildings already completed and others under construction.

It took two years to build the fort, and when completed it was well equipped for two companies of troops.

The buildings and equipment were extensive enough to care for a regiment of soldiers, though it seems that no more than 200 were normally stationed here at one time.

Fort Mason had four periods of occupation: July 1851 to January 1854, January 1856 to February 1859, September 1859 to March 1861, and December 1866 to March 1869.

During the Civil War Fort Mason was used by the Confederate States Army intermittently. For a short while it was used as a prison camp for Union sympathizers. In January 1867 the headquarters of the 4th Cavalry was stationed here with 445 soldiers, 330 serviceable horses, and equipment for a large force.

The last inspection of Fort Mason occurred on Jan. 13, 1869, with only one company of 69 soldiers in residence. On March 23, 1869, Fort Mason was officially abandoned for the last time.

More officers who were assigned to this pre-Civil War location became generals than at any other location.

Eighteen men from here served on both sides after service there. Among those were Robert E. Lee, Commander, Confederate States Army; Albert Sidney Johnston, Commander, Western Dept., C.S.A.; William J. Hardee, C.S.A.; Philip St. George Cooke, U.S.A.; George H. Thomas, U.S.A.; Richard W. Johnson, U.S.A.; E. Kirby Smith, C.S.A.; John B. Hood, C.S.A.; Earl Van Dorn, C.S.A.; and Fitzhugh Lee, C.S.A. John P. Hatch, U.S.A., served as commanding officer of the 4th Cavalry after the war.

Fort Mason was a significant force in the establishment of the city of Mason.

In addition to providing protection, which encouraged settlement, the fort also provided employment opportunities for the residents such as hauling freight, cutting wood for fuel, cutting hay, and selling surplus produce to the soldiers.

The town of Mason was initially settled after the fort was established.

The fort’s final abandonment in 1869 was particularly significant to the development of Mason’s characteristic style of sandstone architecture.

The sandstone fort structures, which had once provided security for the citizens of Mason, were dismantled and used to construct local buildings.

As Fort Mason disappeared, permanent masonry buildings began to take shape in the city of Mason.

Probably only one structure from the original fort still stands.

The cavalry stable is located at the corner of Post Hill and Bryan Streets.

The officer’s quarters on the site today was reconstructed in 1976 under the direction of the late Kurt Zesch. The building was built on the original foundation.

During the decade from 1850 to 1860, Fort Mason was commanded by Robert E. Lee, Albert Sydney Johnston, George H. Thomas, the Majors Earl Van Dorn and Crosby and several others. Lee was in the U.S. Army at the time he was stationed at Fort Mason.

Today, as you stand on the front porch of the officer’s quarters and look down on the city of Mason, it is easy to imagine what it was like before the town was there, with a view of the rolling hill country. You can see for miles around.

Fort Mason is located six blocks south of the courthouse in Mason, just west of U.S. 87. Turn off U.S. 87 onto College and go two blocks to Post Hill Road.

There is no admission charge and no attendant on duty.

The Officers Quarters is constructed with a walkway through the center with two rooms on either side. Each room has bars over the doorway through which you can view the inside of each room, which are furnished as they would have been during the time the fort was occupied.

After entering the walk-through from the south side, where the parking area is, if you will step close to the first doorway on the left a tape will start playing describing the furnishings and telling about some of the officers who served there.

Markers located on the grounds give more information about the fort.

Here you can walk over the same ground some of the famous generals of the Civil War trod.



John Watson is a Cleburne resident who can be reached at texastraveler@sbcglobal.net.