Fort Yamhill facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Fort Yamhill |
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| Polk County, Oregon, U.S. | |
The original blockhouse from Fort Yamhill located in Courthouse Square Park in Dayton, Oregon.
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| Coordinates | 45°04′08″N 123°34′12″W / 45.068952°N 123.570056°W |
| Type | Military base |
| Site information | |
| Owner | United States |
| Controlled by | United States Army |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1856 |
| In use | 1856-1866 |
| Materials | wood |
| Demolished | 1866 |
| Garrison information | |
| Past commanders |
Philip Sheridan |
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Fort Yamhill Site
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| Nearest city | Willamina, Oregon |
| Area | 54.4 acres (22.0 ha) |
| Built | 1856 |
| NRHP reference No. | 71000681 |
| Added to NRHP | July 27, 1971 |
Fort Yamhill was an American military fortification in the state of Oregon. Built in 1856 in the Oregon Territory, it remained an active post until 1866. The Army outpost was used to provide a presence next to the Grand Ronde Agency Coastal Reservation. Several officers stationed at the United States Army post prior to the American Civil War would later serve as generals in that war.
Construction
Built in Polk County, Oregon, the outpost consisted of a wooden blockhouse, sentry box, barracks, officers’ quarters, carpenter's shop, hospital, cook houses, blacksmith shop, tables, barn, sutler's store, and laundress quarters. The wood blockhouse was built to provide a refuge to settlers of the area in case of attack by the Native Americans. After the fort was abandoned the block house was moved from the hill it was positioned on and served as a jail in the Valley Junction area, and later moved about 30 miles (48 km) east to Dayton.
Total cost to build the fort was $36,053. The post's first troops were under the command of William Babcock Hazen. This garrison consisted of 76 men under three officers, but was reduced in 1858 to two officers and 33 enlisted men.
Legacy
The blockhouse of the fort was moved to a park in downtown Dayton in 1911 to honor city founder Joel Palmer. The actual site of the fort grounds, which is in the Willamina vicinity, has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1971. The address of the site is withheld, however the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department runs the undeveloped Fort Yamhill State Heritage Area in partnership with Polk County and the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde. As there are no remaining buildings at the fort grounds except a relocated Officer's Quarters building, the parks department plans to reconstruct some of the fort buildings, including a new blockhouse.
In 2005 and 2013, Fort Yamhill served as the site for the Oregon State University historical archaeology field school. Students worked to uncover the foundations of Fort-era buildings.
