Frontier Crossroads: Fort Davis and the West (Volume 7)

Canseco-Keck History Series #7

by Robert Wooster

The idea of the West conjures exciting images of tenacious men and women, huge expanses of unclaimed territory, and feelings of both adventure and lonesome isolation. Located astride communication lines linking San Antonio, El Paso, Presidio, and Chihuahua City, the United States Army’s post at Fort Davis commanded a strategic position at a military, cultural, and economic crossroads of nineteenth-century Texas. Using extensive research and careful scrutiny of long forgotten records, Robert Wooster brings his readers into the world of Fort Davis, a place of encounter, conquest, and community.
   
The fort here spawned a thriving civilian settlement and served as the economic nexus for regional development Frontier Crossroads schools its readers in the daily lives of soldiers, their dependents, and civilians at the fort and in the surrounding area. The resulting history of the intriguing blend of Hispanic, African American, Anglo, and European immigrants who came to Fort Davis is a benchmark volume that will serve as the standard to which other post histories will be compared.
   
The military garrisons of Fort Davis represented a rich mosaic of nineteenth-century American life. Each of the army’s four black regiments served there following the Civil War, and its garrisons engaged in many of the army’s grueling campaigns against Apache and Comanche Indians. Characters such as artist and officer Arthur T. Lee, William “Pecos Bill” Shafter, and Benjamin Grierson and his family come alive under Wooster’s pen. Frontier Crossroads will enrich its readers with its careful analysis of life on the frontier. This book will appeal to military and social historians, Texas history buffs, and those seeking a record of adventure.

Genres: History

222 pages, Hardcover

First published December 2, 2005

Reviews

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this book up during a visit to the Fort and it's a quick down and dirty on the history of the Fort and the area. It reads well and covers a lot of ground getting into social history as well. One of the takeaways from my tour of the fort was that it was a logistical depot for West Texas. That role wasn't emphasized or really mentioned in the book. The book emphasized the fort as an economic engine for the Trans Pecos West and also as a social mixing pot where the class and racist tensions of the South and the times, although present, were more relaxed. Lots of interesting facts like black troops didn't desert like white troops and infantry could often outpace cavalry in the pursuit of raiders due to mules and horses needing water. I'm surprised more wasn't made of the camels introduced to the fort by Jefferson Davis. They were great animals for pursuit but the handlers didn't like them because of their smell, breath, and tendency to bite. If camels had caught on one wonders how things would have turned out.

[Kyle Garner · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun book to read.

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fort Davis is located in the Guadalupe Mountains of Texas and served the region for many years. It was the home of Buffalo Soldiers for a period. Its location in its sheltered valley was a crossroads of the frontier.

[Bramble · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recall this being almost painful to slog through. But great detail about both military and civilian life, anglo and hispanic interactions.

[Rebecca Henderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read it as background research for my current writing project set in the Trans-Pecos region, and it was informative, helpful, and easy to read.