Facet Browse

Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, 309 miles west of St. Louis, Mo.

Gardner, Alexander, 1821-1882

This stereograph shows buildings and grounds at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, was taken in 1867 by Alexander Gardner, a protege of Civil War photographer Matthew Brady. During the Civil War, Gardner had become well-known for his portrayals of such battles as Antietam and Gettysburg. After the war, in 1867, he began working for the Union Pacific Railroad and consequently traveled through the state of Kansas. This image shows the fort from a distance. It is from Alexander Gardner's series, Across the Continent on the Union Pacific Railway, Eastern Division.

Fort Scott soldiers

This photograph of two men on horses at Fort Scott was probably taken between 1863 and 1865. The man in the foreground is Corporal George Henry McCoon, company saddler in the 3rd Wisconsin Cavalry. The photograph shows the Fort Scott stables in the background. Corporal McCoon married in Fort Scott shortly after the Civil War, then relocated to Oregon and later to California. Patron supplied information suggests Ina Riley Wilson, a McCoon descendent, donated the original tintype to the Fort Scott Historical Society prior to 1979 from which KSHS obtained a copy.

Officers' quarters, Fort Scott

This photograph, taken by an unknown photographer, depicts the officers? quarters at Fort Scott. The building to the left was Col. Charles W. Blair?s residence, which was razed between 1905 and 1906. The site was identified in 1993 as HS-3, because of the sub-surface stone foundation which has survived. The building to the right was a boarding house and was identified in 1993 and HS-4. The photograph was taken at the intersection of Blair and Lincoln Avenues.

Bennett C. Riley

This photograph shows a portrait of Bennett Riley that was probably commissioned by his family in the 1880s. Riley died June 9, 1853. The portrait has resided at the U.S. Cavalry Museum at Fort Riley, Kansas, since about 1903. Bennett Riley, after whom Fort Riley was named, had a long and prestigious career in the U. S. military. Born in Virginia in 1787, he entered the army in 1813. In 1829 he commanded the first military escort on the Santa Fe Trail. In that same year, he succeeded Colonel Henry Leavenworth as commander of Fort Leavenworth. In 1847 he became a brigadier general. He also served during the Mexican War and, in 1848, he served as the last territorial governor of California, where he helped create their state constitution.

Henry Leavenworth

Henry Leavenworth, after whom Ft. Leavenworth was named, was a prominent military figure in the white settlement of the American West. Born in 1783, Leavenworth?s military career began in 1812 during the war with Great Britain. He established Ft. Snelling in Minnesota in 1819, and during the early 1820s commanded the garrison at Ft. Atkinson in present-day Nebraska. He established Cantonment Leavenworth (later to be designated Ft. Leavenworth) on May 8, 1827 on the banks of the Missouri River. He held this post for two years. Leavenworth died on July 21, 1834.

10th Infantry Band, Fort Riley, Kansas

View of the 10th Infantry Division band and troops on parade at Fort Riley, Kansas. Our catalog record estimates this photo was taken around 1960. Another credible source suggests the photo dates from the early 1950s as the 10th Division left Fort Riley in 1955.

6th Infantry Band, Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas

A formal view of the members of the 6th Infantry Band at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, under the leadership of Assistant Bandmaster Toner.

Fort Leavenworth band, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

View of an unidentified Fort Leavenworth band posed on the steps of a building in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Fort Riley Band, Fort Riley, Kansas

One side of a stereograph showing members of the Fort Riley Band on the parade grounds at Fort Riley, Kansas. A credible source suggests this is the 16th Infantry Regimental Band stationed at Fort Riley from 1887-1880. Copies of originals donated by the George Smith Public Library in Junction City, Kansas,1975.

Fort Riley Band, Fort Riley, Kansas

One side of a stereograph showing members of the Fort Riley Band on the parade grounds at Fort Riley, Kansas. A credible source suggests this is the 16th Infantry Regimental Band stationed at Fort Riley from 1887-1880. Copies of originals donated by the George Smith Public Library in Junction City, Kansas,1975.