Fort Taylor (3)

Fort Taylor (3) (1858-1858) - A U.S. Army post established in 1858 during the Yakima War at the direction of Colonel George Wright on the Snake River in Columbia County, Washington. Named for 1st Lt. Oliver Hazard Perry Taylor (Cullum 1302), 1st U.S. Dragoons, who was killed on 17 May 1858 by hostile Spokane Indians. Abandoned in 1858. Fort Taylor Locale, Snake River (left) Palose River Mouth (right). The actual site is thought to be underwater here. History Fort Taylor was established on 11 Aug 1858 by Captain Erasmus Darwin Keyes (Cullum 671) on the south bank of the Snake River where the Tucannon River entered the Snake River. The fort was located in a deep gorge lined with steep cliffs and laid out as a 640-acre military reservation. The Fort was built out with basalt rock and hexagonal log bastions. On 18 Aug 1858 Colonel Wright arrived at Fort Taylor which by then held 190 Dragoons, 400 artillery men, and 90 infantry. He then began his campaign against the hostile Spokane, Coeur d'Alene, and Palouse Indians tribes. His campaign lasted just five weeks and was marked by victories in the field and summary executions of those deemed guilty or complicit in the Steptoe defeat. The post was abandoned on 1 Oct 1858 at the end of the Indian hostilities. Current Status No remains at the mouth of the Tucannon River where it enters the Snake River, Columbia County, Washington. The actual site is thought to be underwater at the mouth of the Palose River. Location: Two miles from Starbuck, Columbia County, Washington. The map point is approximate. Maps & Images Lat: 46.55609 Long: -118.17796 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: .....' GPS Locations: 46.55609, -118.17796 Fort Taylor (3) See Also: Yakima War Washington Blockhouses Sources: Roberts, Robert B., Encyclopedia of Historic Forts: The Military, Pioneer, and Trading Posts of the United States, Macmillan, New York, 1988, 10th printing, ISBN 0-02-926880-X, page 837 Hart, Herbert M., Tour Guide to Old Western Forts, Pruett Publishing Co., Boulder CO, 1980, ISBN 0-87108-568-2,page 189 Bancroft, Hubert Howe and Victor, Frances Fuller, History of Washington, Idaho, and Montana: 1845-1889, History Company, 1890, 836 pages, Google Books Links: North American Forts - Fort Taylor History Link - Forts of Washington Territory Wikipedia - Fort Taylor Fortification ID: WA0304 - Fort Taylor (3) Visited: 29 Jun 2017