Fort Missoula

Fort Missoula (1877-1946) - Established on 25 Jun 1877 as Post on the Missoula by Captain Charles C. Rawn, 7th U.S. Infantry. Located in Missoula, Missoula County, Montana. Renamed Fort Missoula on 8 Nov 1877. Decommissioned in 1947. Fort Missoula Old Post Exchange. Fort Missoula Old Barracks Building. Fort Missoula Officer's Row. History Fort Missoula Old NCO Quarters (1878). Fort Missoula was established in 1877 by two companies of the 7th U.S. Infantry at the request of citizens who were concerned about hostile Indian tribes. The troops participated in the Battle of Big Hole against the Nez Perce Indians led by Chief Joseph and Looking Glass. The Fort was later home to the 24th and 25th Black Infantry Regiments in the 1880s and 1890s. It was continuously garrisoned up until the Spanish-American War when, in 1898, the 25th U.S. Infantry was sent to Cuba. The 25th did not return to Fort Missoula and the post was only sporadically garrisoned until World War I. The post was remodeled and updated between 1908 and 1914. The remaining officers quarters, enlisted barracks and the hospital reflect that period of construction. World War I During World War I the post was a training school for Army auto mechanics and the 4th U.S. Infantry Regiment, which supervised Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) workers during the Great Depression. World War II During World War II, Fort Missoula served as an Alien Detention Center for Italian detainees and Japanese resident aliens. Immediately after the war, the post was used to confine U.S. Military personnel awaiting charges or courts-martial for military crimes. The post was decommissioned in 1947 but it continued as a base for Army National Guard, Naval Reserve units, other government agencies, and civilian organizations. Many of the temporary buildings were sold and removed. Fort Missoula Partial Commanders List (edit list) Assumed Relieved Rank Name Cullum Notes 1902-08-20 1902-10-04 •Lt. Colonel Cornman, Daniel 2494 1907-04-29 1908-07-30  Major Beacom, John Henry 2957 1910-04-14 1911-05-14  Major Parke, John Spry 2801 In Cullum's Register, dates overlap with the next. 1911-04 1912-04-25 •Lt. Colonel Kennon, Lyman Walter Vere 2928 Promoted to Colonel, 28 Mar 1912 while commanding. In Cullum's Register, dates overlap with the preceding. Dates are formatted in yyyy-mm-dd to sort correctly. The Cullum Number is the graduation order from the United States Military Academy by year and class rank and links to a page for the officer on the website version of the Cullum Register. Listings without a Cullum Number indicate that the person was not a graduate of the United States Military Academy. Current Status Fort Missoula Historical Museum Fort Missoula is now home to the Lolo National Forest headquarters, Bureau of Land Management's regional headquarters, the National Guard, and numerous nonprofit organizations, including the National Forest Foundation. In April 2000, the Northern Rockies Heritage Center received title to much of the property, now designated as the Fort Missoula Historic District and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The grounds include thirteen historic buildings from the rebuilt fort, three buildings from the original fort, a small military cemetery, and a parade ground. The rebuilt buildings include the Headquarters, the Post Exchange, a Quartermaster Storehouse, the Hospital, two Barracks and seven Officer's Quarters, all now repurposed. The Quartermaster Storehouse building now contains the Historical Museum at Fort Missoula. The original fort buildings include a Carriage House (1880), a stone powder magazine (1878) and restored NCO quarters (1878). {"selectable":false,"height":"-500","width":"-500"} Location: Missoula, Missoula County, Montana. Maps & Images Lat: 46.84291 Long: -114.05855 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: 3,144' GPS Locations: 46.84291, -114.05855 Fort Missoula Sources: Hart, Herbert M., Tour Guide to Old Western Forts, Pruett Publishing Co., Boulder CO, 1980, ISBN 0-87108-568-2, page 72-73 Frazer, Robert W., Forts of the West, University of Oklahoma Press, Norman OK, 1965, ISBN 0-8061-1250-6, page 83 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 474-475 Links: North American Forts - Fort Missoula Vital Ground Foundation Visited: 22 Jul 2015, 17 May 2010 Picture Gallery Fort Missoula Old Hospital Building Fort Missoula Salute Gun Fort Missoula Headquarters Building Fort Missoula Marker