Camp Beale Spring
Camp Beale Spring (1871-1874) - A temporary U.S. Army camp established in 1871 by Captain Thomas Bryne and Company F, 12th U.S. Infantry near present day Kingman in Mohave County, Arizona. Named for Navy Lieutenant Edward F. Beale who earlier explored the area in the service of the U.S. Topographical Engineers. Abandoned in 1874. Also known locally as Fort Beale Spring, on the marker as Camp Beale Springs and on post returns as Camp Beales Springs.
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Camp Beale Spring History
Lieutenant Beale traveled through the Beale Spring area starting in 1857 where he established a wagon road along the 35th parallel. A part of his instructions included the famous camel experiment to test the use of camels in the southwest deserts. In 1865, Beale Spring became a stop on a toll road from Prescott to Hardyville (now Bullhead City).
During the Hualapai War of 1866-1870, Captain Samuel B. M. Young, 8th U.S. Cavalry commander of Fort Mojave established a temporary Army outpost at the spring on 27 Mar 1867.
A U.S. Army camp was established at the spring 25 Mar 1871 by Captain Thomas Bryne and Company F, 12th U.S. Infantry as directed by S.O. 13, 1871, HQ Department of Arizona to protect travel routes during Indian unrest in the area. The post was built out with 12 adobe buildings including a 60' by 20' enlisted barracks. The camp was garrisoned by detachments of Company F, 12th U.S. Infantry from Fort Whipple.
The Beale Springs Indian Agency was established in January 1873 at the Camp as a reservation for the Hualapai Indians. The camp closed on 6 Apr 1874, when the Hualapai Indians were forced to leave the agency for the Colorado River Indian Tribes reservation at La Paz. Captain Byrne established the Camp at La Paz to oversee the reservation but within two years many of the Hualapai had returned to original lands.
After 1874, the Spring again became a way station on the toll road. The site remained active well into the twentieth century and the springs became a source of water for the adjacent town.
Current Status
Markers and some ruins. The spring is still active. There are actually two springs in the area, Beale Spring and Atlantic Spring. Near Kingman in Mohave County, Arizona.
USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Database Entry: 1095
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Location: Along Fort Beale Dr., Kingman, Mohave County, Arizona. Maps & Images Lat: 35.2043913 Long: -114.0830635 |
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 34
- Hart, Herbert M., Tour Guide to Old Western Forts, Pruett Publishing Co., Boulder CO, 1980, ISBN 0-87108-568-2, page 11
Links:
- North American Forts - Camp Beale Spring
- Mohave Museum - Camp Beale Spring
- Kingman Arizona Historic District
- Mohave Museum - Camp Beale's Springs (A very good article)
- Go Kingman - Camp Beale Springs
Visited: 22 Feb 2014
Camp Beale Spring Picture Gallery
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