Camp Hancock Site

Camp Hancock, a United States military post, was established along the route of the Northern Pacific Railway at Bismarck, Dakota Territory, on April 16, 1872. The post was not actually occupied until troops arrived on August 8. It played an important role in the establishment of Bismarck and guarded the construction of the Northern Pacific Railway through the area.

Companies D and H of the 17th Infantry garrisoned the post at varying times until 1877, after which Camp Hancock served as a supply depot for nearby Fort Abraham Lincoln and other posts further west. The military history of Camp Hancock officially ended on April 16, 1894, when the War Department transferred the property to the Department of Agriculture.

Under the Department of Agriculture the facilities at Fort Hancock were used to house the Bismarck Weather Station. This arrangement continued until January, 1940, when the Bureau moved to the Bismarck Municipal Airport south of the city. The U.S. Soil Conservation Service then moved in, occupying Camp Hancock until 1949.' In May of 1951 a portion of the property was deeded to the State of North Dakota with the State Historical Society as trustee.

Included in this property was a two-story frame and log building which had been remodeled for use by the Weather Bureau. This building was the supply depot constructed in 1872, and appears to be the oldest structure in Bismarck and perhaps the western part of the State. The State Historical Society has utilized the building for use as a museum portraying the military significance and the history of early transportation in this area. In 1955 a 1909 vintage Northern Pacific locomotive was added to the grounds, and in 1965 the old Bismarck St. George's Episcopal Church was moved to Camp Hancock.

St. George's Episcopal Church was constructed in the winter of 1879-80 on the corner of Avenue A and Mandan Street in Bismarck. The contract for construction was awarded to John Hoagland for $2,400. The church was consecrated on Whitsunday 1881 as the Church of the Bread of Life. The name was changed to its present one in 1890. Around the turn of the century the church was moved to the corner of Third and Rosser Avenue. In 1934 the church was remodeled and a small parish house built on the rear of the lot joined to the church. In 1949 the congregation moved from the church to a new building and the property which had been sold to J. W. Calnan in 1944 was used as a funeral home until the property was sold as a location for a new Presbyterian church in 1961. The church was then donated to the State Historical Society with the condition that it be removed from the site.