Fort Scott National Cemetery

900 East National Ave., Fort Scott, KS
The Fort Scott National Cemetery is significant because of its association with the Civil War and because the lodge represents a distinctive design by Quartermaster General Montgomery C. Meigs, who was acclaimed as a master architect of civil works projects for the Quartermaster Corps. It is also significant under Criterion C for landscape design. The cemetery is also significant beyond the Civil War era, as it includes the remains of veterans associated with many wars and every branch of service who had served their country throughout its history.

Since the contributing resources were constructed or erected many years ago and a reasonable date could not be defined to end the period of significance, the date of 1949 (50 years ago was used.)

Fort Scott was erected in 1842 on the route known as the military road on the Marmaton River, a confluent of the Osage, about eight miles west of the Missouri line, and was established for the protection of the Permanent Indian Frontier and trade routes from the East to the Southwest. The post was first called Camp Scott, named for General Winfield Scott, then general-in-chief of the Army, and was designated Fort Scott when the erection of permanent buildings began in 1843. The post was eventually abandoned in 1853, when the garrison was transferred to Fort Riley, Kansas, and other western posts. The buildings were sold at a public auction on April 16, 1855.
Troops were sent to the town of Fort Scott on various occasions during the troubled period prior to the outbreak of the Civil War. The outbreak of the Civil War caused Fort Scott to again assume military importance and the fort was re-established on March 29, 1862, when it was occupied by a force of the 2nd Ohio Cavalry, commanded by Colonel Charles Doubleday. Fort Scott became a concentration center for troops as well as the storage place for large quantities of supplies intended for the use of troops stationed as far south as the Red River, hundreds of miles away. Blockhouses, lunettes, and other fortifications were erected at strategic locations about the town. Lieutenant Colonel Lewis R. Lewell, commanding the Sixth Kansas Cavalry, was appointed post commander in 1862. General James H. Lane, who was appointed Union commander for recruiting in the Department of Kansas in July 1862, also established his headquarters at the fort. Fort Scott also served as a military supply depot for the area. During the war, a two-story U. S. Army Prison was located in Fort Scott which housed Confederate soldiers, Union soldiers who violated the Articles of War, and civilians who violated martial law. The Prisoner Plot/Rebel Line in the national cemetery in 1867 contained 16 graves which included 13 Confederate soldiers and 3 Union soldiers. Nine of the Confederate soldiers who were buried between November 4, 1864, and November 22, 1864, died of wounds received in action or illness contracted during General Sterling Price's campaign in Eastern Kansas from October 25-26, 1864. The existing headstones in the Confederate Row are consecutively numbered 4-16.
Sometime after 1900, the remains of three Union soldiers (Sergeant Claudius C. Frizell, Private John Summers, and Private R. M. Curry) were disinterred from the Prisoners Plot, Graves No. 1, 2 and 3 and were reburied in graves numbered 468, 469, and 470, which are located in Row 1, Section 2. Sergeant Frizell and Private Summers were executed in Fort Scott during the Civil War for committing capital crimes in violation of the Articles of War and are described as follows:

  • Sergeant Claudius C. Frizell; Cedar County, enrolled Missouri Militia, executed on May 27, 1863, for murdering a fellow soldier.

  • Private John Summers; Company E, 2nd Kansas Volunteer Cavalry, executed by firing squad for desertion on May 13, 1863.


At the present time, it is not known what crime the third prisoner, Private R. M. Curry committed or why he was buried in the Prisoners Plot or Rebel Line.

Between 1842 and 1853, the Fort Scott Post Cemetery was located on the open prairie approximately 500 yards west southwest of the fort. In 1853, the U. S. Army abandoned Fort Scott and did not disinter the remains of the soldiers and possible dependents who were buried in the Post Cemetery. The Post Surgeon's reports indicate that 17 soldiers (16 enlisted personnel and 1 officer) died at Fort Scott between 1842 and 1853. The enlisted soldiers were probably buried in the Post Cemetery; however, no documentation has been discovered to confirm the disposition of their remains. The first recorded death at Fort Scott indicates that Private Henry Genter of the First United States Dragoons died on September 9, 1842. The last documented soldier to die at Fort Scott between 1842 and 1853 was Private John Remmington of the 6th Infantry Regiment who died on February 15, 1852. The only officer buried in the original Post Cemetery was Captain Alexander Morrow of the 6 Infantry Regiment who died at Fort Scott on January 7, 1851.

In 1855, the United States Government sold the fort buildings at a public auction, and they became the nucleus of the town of Fort Scott, Kansas Territory. The original Post Cemetery was used as the town or public graveyard from 1855-1867.

With the reactivation of Fort Scott came the need for a post-burial ground. The old post cemetery which had become the town graveyard was inadequate but did contain the graves of 9 Union soldiers who died at Fort Scott in 1862. In 1862, approximately 5 acres of land located about a mile and a half southeast of the one-time military post were purchased by the subscription of the town officers and citizens of Fort Scott for a new burying ground. Since it was controlled by the Presbyterian Church, it was known as the "Presbyterian Graveyard.” On November 15, 1862, the Presbyterian Graveyard" and an adjoining tract owned by the Town Company, totaling 5 acres, were designated the Fort Scott National Cemetery. This cemetery was one of the fourteen original national cemeteries established in the latter half of 1862, pursuant to the Act of Congress of July 17, 1862, authorizing the establishment of national cemeteries to provide burial places for those who died in the service of their country. This 5-acre tract was later conveyed to the United States Government by deed from the Fort Scott Town Company, dated October 16, 1868. Several additional small parcels totaling .6 acres were acquired in 1868 and 1873 for token amounts. An additional 4.9 acres were acquired by deed dated August 15, 1873, from John G. Stuart and his wife. This brought the total acreage to 10.5 acres and was confirmed by a survey dated February 24, 1955. In 1994, the Fort Scott National Cemetery Veterans Expansion Committee donated an additional 11.2 acres for the expansion of the national cemetery, but this area has not yet been developed for burial.

Mr. Absalom Hyde, a discharged captain of the Kansas Cavalry, was appointed the first superintendent of the national cemetery on July 16, 1868.

After the Civil War, from May 20 to July 20, 1867, remains from the old military cemetery, and from the post cemetery at Fort Lincoln, Kansas, as well as remains interred in isolated graves from the surrounding countryside were removed and reinterred in Section 3 of the national cemetery. Most of these were buried as unknowns. Remains of those who died in the skirmish areas of Vernon County, Missouri, and Bourbon and Linn Counties in Kansas, were reinterred in the national cemetery, as well as those interred in the post cemetery at Fort Scott.

Also interred in the cemetery are 17 Indian soldiers, some of whose colorful, vividly descriptive names belie the importance of the service they rendered to the United States. Stick-Out-Belly, SetThem-Up, Deer-In-Water, Young Chicken, and Coming Deer were all privates in the Indian Home Guard Regiments of the Union Army during the Civil War. Ongoing research indicates that the identified Indian soldiers were not scouts, but private soldiers from the ranks of the three Indian Home Guard Regiments. These regiments were organized by Indian Refugees who escaped from the Indian Territory to Kansas between September of 1861 and September 1862. During the Civil War, the U. S. Army normally did not acquire scouts from the ranks of enlisted personnel. Scouts were civilians hired by the Quartermaster Department and were paid for the number of days that they provided service to the U.S. Government.

During the Civil War, soldiers of the 1st and 2nd Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry Regiments were recruited, trained, and supplied in Fort Scott, Kansas. The 15 Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry Regiment was the first African American Regiment from a northern state to join the United States Army which occurred at Fort Scott on January 13, 1863. It was also the first African American Regiment from a northern state to engage the Confederate forces in combat which occurred at the Battle of Island Mound, Missouri, on October 28 and 29, 1862. In March of 1864, during a major reorganization of the Volunteer Forces of the United States Army, the 1" Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry Regiment was designated as the 79th United States Colored Infantry Regiment. The 2nd Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry Regiment was designated as the 83rd United States Colored Infantry Regiment. There are 88 African American soldiers interred in the Fort Scott National Cemetery who died during the Civil War, including 47 from the 79h United States Colored Troops (USCT), 13 from the 83rd USCT, and 28 unknowns. All are buried in Section 5.

After the Civil War ended (April 1865), the U. S. Army closed Fort Scott in October 1865. On November 24, 1969, the Post of Southeastern Kansas was established by the Army to protect the construction of the Missouri River and Gulf Railroad across disputed land to the Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma). The headquarters of the Post of Southeastern Kansas was located in the town of Fort Scott and consisted of a small office and one warehouse. The majority of the troops were stationed at various camps along the railroad, and three died while on active duty.

After the railroad was completed, the U. S. Army closed the Port of Southeastern Kansas on April 14, 1873.

On June 29, 1892, the exhumed remains of 43 soldiers and dependents (26 known, 17 unknown) from Fort Elliott, Texas, were interred in Section 1, graves 468-511. Fort Elliott was an active military installation from February 1875 to October 20, 1890, and was located near the present town of Mobeetie, Texas. In 1892 when the identified exhumation occurred, the Fort Elliott Cemetery was located in the Department of Missouri which included the national cemeteries at Fort Scott and Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. It is believed that remains were shipped to Fort Scott for reburial because Fort Scott was closer to Fort Elliott and the subsequent freight cost was less than it would have been if the remains were shipped to Fort Leavenworth.
Local significance of the site:
Military; Architecture

Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1999.

The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.

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The state bird of Kansas is the western meadowlark, which is known for its distinctive song.
Bourbon County, Kansas has a rich and interesting history that dates back to the early 1800s. The area was originally inhabited by Native American tribes such as the Osage and the Kanza, who used the land for hunting and foraging. However, as European settlers began to move westward, the region of Bourbon County became a part of the Kansas Territory.

In 1855, the county was officially named Bourbon, after the famous French Royal Family. The area quickly became a center for trade and commerce due to its location along the Osage River and the construction of the Osage Valley and Southern Kansas Railroad. This led to an influx of businesses and settlers, resulting in the establishment of several thriving towns within the county.

The county soon became known for its agricultural wealth, with farmers cultivating a variety of crops including corn, wheat, and tobacco. The production of tobacco, in particular, flourished in Bourbon County, making it a major player in the tobacco industry. The county's fertile soils and abundant water resources made it an ideal location for farming, further driving economic growth.

However, the history of Bourbon County is not without its share of challenges. Like many other regions during this time, the county experienced the turmoil of the Civil War, with divided loyalties and skirmishes between Union and Confederate sympathizers. Nevertheless, the county eventually recovered from the war and continued to develop both economically and socially.

Today, Bourbon County remains a vibrant and thriving community in Kansas. It is known for its rich agricultural heritage, the beauty of its natural landscapes, and its welcoming and friendly residents. The county continues to adapt and grow, while also taking pride in preserving its historical roots.

This timeline provides a glimpse into the major events and milestones that have shaped the history of Bourbon County, Kansas.

  • 1845 - Bourbon County is established as one of the original 33 counties of the Kansas Territory.
  • 1855 - The town of Fort Scott is founded, becoming the county seat of Bourbon County.
  • 1858 - Bourbon County's population grows rapidly with the discovery of coal and lead deposits.
  • 1861-1865 - The American Civil War impacts Bourbon County, with Fort Scott serving as a base for Union troops.
  • 1870s - Railroads reach Bourbon County, leading to increased trade and economic growth.
  • 1885 - Bourbon County experiences a "boom" period due to the expansion of coal mining operations.
  • 1893 - A devastating fire destroys much of Fort Scott's business district, leading to significant rebuilding efforts.
  • 20th century - Bourbon County's economy diversifies with the growth of agriculture, manufacturing, and healthcare industries.
  • 1951 - The Gordon Parks Elementary School is built in Fort Scott, named after the renowned African-American photographer and filmmaker.
  • 2000s - Bourbon County focuses on revitalizing its downtown areas and promoting tourism through historical preservation efforts.