• Photo by: Max Kandler

    Fort Davis

    National Historic Site Texas

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  • Museum Closure

    Our park museum will be closed April 15, 2013 till 2014. This will also affect our park orientation film screening; it will be limited to 8-10 visitors at a time. The rest of the park is open for visitation. We are sorry for the inconvenience.

History & Culture

History of First Fort Davis: 1854-1862

On October 23, 1854, the Commander of the Department of Texas, General Persifor F. Smith, issued the official order that established Fort Davis. Smith named the site in honor of then Secretary of War Jefferson Davis.
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History of Second Fort Davis: 1867-1891

After the Civil War, travel continued on the San Antonio-El Paso Road and so did raiding by Comanches and Apaches, which resulted in the Army re-establishing Fort Davis.
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African Americans in the Frontier Army

The Act of 1866 increased the size of the Regular Army, thus changing the course of military history by affording African Americans a permanent place in the Armed Forces of the United States.
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Second Lieutenant Henry O. Flipper

 Born into slavery at Thomasville, Georgia on March 21, 1856, Flipper became the first African American graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point.
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Did You Know?

Photo of Wiliam R. (Pecos Bill) Shafter.

William R. (Pecos Bill) Shafter commanded Fort Davis in 1871-72 and again 1881-82.  Shafter was commanding general of all the U.S. troops in Cuba during the Spanish American War.