Audio
Fort Craig - Guarding the Trail Exhibit Audio Description
Transcript
Guarding the Trail. 636 words.
This panel is one of five that sit along a sidewalk at the side of the gravel drive. It is 3 feet wide by two feet tall, and sits 3 feet off the ground on two metal posts. That is approximately 1 meter wide by a half meter tall, and one meter off the ground.
The surrounding land is flat with various mountain features along the distant horizon. As you face the panels there is a closer peak that rises gradually at the left side and more steeply on the right. This is Fra Cristóbal Mountain. Another prominent feature is a wide flat-topped mesa to the left and slightly behind you, which is Mesa del Contadero.
Text at upper left of this panel reads, "The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the war between the United States and Mexico in 1848. Mexico surrendered more than half of its land to the US. Trade along El Camino Real, then known as the Chihuahua Trail, continued, but now linked the two nations. The US military quickly built forts and stationed soldiers along the trail to protect caravans and secure the lands. In 1854, the US built Fort Craig to protect this area. It became known as the starting point for campaigns against the Apaches, Navajos, and Comanches. The garrison battled raiding parties in the Jornada del Muerto, and rescued stolen livestock. The settlements of San Marcial to the north and Paraje to the south flourished as trade centers under the fort’s protection."
At the bottom left is a historical photograph of three rows of men dressed in uniforms, some with double breasted jackets, others with single breasted. Each holds an unsheathed sword. The top row sits on an earthen rampart faced with planking. The bottom row sits on benches in front while the middle row stands in between. The caption reads, "Officers, 50th Pennsylvania Infantry, Fort Craig, July 1865. Colonel William H. Telford, Civil War photographs, 1861-1865, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division."
On the right side of the panel is a map of New Mexico. A red line marks El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro extending up from the bottom to Santa Fe in the north central part of the state. Two pink lines mark the path of the Santa Fe Trail, coming in from the upper right, merging together and ending at Santa Fe. White dots for military posts and fort icons indicate the United States Military Installations of 1855. Beginning at the bottom of the map where the red line enters New Mexico is Fort Bliss, 1850 to the present. Just above that is Fort Fillmore, 1851-1862. Just above that is Doña Ana Post, 1855-1856. Above that and slightly to the left is Fort Thorn, 1853-1859. About a quarter of the way up the state is your current location at Fort Craig, 1854-1884. To the right of that, near the middle of the state is Fort Stanton, 1855-1896.Continuing upwards to just north of the center of the state is Los Lunas Post, 1852-1862 and above that is Albuquerque Post, 1847-1857. To the west of Albuquerque is Cubero Post, 1850-1862. At Santa Fe is Fort Marcy, 1846-1894 and just to the south is Galisteo Calvary Post, 1850-1862. West of Santa Fe on the state line is Fort Defiance, 1851-1861. A bit to the north of Santa Fe is Cantonment Burgwin, 1852-1860. East of Santa Fe, along the pink line is Las Vegas Post, 1851-1891.
Across the top are logos associated with various agencies. At left is the Bureau of Land Management, National Conservation Lands. Next is El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail with an image of an ox-drawn cart. At the right are titles for El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail and Fort Craig Historic Site.
End of Description.
Description
Listen to the audio description Fort Craig - Guarding the Trail exhibit.
Date Created
08/31/2021
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