Fort Lane, Oregon: Abandoned 1850s Army Outpost, Site of the Rogue River War

Fort Lane, a U-shaped Army fort from 1853, lasted but a blink in Oregon's history. Founded amid the Rogue River War, it served as a fleeting haven for Native Americans. The fort, itchy with no real walls, held 18 log huts, as comfy as trenches can be. The officers' quarters numbered 5, while the enlisted men had 4. The site included an officer's kitchen, 3 enlisted men's kitchens, a guard house, a hospital, a blacksmiths shop, and a Quartermaster's supply hut.

From 1854 to 1555, Fort Lane administered the Table Rock Indian Reservation while white settlers slaughtered an Indian village, causing Native Americans to relocate to the fort. The locals, however, saw this as a declaration of war and began attacking settlers and incinerating cabins. When they were finally defeated, Fort Orford and Fort Lane were used as staging grounds, and the remaining Native Americans were exiled to reservations up north. On February 23, 1856, the Indians interned at Fort Lane were marched 260 miles to the Grand Ronde Reservation, guarded by 106 men under Lt.

William B. Hazen. The fort was deserted on September 17, 1856, once all the Indians had been shipped off to the Coastal Reservations. Today, none of the buildings remain, and the site has fallen to periodic vandalism and looting. In 2008, the Oregon Parks and Recreation agreed to invest $135,000 into the site, intending to add bathrooms and more amenities.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons