Little River Fort

Little River Fort (1836-184?) - Established Nov 1836 by Sgt. George B. Erathand 20 Texas Rangers as Fort Smith (1) named after Major William H. Smith but commonly called Little River Fort. Name changed in 1841 to Fort Griffin (1) after Moses Griffin who maintained the fort after the government abandoned it in Jun 1837. Reoccupied from Jan 1840 to Mar 1841 when the Army of the Republic of Texas was disbanded. Sporadic use after that. Little River Fort History The fort consisted of 6 or 7 cabins arranged along a stockade of post-oak pickets 8-9 feet high. One of the cabins was built like a blockhouse and was tall enough that it allowed firing over the stockade. The whole of the fort occupied about ½ acre. There were only two recorded skirmishes between the rangers and hostile Indians. Current Status Site marked by the Texas Historical Commission as Fort Griffin (1). Location: From Belton, Texas, 6 miles east on state road 436 to Hartrick Bluff Road, just passed the Leon River. Maps & Images Lat: 30.992900 Long: -97.3895 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: 500' Sources: Roberts, Robert B., Encyclopedia of Historic Forts: The Military, Pioneer, and Trading Posts of the United States, Macmillan, New York, 1988, 10th printing, ISBN 0-02-926880-X, page 767-768 Frazer, Robert W., Forts of the West, University of Oklahoma Press, Norman OK, 1965, ISBN 0-8061-1250-6, page 154 Pierce, Gerald S., Texas Under Arms: The Camps, Posts, Forts & Military Towns of the Republic of Texas 1836-1846, Encino Press, Austin TX, 1969, ISBN/ASIN: B0006CYB9I, page 94 Links: North American Forts - Little River Forts The Handbook of Texas OnLine Visited: 8 Oct 2007