Fort Peña Colorado

 (1879-1893) - A U.S. Army Fort established in 1879 southwest of present day Marathon, Brewster County, Texas. Abandoned in 1893. Also known as Camp Peña Colorado, Cantonment Peña Colorado — and similar names with the correct Spanish grammatical form 'Peña Colorada', as in the marker seen here — as well as Camp Rainbow Cliffs.

History of Fort Peña Colorado
Established in August 1879 as a temporary encampment known as Camp Rainbow Cliffs in the Big Bend area of West Texas. Improved and became Camp Peña Colorado with the construction of adobe and timber built buildings.

The post was built to prevent Indian attacks on railroad construction crews and to protect trails used by settlers and travelers in the Big Bend area. The post was raided by Apaches in 1881.

With the end of hostilities in the area, the post was abandoned on 11 Feb 1893.

Current Status
Now a county park in Marathon, Brewster County, Texas. Hart mentions two locations, the first is a ranch headquarters just north of the county park (shown by the "G" GNIS map marker) and the second is at the county park (shown by the "F" marker).

See Also:

Sources:
 * , page 772.
 * . page 164.

Links:
 * North American Forts - Fort Peña Colorado
 * Texas Handbook Online - Fort Pena Colorado
 * HMDB - Fort Pena Colorado
 * HMDB - Marathon Marker