1897 FORT BAYARD New Mexico CAPT S R STAFFORD 15th Infantry INDIAN WARS U S Army

Description: PLEASE READ BEFORE BUYING: I sell ONLY ORIGINAL items and NOT ANY reproductions.This sale is for one Military LETTERHEAD it is from CAPTAIN S. R. STAFFORD ( Exchange Officer ) of the 15th INFANTRY he was at FORT BAYNARD, NEW MEXICO during the year of 1897. This is a very rare letterhead. At the top right corner, printed, is the name Lieut. A. R. PIPER, 15th Infantry, Officer in Charge... but, his name is crossed out and someone wrote ( in cursive ) "Capt. S. R. Stafford". This letter is signed by S. R. StaffordThe signature is in gray colored ink (it could be a very thinned down black). It appears that someone else wrote the letter first and then got him to sign it. The handwriting, to write the letter, is different than the handwriting of his signature. Historical Notes:Fort Bayard was established as a United States Army installation in 1866 to protect miners and other settlers in the area along the Apache Trail. The fort was named for Brigadier General George Dashiell Bayard, who was mortally wounded at the Battle of Fredericksburg in 1862. Fifteen square miles of land were set aside as the Fort Bayard Military Reservation by presidential order in 1869. In 1886, then-Second Lieutenant John Pershing arrived at Fort Bayard and oversaw the installation of a heliograph, linking the fort to an Army communications network from Arizona to Texas.Fort Bayard was one of many installations throughout the Southwest that was garrisoned by the so-called Buffalo Soldiers. Company B of the 25th United States Colored Infantry Regiment established the post, and they were joined by other black units, including troops from the 9th Cavalry Regiment. Corporal Clinton Greaves, stationed at Fort Bayard with C Company, 9th Cavalry Regiment, received the Medal of Honor for his actions against Apache raiders on January 24, 1877. A monument to the Buffalo Soldiers was erected on the old parade field of Fort Bayard in 1992.Following the capture of Geronimo in 1886, the Apache were no longer considered a major threat. Fort Bayard's continued usefulness, like that many posts in the southwest, thus came under scrutiny. Due to its distance from the border with Mexico, the fort was selected for deactivation. However, U.S. Army Surgeon General George Miller Sternberg, noting the excellent health record of the post, chose Fort Bayard as an Army tuberculosis hospital and research center (Lectures on tuberculosis made at the fort are archived at the National Library of Medicine). The fort was then transferred to the Surgeon General's Department in 1900. In 1922 the hospital became the part of the Veterans Bureau.The fort was partially reactivated as a military installation during World War II. A number of German prisoners of war were held at the fort from 1943 to 1945. The fort is now administered by the New Mexico Department of Health as Fort Bayard Medical Center, a long term care nursing facility that also contains a chemical dependency treatment center.Fort Bayard was declared a National Historic Landmark in 2004.Fort Bayard is located 0.5 miles (800 m) north of the intersection of US 180 and New Mexico state route 152, near Bayard, New Mexico. Condition: Normal letter folds, some subtle toning, tiny minor flaws, in very good condition. Approximately 8 1/2" X 11" in size. The "EBAY ITEM" thing is just a loose piece of paper that is not attached to the item that is for sale. If you have any questions, please contact me. TERMS & CONDITIONS: Payment to EBAY upon purchase Free shipping to the continental U.S. only. When you receive your item, PLEASE leave feedback (I will see it) and I will reciprocate feedback at that time. PLEASE visit my Ebay store items for related ephemera, antique documents, and paper collectibles at TEXASJOHNNYBOY EPHEMERA! THANK YOU VERY MUCH and GOOD LUCK TO YOU.

Price: 599 USD

Location: Houston, Texas

End Time: 2024-12-15T15:32:05.000Z

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