One of the surviving buildings from Fort McIntosh, which existed for nearly a century, beginning in 1849, in Laredo, Texas. The buildings are now part of Laredo Community College.

Fort McIntosh was established to guard the Texas frontier at the site of a strategic river crossing. Originally named Camp Crawford, the fort was renamed Fort McIntosh in 1850 in honor of Lieutenant Colonel James Simmons McIntosh, a hero in the Battle of Molino del Rey during the Mexican-American War.

The fort was abandoned by Federal troops at the outbreak of the American Civil War. The Battle of Laredo took place near the fort on March 19, 1864, when seventy-two men repelled three attacks from a force of two hundred Federal soldiers sent from Brownsville, Texas On October 23, 1865, the post was reoccupied by federal troops of the 2nd Texas Cavalry.

During World War I, the fort was used as a training base and saw over 15,000 recruits pass through the gates. During World War II, the 8th Service Command, the 56th Cavalry Brigade, the Southern Land Frontier, the Civil Air Patrol, and battalion of military police all were stationed at the facility at one time or another.

The fort was deactivated in 1946, but a hint of military presence remained: The Laredo United States Army Reserve 340th Quarter Master Company is located within the fort. Photo by Carol Highsmith.