Established in 1855 on the east bank of live Oak Creek just above where it joins the Pecos River, Fort Lancaster, Texas
as tasked to pursue and subdue the Comanche and Mescalero Apache Indians, as well as guarding the Pecos Crossing of the San Antonio-El Paso Road. The military post was first established as Camp Lancaster on August 20, 1855, when Companies H and K of the First Infantry Regiment, led by Captain Stephen D. Carpenter, arrived. It was designated as a permanent fort on August 21, 1856. One of the most isolated posts in Texas, Fort Lancaster’s only civilian activities were a sutler and a stage stop for mail. Photo by Kathy Weiser-Alexander.