45-3Military AffairsPurchase of Fort Clark , Texas. [1837] Fort needed to restrain Indian hostilities
on the north and western frontiers of Texas.1879-

Senate Report No. 579, 45th Congress, 3rd Session (1879)

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45TH CONGRESS, } 3d Session. SENATE. {REPORT No. 579. I~ THE SEXATE OF THE U~ITED STATES. JA;-;u.un.- lG, 18i9.-0ldered to be printe<l. 1\Ir. l\IAXEY, from the Committee on l\Iilitary AffairR, submitted the following REPORT: [To accompany bill S. 162i.] The Committee on Jiilitary Affairs, to 1eltom 1cas referred tlte bill (8. 16:!7) making an appropriation j(n· the purclwse of Fo1·t Clark, Texas, re8pect-fully submit the following 'report: The laml upon which Fort Clark is Rituated was located by virtue of part of the headright of Samuel A. 1\laYerick, now deceased, and is surve3T No. 23-!, containing 3,867:! acres, less a mall strip about 146 vara~ (~1bont 1:34: yards) wide, patented by the State of Texas to Samuel A. :\Iav·erick, September 20, 18.31, No. 40-!, vol. 9. This being a first-class hea1lright, acquired during the coverture of said Samuel A. Maverick, deeeased, and .l\Iary A.l\1averiek, his widow, Rhe is by the laws of Texas entitletl in fee to one undiYided half thereof. 2d. By the will of said Sanni.el A., duly probated, a certified copy of which is offered in evi-dence before the committee, ~Irs. l\Iaveriek is duly authorized to bargain, , ell, and convey, with good and sufficient title, any and all the lands of the testator. 3d. 'rhe children and heirs of said Samuel A. unite in a deed of relinqui~lunent, duly authenticated, of all their interest in ·said land to their mother, s~vid :Mary A. Au authenticated copy of said deed was also offered in evidence. A certified copy of the patent for said laml covered l>~r said suryey ~:34:, from the gener~1lland office of the State of Texas, was also offered in evidence, dated September 20, 1831, No. 404, recordetl in vol. 9, record of patents, general land office of Texas. The title to said land is perfect, and in Mrs. l\faverick, and has been so recog-nized by the government by leases thereof since 18.32 until recently, Fort Clark being situate thereon. The \Var Department has heretofore urgently recommended appro-priate legislation to sPcure title to posts in Texas. (See annual report for 1878 and the foliO\ ring extract fi.'om pages 11 and 12 :) [Extract from Annual Report of Secretary of War for 1878.] Military sites in Texas. Ex. Doc. No. 232, Forty-third Congress, first sessjon, contains the history of the efforts to obtain owner~hip of the sites of militaiT poi::!ts in Texas occupied to restrain hostile Inclians on the north and western frontiers of that State and to preserve the peace an<l protect property an<llife a1ong the Rio Grftnde frontier. A board, assemblt>d under a law of Congress, reported in favor of purchasing anum-ber of posts on both frontier . The Lieutenan t-General , considering the doubt as to the propriety of expen<ling money in purcha'!r of land for sites of po.;ts occnpie<l on what was supposed to be an at l vanei~l~ frontier, rt'com nended the purchase of the along the Hio Grande ouly. · 2 PURCHASE OF FORT CLARK, TEXAS. Congress a ppropriatcd, 30. of )Iareh, 1875, $45,000 for purcha~e of sites of three posts only-Fort Bro"Wn, Ringgold Barraeks, and Fort Duncan-and so restriete<l the War Department that to thi\<g clay the United States has no title to any one of the:se posts, and has not been able to use the money appropriated for the purchase. Fort Clark, which is some thirty miles from the Rio Grande, though a post on that frontier, was excluded fi:om the appropriation, and no appropriation was made for its purchase. It has been a military post since 1852. ·whenever a. military post is estab-Jished on unclaimed land in the wilderness of Texas, which the law of the United States does not allow the vVar Department to purchase from its lawfnl owner, the State, some person soon appears as owner, with a title derived from the State, and increases with the expiration of every lease his demands for rent, though settlement has not, except by the United States' own improvements, yet appreciated the value of lands in its neighborhood. The buildings, temporary or permanent, necessary to protection and shelter oftroops and military supplies, become, under general law, the property of the land-owner on termination of a lease, and the officers of the United States are helpless to guard the interests of the government, which, from want of judicious legislation, is obliged to submit to the demands of the claimant as to rental, or to abandon improvements, with great damage to the United States and great suf. fering to the troops, and thus incur the expenditure necessary to build a new post in some other locality on another lease, and run the same road of improvidence again, or else to abandon posts on the frontier indispensable to the defense of the people of Texas against such atrocities as are filling the newspapers of the day. vVere the law to trust the Executive with the power to purchase sites for such mili-tary posts as it may be found necessary to establish on this Texas frontier, land could be bought for all of them at insignificant prices-50 cents to $1 per acre; while, after spending in military occupation, and in huts, barracks, and store-houses, many tho11-sancls of dollars, these same sites al'e held against the United States at $10 to $100 per acre, or even higher. The Quartermaster-General further reports that the removcl of division and depart-ment headquarters to military posts, where possible, has caused considerable expendi-ture to provide suitable accommodations as offices and quarters, and this expenditure makes unusual clemands upon the appropriation for barracks and quarters. This ad-ditional expenditure is, however, only temporary, and it is believed that the changes in t.his respect, required by the act of Congress passed at the last session, will, in the end, prove to be both beneficial and economical. In a communication of January 15 instant to ~Ir. :1\Iaxey, of this committee, the Secretary requests that an appropriation for the purpose [purchase of Fort Clark J be made at the present session of Congress, in such sum as the comnuttee may det€.rmine. The Secretary's letter is inserted, as f~llows : VI AR DEPART:\IEXT, Wasl!iugton City, January 15, 1879. SIR: I have the honor to return the letter of the 18th ultimo from Mrs. Mary A. }l:werick, of San Antonio, Tex., inclosed in your letter of the 9th instant, as requested. Mrs. Maverick's proposition is as follows: "I am willing to sell the survey upon which :Fort Clark is located, being survey No. 234, containing 3,867 acres (excepting a narrow strip, 146 varas in width, running across the northeastern side of the snrYey), together with my interest in the buildings and improvements located thereon, for fifty thowmnd dollars, provided that my proposition is accepted and the transfer completed l)l'ior to Aprill, 1879. Title to sm'Vey, of comse, warranted." I inclose a report of the Quartermaster-General upon this proposition, elated January 13, 1879; copy of House Ex. Doc. No. 282, Forty-thil'd Congress, fust session, relath-e to military sites in Texas; copy of letter from Mrs. Maverick to General Vincent, asRist-ant adjutant-general, Department of Texas, elated April 29, 1878, ·with the indorsements thereon; and cop~T of my letter of May 15, 1878, transmitting the same to the Honse of Representatives. I also inclose copy of my last annual report, on page 11 of whirh the subject of "Military sites in Texas" is considered. Draught of a hill to authorize the purchase of Fort Clark is inclosed, with reqnr"t that an appropriation for the purpose be made at the present se~>sion of Congres:;, in such !'lnm as the committee may determine. Very respectfnlly, your obedient servant, Hon. S. B. l\[AXEY, Of Militw·y Committee, United States Senate. GEO. ,V. :\IcCRARY, Secretary of War. The Quartermaster-General, under date Jan nary 13, 187!), in a rom-mnnication to the Secretary of War, states that .l\Irs . . l\Iaverick propol'ed, PURCHASE OF FORT CLARK, TEXAS. 3 April 29, 1 78, to sell the site of Fort Clark, with all improYement. , for $25,000, "provided money was paid pre·dous to June 3, 1878." General Ord, commanding Department of Texas, under date ~Iay 1, 1878, in-dorsed on said proposition, recommends acceptance thereof, and in con-nection therewith states the buildings, &c., on said land are worth from $100,000 to $200 000. General Ord ft~rther states that "the post (Fort Clark) is the most important one in the department." This is an indm·sement on a letter addressed by ]Irs. ]Iaverick to the Adjutant-General's Department of Texas, April 29, 1878, containing the proposition referred to. General Sheridan, commanding :Military Division of 1\Hssouri, under date }lay 6, 1878, indorses the same as follows: "Not one moment should be lost in . ·ecuring the offer made by the owner of the site of Fort Clark. The post will have to be retained for many years. It is of great Yalue to n' in every way, and the price asked is very low," &c. The site selected for Fort Clark is admirably adapted to the purpose, and, situate cmn-eniently to the Rio Grande frontier, will undoubtedly be important for many years to come. The committee here inserts the description thereof as fnrui~hecl by Ron. GustaYe Schleicher, now de-t·eased, lately rt':'pre euting the ~ixth Congressional dh;tl'ict of Texas, ,..,-hich embraces Fm·t Clark : I desire to sta,te that tlw large tract of land on v.-hich Fort Cla1·k is l'ituarPd is a remarkable tract for its thw situation, its excellent land, and beautiful pure stream of water. The head spring of las )foras, a large spring, and a bold stream of clear water issuing from that spring are contained in the tract. The country is settling fast, and lands are increasing rapidly in Yalue. The tract is in the center of an admirable graz-ing countr,v, fitting it peculiarly for a post for a large cavalry force. The improve-ments are of a superior order, all permanent, and constructed of hard stone; anu altogether I consider the price very reasonable and the purchase of it by the govern-ment as tUl act of wise economy. The geographical position is such that it will tit this place peculiarly for a permanent station near the national boundary. I strongly recommend prompt action on thiiS propot;ition. G. SCHLEICHER. ~rhis indorsement "\vas made by :i)lr. Schleicher on a copy of the letter of l\lrs. :Maveriek, dated December 18, 1878, containing her present proposition to sell for $50,000. The government failed to accept l\Irs. :1\Iaverick's proposition of $25,000 according to its ternu;;, or at all, because Congress, although strongly recommended by the Secretary of 1\.,..ar to make the necessary appropri-ation, failed to do so. l\Irs. )laYerick, in a communication bearing date December IS, 1 '7R, makes proposition as follows : I am willing to sell the snrYey upon which Fort Clark is located, being smvey No. 2:H, containing 3,1:!67 acres (excepting a narrow strip, 146 varas in width, running across the northeastern shle of the survey), together with my interest in the buildings and improvements located therPon, for fifty thousand dollar~; proyided that my propo-t-.ition is accepted and tnm.sfer complete<l prior to April 1, 18i9. Title to survey, of course, warranted. She states that at the time her :first proposition was made it was quite important to her pecuniarily to make prompt sale, but that the govern-ment having failed to accept, other arrangements were made, and the ~-;pecial necessity for ready money no longer exists. She proposes now to conYey, with coYenant and clause of general warranty, aid land with its improyementi3 for $50,000. The committee, in addition to the evidence hereinbefore referred to, took the testimony of Col. R. S. ]Iackenzie, com-manding Fourth Cavalry, with headquarters at Fort Clark, who agrees ''ith Generals Ord and Sheridan as to the importance of Fort Clark, and put.· the value of the improvement~ at ~V>O,OOO, stating that like im-4 PURCHASE OF FORT CLARK, TEXAS. }Wovements could not be built for a less sum, and states that a post in that vicinity is a nece sity, and will continue to be so long as the Rio Grande remains the boundary, and that if Port Clark i:-; abandoned another will have to be erected in same vicinity without being more eli-gible, and thereby the government would saffer heavy loss. It is en-tirely clear to the committee that it is greatly to the intere t of the government to own the land upon which it has expende<l so larg·e a sum in the erection of this fort, which is yet, and for years will he, important to the protection of the frontier. The failure to accept l\Ir '. ~Iaverick'H first proposition ($25,000) was a costly failure. Mrs. Maverick's present proposition is $.>0,000, to he kept open till April1, 1879. The committee has no statement to show· that ~;he will take less. It may be said that less than a year ago she proposetl to take 25,000, and that if she could afford to take that price then she could afford to take less than $50,000 now, and that the chief value of the land consists in the improvements placed there by the government. It i' douhtles~o~ true that the land would be worth nothing like that smn without these improvements, and that the land with the improvements woul<l prob-ably not be worth $i)O,OOO to any party save the government, but at last the faet is still untouched thnt the government placed thel';e improve-ments there with knowledge of the title under which she claims; that General Or(l places the improvements at from $100,000 to $:300,000; that Colonel Mackenzie, commanding the post, places the impron"-ments at $150,000; that all agree that a post there or in that vicinity i:-; a necessity, and will so continue so long as the Hio GraiHle remains the boundary; and that then> is no plaee more eligible in the vh·inity; and that if the govc.>rnment ahandonR thil'; }lORt it \vill han• to lmild in the o.:ame vicinity, at a cost at least from 8100,000 to $:.Wo,ooo, or, a:-; definitely fixed by Colonel :Mackenzie, at $L>O,OOO. It is abo to be con~idered that the buildings there are snb:tantial stone bnildingH uuHle from stone taken from the survey, a~ Htated by Colonell\Iackeuzie, and theHe ·build-ings, of cour:-~e, the lea 'e having expired, heeome under general law the property of the land-owner, Ro the only question left to COHHider, in ·dew of the premises, is what is the interest of the government? It may be said the government acted unwisely in plaring itself at so great disadvantage in erecting costly building·s on htiHl not its own. \Vith tha,t the committee has nothing to do, a" the government has done so. It seems to the committee sonnd economy to appropriate $.30,000, or so much thereof as may be nece sary, for the purchase by the Secre-tary of "\Var of said property. The committee amended the bill by fill-ing the blank in amount with the words "tift.v thousand dolhtrH," and after the words "appropriated for the purchase," and before "b~y tbe Secretary of War," by inserting the words "by condemnation or private contract," and after the words "by the Secret<1ry of \Var,'' the words " as to him may seem best," and, as ametuled, recommend the passage of the bill. 0 

Purchase of Fort Clark , Texas

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Purchase of Fort Clark , Texas

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