Fort Liscum
Encyclopedia
Fort Liscum was a United States Army
post in the Alaska Territory
on the south shore of Valdez Bay, across from the modern site of Valdez, Alaska
. It operated from 1900 to 1922.
designated a site for a military reservation at Port Valdez. Port Valdez was the trail head for the Valdez-Eagle Trail to Fort Egbert
, near Eagle, Alaska
. Abercrombie selected 650 acres on the south side of the bay near a point known as Ludington's Landing. The site was chosen for its deep anchorage, a nearby mountain stream providing a continuous supply of fresh water, and a location, in Abercrombie's words, "just far enough from the head of Port Valdez to be beyond the influences of the whisky element to be found in frontier towns." The head of Port Valdez was the original site of Valdez, Alaska, which, as the start of the "All-American Route" to the Klondike
, attracted a steady stream of prospectors.
, who had died July 13, 1900 in Tianjin, China leading the U.S. Army's 9th Infantry Regiment as part of the Eight-Nation Alliance
to put down the Boxer Rebellion
. The 9th Infantry Regiment was later stationed at the fort.
On August 24, 1902, the Washington-Alaska Military Cable and Telegraph System (WAMCATS) connected Fort Liscum with Fort Egbert.
In 1903, Captain Eugene T. Wilson, commander at Fort Liscum, reported that the 1901 law banning the sale of alcohol on army bases was having an adverse affect on his command. "The object of a company commander," wrote Wilson, "is to promote temperance, to make his men sober, and keep them in good physical and moral health. I cannot do it now when Tom, Dick and Harry are calling to them to leave the garrison and get drunk."
In 1914, soldiers from Fort Liscum helped to construct a dike around the town Valdez, which had been subject to annual floods due to seasonal runoff from the Valdez Glacier.
Fort Liscum was closed in 1922, one of many military facilities closed in the years following World War I
. The population of Valdez, which had peaked at 7,000 during the gold rush years, fell below 500 people after the Army departed.
A field gun from Fort Liscum is displayed in the Valdez Museum.
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
post in the Alaska Territory
Alaska Territory
The Territory of Alaska was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 24, 1912, until January 3, 1959, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Alaska...
on the south shore of Valdez Bay, across from the modern site of Valdez, Alaska
Valdez, Alaska
Valdez is a city in Valdez-Cordova Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 4,020. The city is one of the most important ports in Alaska. The port of Valdez was named in 1790 after the Spanish naval officer Antonio Valdés y...
. It operated from 1900 to 1922.
History
In 1899, Captain William R. AbercrombieWilliam R. Abercrombie
William R. Abercrombie was a career U.S. Army officer during the late 19th century.Raised in Long Island, New York, Abercrombie was appointed a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army by PresidentU.S. Grant in 1877 and was assigned to the 2nd Infantry. He proceeded to the Pacific coast to join the Nez...
designated a site for a military reservation at Port Valdez. Port Valdez was the trail head for the Valdez-Eagle Trail to Fort Egbert
Fort Egbert
-History:Fort Egbert was established in 1899, during the Klondike Gold Rush, as U.S. Army headquarters in the District of Alaska. It was named by U.S. President William McKinley in honor of Colonel Harry C...
, near Eagle, Alaska
Eagle, Alaska
Eagle is a city located along the United States-Canada border in the Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, Alaska, United States. It includes Eagle Historic District, a U.S. National Historic Landmark. The population was 129 at the 2000 census...
. Abercrombie selected 650 acres on the south side of the bay near a point known as Ludington's Landing. The site was chosen for its deep anchorage, a nearby mountain stream providing a continuous supply of fresh water, and a location, in Abercrombie's words, "just far enough from the head of Port Valdez to be beyond the influences of the whisky element to be found in frontier towns." The head of Port Valdez was the original site of Valdez, Alaska, which, as the start of the "All-American Route" to the Klondike
Klondike, Yukon
The Klondike is a region of the Yukon in northwest Canada, east of the Alaska border. It lies around the Klondike River, a small river that enters the Yukon from the east at Dawson....
, attracted a steady stream of prospectors.
Construction and operation
In May 1900, 100 soldiers arrived to establish the post and begin construction. The completed installation numbered 37 buildings, including two-story quarters for officers and civilians, a hospital, a stable, and a bakery. A U.S. War Department report described the facility as "well constructed" and easily supplied, but lamented the "unfortunate" location, where northern exposure and shadows cast by the overlooking mountains ensured that winter snow would not melt until June. On September 6, 1900, the post was named Fort Liscum in honor of Colonel Emerson H. LiscumEmerson H. Liscum
Emerson Hamilton Liscum was a U.S. Army officer who was killed in battle at Tientsin, China during the Boxer Rebellion.He joined the U.S. Army in 1861 to fight in the American Civil War. After the war he remained in the Army and rose to the rank of Colonel. While assigned to the 9th U.S....
, who had died July 13, 1900 in Tianjin, China leading the U.S. Army's 9th Infantry Regiment as part of the Eight-Nation Alliance
Eight-Nation Alliance
The Eight-Nation Alliance was an alliance of Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States whose military forces intervened in China to suppress the anti-foreign Boxers and relieve the siege of the diplomatic legations in Beijing .- Events :The...
to put down the Boxer Rebellion
Boxer Rebellion
The Boxer Rebellion, also called the Boxer Uprising by some historians or the Righteous Harmony Society Movement in northern China, was a proto-nationalist movement by the "Righteous Harmony Society" , or "Righteous Fists of Harmony" or "Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists" , in China between...
. The 9th Infantry Regiment was later stationed at the fort.
On August 24, 1902, the Washington-Alaska Military Cable and Telegraph System (WAMCATS) connected Fort Liscum with Fort Egbert.
In 1903, Captain Eugene T. Wilson, commander at Fort Liscum, reported that the 1901 law banning the sale of alcohol on army bases was having an adverse affect on his command. "The object of a company commander," wrote Wilson, "is to promote temperance, to make his men sober, and keep them in good physical and moral health. I cannot do it now when Tom, Dick and Harry are calling to them to leave the garrison and get drunk."
In 1914, soldiers from Fort Liscum helped to construct a dike around the town Valdez, which had been subject to annual floods due to seasonal runoff from the Valdez Glacier.
Fort Liscum was closed in 1922, one of many military facilities closed in the years following World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. The population of Valdez, which had peaked at 7,000 during the gold rush years, fell below 500 people after the Army departed.
Legacy
In 1925, the land was transferred to the Dept. of Interior, which sold a number of the buildings for relocation. In 1929, the land was claimed as a homestead by Andrew and Oma Belle Day, who renamed it Dayville, opening a cannery and a sawmill on the site. The Trans-Alaska Pipeline marine terminal, which commenced operation in 1977, was built on land that had been reserved for Fort Liscum.A field gun from Fort Liscum is displayed in the Valdez Museum.