My Summer at Fort Robinson, Nebraska

Fort Robinson--what a wonderful place to work for the summer, and I got paid too.   So much Army history here from 1874 to 1947, the death of Crazy Horse, the Cheyenne Outbreak, largest Remount Station, WWII POW camp, WWII K-9 Corp dog training, Beef Cattle Research Station, and now the largest state park in Nebraska with over 22,000 acres.

 

The fort sits in a valley below the Red Cloud Buttes on the north and Cheyenne Buttes on the south.



I had 2 jobs while I was here.  Two days a week I was the tour guide on the horse drawn historical tour.

And 4 mornings a week I was the cook for the Breakfast in the Buttes.  (Ham, scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, pancakes, cowboy coffee)

 



This was the view from my "office". 

 

There are 6 original officers quarters on the old parade ground.  Built of adobe in 1874, sided in wood some years later and now available as lodging for visitors.

 

 



 

Also available for lodging are the 1887 adobe officers quarters along the new parade ground.  These are duplexes and the one on the left here was my home from 1967-69 when my husband worked at the fort and employees lived in the officers quarters.

 

 

The brick double company barracks was built in 1909 and now has rooms for rent, plus a restaurant, gift shop, and our admin offices.   The stone monuments are dedicated to Chief Crazy Horse and Lt. Levi Robinson.

 

 

"Through these portals passed the world's finest horsemen"  dedicated to the men of the U.S. Calvary.

 

 

The 1905 Post Headquarters is now the fort History Center.  A fantastic museum of Fort Robinson's history.

 

 

While I was here I enjoyed horseback riding into the hills...

 

 

 

 

a 3 day intertribal Pow Wow....

 

 

stagecoach rides,  plus jeep rides, swimming pool, kayaking, buffalo stew cookouts,

 



 

and a day trip to Toadstool Park.

 

 

Now to back track to an important bit of history.  Chief Crazy Horse was killed here at Fort Robinson the evening of Sept 5, 1877.  He had been arrested and moved to the building to the right, the guard house.  As he bolted out the door and he was bayoneted by the guard and fell to the ground by the small stone monument.  He was then moved to the Adjutents Office, the building to the left where he died 5 hours later. 

 

 

Just over a year later, on January 9, 1879, the 149 Cheyenne men, women and children imprisoned in this barracks escapeed rather than be returned to the Oklahoma reservation.  It took the Army 2 weeks to kill or capture the escapees.  The Cheyenne lost 64 of their group, but were then sent to the Tongue River in Montana rather than Oklahoma.

 

During WWII this was also a German POW camp with up to 3,000 prisoners here.  Also a large K-9 Corp dog training area.  During WWII there were about 10,000 active war dogs, serving over seas and along our coastlines.  Of that 10,000 over 5,000 came from Fort Robinson.

 

During the summer my grandkids came to visit.  Here we are atop the Cheyenne Buttes while on the jeep ride.

 

 

 

And a rest stop on a hike to the top of the Red Cloud Buttes. 

 

Yes, a good summer and soon I'm on the road again to meet up with the WIN's in Montana.



 

This should read "Where I've Been" instead of "Where I Go"

In an effort to catch up with the last 6 months there will be lots of photos here.

From mid February to early May I volunteered at Fossil Rim Wildlife Center in Glen Rose, Texas.

Mostly I  drove a bus like this with visitors over the 9.5 miles of roads throughout the park.  Fossil Rim is a non traditional zoo where there are over 1000 hoofed animals roaming 1600 acres.  There are 4 pastures to separate various species.  Here are some of the animals  I got to see each time I drove through the park.

Giraffes.  Free to roam their 300 acre pasture they were definately relaxed.

The giraffes would come up to cars and busses to be hand fed the special treats we offered.

 Wildebeest in the wild will all have their calves within a 3 week period.  Safety in numbers.

 Addax.  The little toupee on their forehead keeps them cooler in summer and warmer in winter.

 Waterbuck.  You don't want to pet these--they smell awful!



 Gemsbok.  African tribal masks are modeled after the distinctive facial markings.

 Aoudads.  Also known as Barbary Sheep they can climb rugged mountains with ease.

 Arabian Oryx.  One of the 3 animals that can kill a lion with their horns.

 European Red Deer.  These are the deer that Robin Hood hunted.  They are smaller relatives of our Rocky Mountain Elk.

 Scimitar Horned Oryx.  Horns shaped like the scimitar sword Aladin used.

 White Rhino.  Not white but grey, just like the black rhino.  Difference being the shape of their mouths.



 The Roan Antelope with babies.  Notice those big ears. 

 A Dama Gazelle.   The white color helps them blend in to the desert sand and keeps them cooler.

 A male Blackbuck.   Beautiful spiral horns.

 

The first Aoudad of the year.  Actually the only one of the year. 

Hartman Mountain Zebra.   White bellies and wider stripes on the rump.

 Zebras...white with black stripes or black with white stripes?

 Fossil Rim is a premier breeder of cheetahs.  There have been over 130 cheetah cubs born at Fossil Rim.

Sable Antelope whose horns can kill lions