DUANE
Duane's take
The marker at Old Fort Cemetery — let me tell you what it says, in my own way. Now, out here in Pecos County, there's a patch of ground that'll tell you more about frontier life than most history books ever could. This is the Old Fort Cemetery, burial ground for soldiers stationed at Fort Stockton and for the civilians who settled into the little town that grew up around the post.
Fort Stockton was established in 1859, and right from the start, the troops here had serious work to do. They protected the San Antonio to San Diego mail line — think about that for a moment, that long thin thread of civilization stretching across some of the most unforgiving country on the continent. They also moved to quell Indian raids into Mexico along what the marker calls the infamous Comanche Trail.
Infamous. That word's right there on the stone, and it earns every letter. Then came 1861, and the fort closed.
It stayed that way until 1867 — six years of silence, or something worse than silence, out on that trail. When the soldiers came back, they went back to the same hard business. But here's the thing about this cemetery that stops you cold when you read it.
No headstone was ever erected here for a person over forty years old. Not one. You let that settle in.
This ground testifies to the hardships of frontier life — those are the marker's own words — and that single fact does all the testifying you need. The fort was permanently closed in 1886. Two years later, in 1888, the remains of fifty-six soldiers buried in this cemetery were moved to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio.
Fifty-six men, gathered up and carried east. What stayed behind was the story. And the ground.
What the marker says
Burial ground for soldiers stationed at Fort Stockton and for civilians in the little town that grew up around the post. The fort was established 1859; temporarily closed 1861-1867. Troops here protected the San Antonio-San Diego mail line and quelled Indian raids into Mexico on the infamous Comanche Trail. This cemetery testifies to the hardships of frontier life: no headstone was erected for a person over 40. In 1888 (after the fort was permanently closed in 1886), remains of the 56 soldiers buried here were moved to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio.