I drove across all of Oklahoma yesterday without much stopping on account of hot weather. After camping southeast of Tulsa, I continued driving and left Oklahoma but only just across the border at the Fort Smith National Historic Site in Fort Smith, Arkansas.
The largest building on the site is the fort’s barracks, jail, and courthouse, which now is also home to the historic site’s visitor center.
Fans of the Clint Eastwood classic western movie Hang ‘Em High will remember this as the location for the courthouse and gallows. However, as we will see later those massive gallows in the film are a bit embellished for the silver screen (though no less functional).
Also for those who have seen that movie, you’ll recall how cramped and over-crowded the jail was for all the prisoners. I’m happy to report it wasn’t that crowded for me today, but I can see how space would be limited with all the wild west criminals getting packed in here like sardines. The nearby sign confirms the poor conditions, calling it “Hell on the Border.”
The largest exhibit includes a cutaway three-story jail and many different informational displays covering topics like U.S. attacks on tribal sovereignty, crime and law in the wild west, and many of the atrocities in times of western expansion. Not to be outdone, the U.S. government even got in on the action by stealing 1.8 million acres in the Creek and Seminole nations that were never returned (but apparently allowed enough settlers in so that Oklahoma could become a state).
This sign titled “Mayhem & Mischief” sums up how the prevalence of whiskey and weapons led to many confrontations in Native territory. An 1887 grand jury stated they felt 95 percent of all crime was directly related to alcohol. Take some time and read stories on all of the signs, there is too much to share in this blog post but it’s well worth the time to learn and read as much as you can.
Another wing covered topics relating to “Indian Territory” including the Trail of Tears, the Fort Smith Council and the Five Civilized Tribes, how the Civil War and white settlement impacted this area, and history of Fort Smith the city and the defense post itself.
The Fort Smith courtroom where notorious Judge Isaac C. Parker, also known as “The Hanging Judge”, sentenced 160 people to death (though many would later be reversed later by the Supreme Court). Due to the high levels of crime, Parker ran court six days a week and often up to ten hour days.
In 24 years where executions took place at Fort Smith, eighty-seven men were executed by hanging – seventy nine by Judge Parker.
Outside the main building you can actually see the gallows – or at least a recreation of them. According to the sign which has a sketch of the structure, the original was torn down in 1897 a year after the last execution occurred.
Confederates took control of Fort Smith in 1861 during the Civil War; the Union abandoned it as part of their strategy. They would later reclaim it in September 1863 after victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg.
A (replica) Napoleon cannon, “the most powerful and feared weapon of the Civil War.”
The guardhouse, constructed in 1849. Men assigned to guard duty operated from this building and were on 24 hour shifts. It also housed soldiers under arrest for things like drunkenness, desertion, or fighting.
