Fort Reynolds was a
United States Army post near
Avondale, Colorado
Avondale is a census-designated place (CDP) and post office in and governed by Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The CDP is a part of the Pueblo, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area. The Avondale post office has the ZIP Code 81022. At the ...
during the Indian Wars and the
Civil War.
The site is about east of
Pueblo, Colorado.
Construction began in 1867 on the 23 square mile fort, which was named for
John F. Reynolds
John Fulton Reynolds (September 21, 1820 – July 1, 1863)Eicher, pp. 450-51. was a career United States Army officer and a general in the American Civil War. One of the Union Army's most respected senior commanders, he played a key role in commi ...
. He attended
West Point and was killed at the
Battle of Gettysburg.
Facilities included barracks, a mess hall, hospital, guardhouse, store-house, laundry, a corral, supply depot, and parade grounds.
, which lies east of Fort Reynolds was closer to the skirmishes with Native Americans, so Fort Reynolds became a supply post, staffed with about 100 soldiers.
In January 1868, soldiers were called from Fort Lyon and Fort Reynolds to manage citizen unrest in
Trinidad, Colorado that began with a drunken brawl. That was the extent of the action seen by the Fort Reynolds post. It closed in 1872.
In the 1930s, the site had remnants of camp life, including cooking utensils, weapons, buttons, and other items.
A stone marker is located on US-50 at mile marker 333, about one mile east of Avondale.
References
External links
Fort Reynolds stone marker an
inscription
{{Forts in Colorado
American Civil War army posts
Forts in Colorado
Military history of Colorado
Government buildings completed in 1867
Colorado in the American Civil War
Native American history of Colorado
Closed installations of the United States Army
1867 establishments in Colorado Territory