Near Elko in Elko County, Nevada — The American Mountains (Southwest)

Fort Halleck Site

1867 - 1886

Photographed By Duane Hall, July 5, 2013

1. Fort Halleck Site Marker

Inscription. Established as Camp Halleck by Captain S.P. Smith, July 26, 1867, to protect the California Emigrant Tail and construction work on the Central Pacific Railroad. The camp was named for Major General Henry Wager Halleck, at that time commander, Military Division of the Pacific. In May 1868, it became headquarters for the Nevada Military District when Fort Churchill was abandoned.

On April 5, 1879, it became Fort Halleck. The nine square mile reservation was set aside October 11, 1881. The fort was a two-company post, with about twenty buildings of wood, adobe and stone construction arranged around the sides of a rectangular parade ground.

Troops from the fort took no part in local Indian troubles. However, they saw action in February 1873, against the Modoc Indians of northern California; against the Nez Perce uprising in Idaho in 1877; in 1878, against the Bannocks in Oregon; and against the Apaches in Arizona, 1883.

The fort was closed December 1, 1886.

Erected 1968 by Nevada State Park System and Northeastern Nevada Historical Society. (Marker Number 47.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Forts and Castles • Wars, US Indian. A significant historical month for this entry is February 1873.

Location. 40° 57.382′

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N, 115° 27.948′ W. Marker is near Elko, Nevada, in Elko County. Marker is on Nevada Route 229, 0.2 miles south of Interstate 80, on the right when traveling south. Marker is just south of Interstate 80 - Exit 321. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Elko NV 89801, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 1 other marker is within 13 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Fort Halleck (approx. 12.3 miles away).

Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. To better understand the relationship, study each marker in the order shown.

Also see . . . New Amended Text for Marker. The Nevada State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) recently updated the text of the roughly 260 state historical markers in Nevada. The Nevada SHPO placed the amended text of each individual marker on its website and will change the actual markers in the field as funding allows. Minor changes have been made to the marker for grammar and readability. The link will take you to the Nevada SHPO page for the marker with the amended text. (Submitted on November 12, 2013, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas.)

Additional commentary.
1. Location of Fort Halleck
The site of Fort Halleck is approx. 12 miles southeast of the marker (as the

Photographed By Duane Hall, July 5, 2013

2. Fort Halleck Site Marker

View to the southwest
Elko Mountain is in the background

crow flies). The National Park Service describes the site as following: "A stone marker identifies the site, which is in a privately owned meadow. All the log and adobe buildings have long since disappeared, but brush-covered earth mounds indicate the location of the guardhouse, magazine, and commissary warehouse; and traces of rock walls, either the headquarters building or the officers' quarters." To view the remains of Fort Halleck, continue south on State Route 229 for 11 miles to Fort Halleck Road (County Road 703). (Fort Halleck Road is a County-maintained dirt/gravel road.) Take a right on Fort Halleck Road for around 6.5 miles to the stone marker which will be on your left (south side of road). (Fort Halleck Road makes a 90-degree right turn at around 5.5 miles from SR229 and a mile before the stone marker.)

— Submitted August 11, 2013, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas.

Henry Wager Halleck image. Click for full size.

Internet Archive

3. Henry Wager Halleck

from Pictorial History of the Civil War in the United States of America by Benson John Lossing, Vol. 2, 1868, Page 180.

Credits. This page was last revised on July 21, 2023. It was originally submitted on August 11, 2013, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas. This page has been viewed 791 times since then and 58 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on August 11, 2013, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas. 3. submitted on July 15, 2023, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland.