Brownsville in Cameron County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)

Fort Brown Commissary/Guardhouse

Photographed By James Hulse, April 19, 2023

1. Fort Brown Commissary/Guardhouse Marker

Inscription. Constructed in 1905 to serve as a food storage facility, this building was abandoned one year later when Fort Brown was closed. Upon reactivation of the post during Mexican border disturbances, the building served as a guardhouse and jail. Among those quartered here were political refugees following the Battle of Matamoros on June 4, 1913. The structure features a loading dock and a shed roof with gabled dormer over the entrance. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1962

Erected 1992 by Texas Historical Commission. (Marker Number 1969.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Education • Forts and Castles • Law Enforcement. A significant historical date for this entry is June 4, 1913.

Location. 25° 53.888′ N, 97° 29.484′ W. Marker is in Brownsville, Texas, in Cameron County. Marker can be reached from Gorgas Drive, 0.1 miles south of May Street. The marker is located on the south side of the Commissary building in the campus of Texas Southmost College. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1851 Gorgas Drive, Brownsville TX 78520, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Commissary (here, next to this marker); Fort Brown Commissary / Guardhouse Comisaria y Casa de la Guardia del Fuerte Brown (a few steps

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from this marker); Post Morgue (within shouting distance of this marker); Fort Brown Buildings 85 and 86 (within shouting distance of this marker); African American Troops at Fort Brown (within shouting distance of this marker); Post Hospital Annex (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); William Crawford Gorgas (about 300 feet away); Post Hospital (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Brownsville.

More about this marker. The historic Fort Brown buildings are located around the campus of the Texas Southmost College.

Also see . . . Fort Brown. Texas State Historical Association (TSHA)

Fort Brown, originally called Fort Texas, was established when Zachary Taylor and the United States forces of occupation arrived on the Rio Grande on March 26, 1846, to establish the river as the southern boundary of Texas. In April 1846 Taylor built an earthen fort of 800 yards perimeter, with six bastions, walls more than nine feet high, a parapet of fifteen feet, and the whole surrounded by a ditch fifteen
Photographed By James Hulse, April 19, 2023

2. The Fort Brown Commissary/Guardhouse and Marker
feet deep and twenty feet wide. Armament was four eighteen-pound guns. The Seventh Infantry, with Company I of the Second Artillery and Company E, Third Artillery, commanded by Maj. Jacob Brown, garrisoned the fort. Mexican troops led by Mariano Arista intercepted United States troops as they brought supplies from Fort Polk at Point Isabel to Fort Brown, leading to the opening battles of the war, Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, fought on May 8 and 9, 1846. On May 9 Major Brown died from injuries received during the bombardment of the fort by Mexican forces in Matamoros. Shortly after his death he was buried within the fortifications, and the post was named in his honor.

(Submitted on May 14, 2023, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.)

The Fort Brown Commissary and Guardhouse building image. Click for full size.

Photographed By James Hulse, April 19, 2023

3. The Fort Brown Commissary and Guardhouse building

Credits. This page was last revised on May 14, 2023. It was originally submitted on May 14, 2023, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas. This page has been viewed 95 times since then and 28 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on May 14, 2023, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.