Fort Wall

Fort Wall. Fort Smith National Historic Site. Security has always been a concern for the U.S. military. The army designed the second Fort Smith (1838-1871) as part of a line of forts from Minnesota to Louisiana to separate the territory occupied by Native American tribes from that settled by American citizens. To provide protection in the event of an attack, military engineers called for the construction of a fort with five bastions (gun emplacements), and a massive stonewall that was 12 feet high and 2 feet thick. , Fort Smith represents the last of a dying breed; from the 1840s on, virtually all frontier forts were built without walls. After Fort Smith was built, the cost of constructing a wall was considered too great in comparison to the benefit of a fortified defense. The fort walls remained in place throughout the federal court era (1872-1897), affording a level of security for proceedings and the executions that took place. Today the location of the original wall is outlined by continuous band of stones.