Saint Cloud in Stearns County, Minnesota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Fort Holes
Photographed By Todd Holes, July 29, 2007
1. Fort Holes
Inscription.
Fort Holes. . About one block east of this marker, near the site of the Gray Laboratory School, stood Fort Holes, for a brief time a reminder of the panic accompanying the Sioux uprising of 1862. As fighting flared, frightened settlers streamed into nearby villages, where stockades were erected.
Fort Holes was one of many such stockades. Named for Samuel Holes, a captain of militia whose advice had been followed in its construction and who helped build it, the Fort overlooked the river, the flats to the south and the river landing at the foot of what is now Tenth Street.
Jane Grey Swisshelm described the Fort. “The outer wall is a framework put together and planked up and down the outside from ten to twelve feet and shelving outward so that it cannot be scaled with a ladder. The wall is three feet thick at the base and one and one-half at the height of six or seven feet and filled with soil….There are two entrances at which are hung heavy gates…”
Fort Holes never was used by St. Cloud residents because the danger of attack faded. It did house refugees from the countryside. By 1864, the Fort was rapidly disappearing as new settlers carried off the lumber. By 1875 it had vanished.
About one block east of this marker, near the site of the Gray Laboratory School, stood Fort Holes, for a brief time a reminder of the panic accompanying the Sioux uprising of 1862. As fighting flared, frightened settlers streamed into nearby villages, where stockades were erected.
Fort Holes was one of many such stockades. Named for Samuel Holes, a captain of militia whose advice had been followed in its construction and who helped build it, the Fort overlooked the river, the flats to the south and the river landing at the foot of what is now Tenth Street.
Jane Grey Swisshelm described the Fort. “The outer wall is a framework put together and planked up and down the outside from ten to twelve feet and shelving outward so that it cannot be scaled with a ladder. The wall is three feet thick at the base and one and one-half at the height of six or seven feet and filled with soil….There are two entrances at which are hung heavy gates…”
Fort Holes never was used by St. Cloud residents because the danger of attack faded. It did house refugees from the countryside. By 1864, the Fort was rapidly disappearing as new settlers carried off the lumber. By 1875 it had vanished.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Forts and Castles • Wars, US Indian. A significant historical year for this entry is 1862.
Location.
Click or scan to see this page online
45° 33.073′ N, 94° 9.121′ W. Marker is in Saint Cloud, Minnesota, in Stearns County. Marker can be reached from 9th Street South. On the Saint Cloud State University campus. Near the northwest corner of the Engineering and Computer Center. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 301 9th St South, Saint Cloud MN 56301, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on September 9, 2015, by Todd Holes of Glen Ellyn, Illinois. This page has been viewed 793 times since then and 89 times this year. Photo1. submitted on September 9, 2015, by Todd Holes of Glen Ellyn, Illinois. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
