Fort Scott

History

Established and garrisoned by the U.S. Army from 1842 to 1853, soldiers at military Fort Scott assisted with the protection of the Permanent Indian Frontier. After the army abandoned the fort in 1853, the buildings were purchased by local settlers at a government auction in 1855. The community of Fort Scott was laid out in 1857, and was chartered as a city in 1860. Between 1855 and 1861, the citizens of Fort Scott experienced the violent unrest that preceded the American Civil War on the Kansas and Missouri border. Eastern newspapers described this violence as "Bleeding Kansas", a result of the national controversy concerning the extension of slavery into the new territories. On January 29, 1861, Kansas entered the union as a free state, but the turmoil of "Bleeding Kansas" continued throughout the Civil War. During the Civil War, Fort Scott was a U.S. Army district Headquarters, quartermaster supply depot, training center, and recruitment station. It was strategically vital to the defense of Kansas and the Midwest. A battle over the fort occurred in August 1861 just across the Missouri line in the Battle of Dry Wood Creek. The battle was a pro-South victory for Sterling Price and his Missouri State Guard. Price did not hold the fort and instead continued a northern push into Missouri in an attempt to recapture the state. Senator James H. Lane was to launch a Jayhawker offensive behind Price from Fort Scott that led to the Sacking of Osceola. The ill will of these actions was to be the basis for the 1976 Clint Eastwood film The Outlaw Josey Wales. After the Civil War, Fort Scott was a premier city of the frontier, one of the largest cities in eastern Kansas. On three occasions, between 1870 and 1900, Fort Scott was in competition with Kansas City to become the…

Geography

Fort Scott lies on the Osage Plains on the south side of the Marmaton River. Located at the intersection of U.S. Routes 54 and 69 in southeastern Kansas, Fort Scott is approximately north of Joplin, Missouri, south of Kansas City and east of Wichita. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. Fort Scott has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) with hot, humid summers and cool winters. The average temperature in Fort Scott is with temperatures exceeding on an average of 52.6 afternoons a year and dropping below during an average of 100.6 mornings per year. }}

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• Fort Scott Sr High
  High · Fort Scott · 581 students · 13.5:1 ratio
• Winfield Scott Elem
  Elementary · Fort Scott · 469 students · 13:1 ratio
• Fort Scott Middle School
  Middle · Fort Scott · 430 students · 11.3:1 ratio
• Eugene Ware Elem
  Elementary · Fort Scott · 359 students · 11.2:1 ratio