Travel Guide Fort Sumner

Following the approval of the United States Congress, Fort Sumner was created in 1862. To legitimize this creation, the commander of the Federal District of New Mexico, James Henry Carleton, mentioned the need to protect the settlers of the Pecos Valley from the Indian tribes present in the vicinity: Mescaleros Apaches, Kiowas or Comanches. A migration strategy was applied in the field under the orders of Colonel Christophe Carson, better known as "Kit" Carson. Indeed, at the time, Carleton believed that the "depressing underdevelopment" of the state was due to the conflict with the Navajos. Carleton therefore planned to punish these Indian tribes for all the harm that had been done to the economy by sending Colonel Carson into the field. This one is preceded by his reputation as a great warrior in the field, in particular in connection with his intervention in the theater of operations in California, during the American-Mexican war. Although he was somewhat reluctant to do so at first (even going so far as to resign, which was immediately refused), he worked using the "scorched earth" technique, i.e. burning land and provisions to prevent any survival of these communities. He is helped, in that, by certain tribes, enemies of long date. The Utes will be the main providers, before understanding that they will not recover any of the spoils stolen from the Navajos, preferring finally to withdraw from the conflict. During these confrontations, there were no major battles except for the attack on the last Navajo "fortress" held by Manuelito. In January 1864, the Navajos were forced to surrender. At the same time, next to Fort Sumner, the Bosque Redondo reservation was created: a 40-mile zone where some 9,000 Navajos and Apaches were to live confined in retaliation for the attacks they carried out against settlers in the region. 500 Apaches and then 8,500 Navajos, following a long march (the long march of the Navajos) of more than 20 days led by the American army, were pushed to settle in this area where only 5,000 people were expected. Facilities, food, everything quickly became a problem because of this overpopulation. So much so that diseases spread rapidly in the camp. In 1867, after a catastrophic grain harvest, army officers and Indian agents realized that the Bosque Redondo experiment was a failure. In 1865, the Mescalero Apaches, or at least the strongest of them, managed to escape and return to their lands. It was not until 1868, following a treaty signed, that the U.S. Army allowed the Navajo to leave this place as well, officially marking the failure of this attempt. The site is thus sadly synonymous with a concentration camp for the Navajo culture. In 1881, Fort Sumner was once again in the news when Sheriff Pat Garrett shot Billy the Kid in the old, abandoned fort. That's why Billy the Kid is buried in the military cemetery. This small town that continues to live, surrounded by desert plains, is in fact a major historical center.