Fort Duncan

A town grew beside the post almost at once. In 1850 the San Antonio merchant James Campbell opened a trading post at the crossing below the fort, and William Leslie Cazneau and his bride, Jane, soon joined him. Friedrich W. C. Groos, who hauled supplies for the army, brought some seventy Mexican families to settle near the fort. A stage line to San Antonio began in 1851, and Our Lady of Refuge Catholic Church was built in 1852. Across the river, Piedras Negras was founded in 1850 and became a haven for people escaping slavery.

What the plaque says

Fort Duncan Established by Captain S. Burbank, First U. S. Infantry, March 27, 1849 as a protection to Western communication. Garrisoned by federal troops until March 20, 1861 and since 1868. Now known as Camp Eagle Pass. Erected by the State of Texas 1936

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Fort Duncan Museum — steps away
  The 1849 river post at Eagle Pass, where the first Black Seminole scouts enlisted in 1870, kept by the city as a park with its old headquarters as a museum.

More markers nearby

• Fort Duncan — steps away
• Fort Duncan Infantry Barracks — steps away
• Camp Rabb and Fort Duncan, C.S.A. — steps away
• Eagle Pass, C.S.A. — 0.4 mi