Fort Stanton, located by the Bonito River at an elevation of over 6,000 feet, was built by the Army in the 1850s to protect settlers from local Indian tribes. An Army wife described the fort as “a beautiful post, with the best quarters in the army at that time.” But it was also extremely isolated, which was difficult for the soldiers and their families.

During the Civil War, Confederates captured Union troops on their way from Fort Fillmore to Fort Stanton. When this news reached the fort, the soldiers abandoned it and retreated to Santa Fe. Union troops later reoccupied the fort.

After the fort was decommissioned in the late 1890s, it became the Fort Stanton Marine Hospital. This was the first federal hospital dedicated exclusively for use by tubercular seamen. During the next several decades, approximately 5,000 sailors were cared for at the hospital. Tuberculosis was a painful disease with no known cure and was the leading cause of death in the 19th century. The only treatment known for “lungers” was fresh, dry air, preferably at a high altitude, and gentle physical activity.

The location of the hospital was ideal for tuberculosis patients, though once they began to feel better, boredom set in. One such group wrote a spirited letter to Mr. Charles B. Eddy, president of the El Paso and Northeastern Railway, requesting free passage to El Paso and back. Humor permeates the letter from this self-described “band of one-lunged, semi-comatose, one-foot-in-the-grave has beens.” Mr. Eddy responded to them in a like-minded manner and cheerfully gave them free passage.

Fort Stanton has served many functions during the 20th century. It was the site of a Civilian Conservation Corps work camp in the 1930s, a prisoner of war camp for German sailors during World War II, a state hospital, and a low security women’s prison. In the late 1990s, a local group rescued it from destruction. It has been renovated and now serves as a living history center. The Fort Stanton Historic Monument was established on August 9, 2007.

Research by Kimberly Miller, New Mexico State University.