Fort Henning (Fort Scott, Kansas)

Fort Scott · Kansas · Civil War

Quick BriefFort Henning was one of three blockhouses erected near Fort Scott during the Civil War in the spring or early summer of 1864, constructed along with Forts Blair and Insley by summer's end. The smallest of the three blockhouses, Fort Henning was a two-story octagonal structure constructed of rough wood planks 14 feet across, and was torn down after the Civil War ended.

Civil War

History & Significance

Fort Henning was one of three blockhouses erected near Fort Scott during the Civil War to protect the Union's critical supply depot. In spring or early summer 1864, work began on a complex of forts and earthworks to protect roads leading into Fort Scott, with three forts—Forts Blair, Henning, and Insley—constructed by summer's end.

Fort Henning stood at the corner of Scott Avenue and First Street, on the site afterward occupied by the post office building. The octagonal blockhouse measured 14 feet across, stood two stories tall with ports on both floors for cannons or rifles, and was surrounded by log palisades, earthworks, and wide, deep ditches.

Under Lieutenant C.H. Haynes's command, the fort was garrisoned by troops of the Sixth Kansas Cavalry Regiment. The blockhouses helped guard Fort Scott when Confederates under Major General Sterling Price passed through in October 1864, though if the forts saw combat, it was limited to exchanging fire with bushwhackers. After the Civil War ended, Forts Henning and Insley were torn down.