Fort McRae (Elephant Butte, New Mexico)

Elephant Butte · New Mexico · American Civil War

Quick BriefCalifornia Volunteers of the Union Army established Fort McRae on April 3, 1863, and named it for Captain Alexander McRae, killed at the Battle of Valverde. The post protected Rio Grande Valley settlements and blocked Apache and Navajo access through McRae Canyon and the Ojo del Muerto spring. Regular Army troops took over in 1866 and the fort was decommissioned in October 1876.

Civil War

History & Significance

Fort McRae was established by California Volunteers on April 3, 1863, at an elevation of 4,423 feet in the southern Fra Cristobal Range, three miles northeast of Elephant Butte in Sierra County. Named for Captain Alexander McRae, a Third Cavalry officer who fell at the February 1862 Battle of Valverde, the post occupied a critical position guarding travel routes through the region.

The fort protected newly established settlements of Alamosa and Canada Alamosa, travelers on the Fort Craig–Fort Thorn Wagon Road, and the Jornada del Muerto crossing from Apache raids. It later expanded protection duties to Alamocita, Plaza del Rio Palomas (founded 1867), and Cuchillo Negro (1871).

After the Civil War, regular U.S. Army soldiers replaced the Volunteers in 1866. The garrison included units of the New Mexico Volunteers, California Volunteers, the 8th and 9th U.S. Cavalry, and the 15th, 38th, and 125th U.S. Infantry.

Following an Apache peace agreement, Fort McRae provided the garrison at the Ojo Caliente reservation. Decommissioned in October 1876, the post's responsibilities transferred to Fort Craig. A 21.6-acre area at the site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.