After the Mexican American war, the United States established numerous forts across the newly acquired territory. They constructed Fort Stanton in 1855 to control the Mescalero Apaches. It is one of the most intact 19th century military forts in the United States. It was home to many who made their mark in American military history including, in different eras, the Cavalry Regiments of Buffalo Soldiers, Kit Carson and John J. “Blackjack” Pershing. Billy the Kid did a stint in the guard house, one of many incarceration and escape escapades in Lincoln County. Though the use of forts subsided by the turn of the century, Fort Stanton continued to serve New Mexico, and the nation, into the present. The Fort Stanton Museum provides details about the fort’s complicated and convoluted history. Visitors can wander the grounds, explore the accompanying cemetery, or hike one of the many trails that make up Fort Stanton State Monument. Fort Stanton’s primary mission was to protect the settlements along the Rio Bonito from Mescalero Apache raids. The isolated region, named Lincoln County, was larger than the State of South Carolina. Activities continued in this connection until hostilities in the area had mostly settled down by the 1880s, interrupted by the Lincoln County Wars. The fort’s personnel provided the largest peace keeping force during that period. The government ordered the facility closed in 1895 and troops began to depart for other locations, concluding in 1896. For a few years, it was essentially unoccupied until it was reopened as a tuberculosis treatment facility in 1899, under the Marine Health Service, later to be reconstituted into the National Health Service in 1912. This usage continued until 1953. Great strides were made here at this installation in the treatment of tuberculosis.