{"nrhp_refnum":"71000962","name":"Fort Griffin","other_names":[],"category":"site","location":{"address":"15 mi. N of Albany on U.S. 283","address_restricted":false,"city":"Albany","county":"Shackelford County","state":"TX","lat":32.92237174950003,"lon":-99.22952719873739,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1971-03-11","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Military"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Fort Griffin is a ruined 19th-century frontier military post in Fort Griffin State Park, about 15 miles north of Albany, Shackelford County, Texas, established in 1867 on a plateau above the Clear Fork of the Brazos.","why_significant":"It was one of a line of forts on the western Texas frontier built to protect settlers and escort mail and cattle drives. It served as a supply depot and starting point for campaigns against Southern Plains Indians, including General Ranald MacKenzie's 1874-75 campaign. The nearby town known as \"The Flat\" became a major shipping point for buffalo hides in the 1870s.","narrative":"Fort Griffin is the ruin of a frontier army post founded in 1867 in Shackelford County, Texas, on a plateau overlooking the Clear Fork of the Brazos River. It was one of a chain of forts along the western frontier meant to protect settlers and escort mail and cattle drives. The post became a supply depot and staging point for campaigns against Southern Plains Indians, and General Ranald MacKenzie used it as his principal depot in 1874-75. Below the fort, the town called \"The Flat\" grew into its social center and, during the 1870s buffalo hunt, a major hide-shipping point. The army left in 1881. Large stone building plans were never carried out; only five stone structures were built, alongside wooden huts and houses. Today the powder magazine, sutler's store, administration building, bakery, an officer's chimney, a well and a cistern remain. Excavations in 1969 uncovered additional huts, a kitchen, and a library-chapel. The site lies in a state park.","period_of_significance":"19th Century (specific date 1867)","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition listed as ruins, unaltered, on its original site. Five stone buildings stand roofless or partly down, the bakery is partially restored, and a state-built museum and restoration plans are noted.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:19.67589-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/31/9733/40973331/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/71000962.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/71000962/e9ea931146-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/71000962/e9ea931146-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Pi3.124","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fort_Griffin_renovation.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Pi3.124</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fort_Griffin_renovation.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40973331","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Griffin","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q8564738"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/shackelford-county/fort-griffin-71000962/"}