Fort Reno, 1.5 mile north of the intersection of I-40 W / US-66 W with E. 1020 Road, El Reno

Source document Quoted word for word from HALS OK-46. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.

Fort Reno began as a military camp in It was named by General Phil Sheridan, in honor of his friend Major General Jesse L. Reno who died in the Civil War during the battle of South Mountain in Maryland. Fort Reno was in use through World War II, in which it was used as a Prisoners of War Camp. Description: Fort Reno is situated on a flat expanse of land on the outskirts of the town of El Reno, Oklahoma. The complex of buildings covers about 40 acres. An unnamed road leads north to the retired post about a mile and a half from the intersection of I-40 W / US-66 W with E. Road. The fort contains buildings typical to U.S. military bases of that period with a mixture of Colonial Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival, and Folk Victorian architecture styles.

The buildings are situated around an open, flat area of land that was used for the troops to practice their formations and drill routines. History: Fort Reno began as a military camp in It was established on the south bank of the North Canadian River, and was named by General Phil Sheridan, in honor of his friend Major General Jesse L. Reno who died in the Civil War during the battle of South Mountain in Maryland. The Fort Reno troops helped locate and made several evictions of the "Boomers" from the Unassigned Lands of Indian Territory for ten years prior to the opening for settlement by the land run. Famous aviatrix Amelia Earhart flew her autogiro (forerunner of the helicopter) at the Fort Reno airstrip in Will Rogers visited the fort to watch polo matches and horse races.

Fort Reno was in use through World War II, during which 94 acres of it was used as a Prisoners of War camp for over German prisoners of war. The German POW's were hired as laborers for local farmers and in built the Chapel located to the north of the Parade Grounds. The last Army personnel left the fort in The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) operated an agricultural research station here after that. In the USDA agreed to the establishment of Historic Fort Reno, Inc. as a FORT RENO HALS NO. OK-46 PAGE 2 nonprofit entity to provide historical information to the public and coordinate fundraising efforts to preserve and rehabilitate the historic structures at Fort Reno.

Source document Quoted word for word from HALS OK-46. Not written, edited or summarised by this site.

Dan Mesenbrink, May 5, Dr. Charles L. Leider, Professor and Faculty Sponsor Landscape Architecture Program Oklahoma State University and ASLA HALS Liaison for Oklahoma charles.leider@okstate.edu FORT RENO HALS NO. OK-46 PAGE 3 plan - structures still standing are shaded (Ruth, FORT RENO HALS NO. OK-46 PAGE 4 plan - structures still standing are shaded (Ruth,