Back From Fort Scott

Toystoretom

Living Legend
Joined
Feb 25, 2006
Messages
2,449
We rode south out of Kansas City about 100 miles to a small town named Fort Scott Kansas. Last night we had some spotty thunderstorms and things were wet when we left but it sure was refreshing to get some rain, no complaints from me. This is my Rocket sitting in the driveway and you can see things are damp....



I met up with Brian and we headed out to Engle Motors to join up with our local RAT pack.



We only had twelve people show up, possibly due to the rain. Here is a funky lookin' Beamer (I kind of liked it) and Don Trout's Bonnie. Don is the local RAT Pack leader.





We left for Fort Scott at 9:30 AM and it was a fairly quick and uneventful ride. We Picked up Piano Man over at 69 and 435, or I should say he merged in with us. To be quite honest with you... I think that intersection contained the only curve (the cloverleaf) on the whole ride down there. Continued...
 
When we rolled into Fort Scott we found a very old town. Many of the streets were done up in paving brick....



Much of the downtown was lost in a fire not long ago and many historic buildings were lost..





After we ate lunch it was off to the Fort. Fort Scott was part of a line of forts that ran from Minnesota to Louisiana and maked the dividing line between the settlers and the Indians, and operated mainly in the 1840's. Fort Scott was staffed by Dargoons that patrolled a military road along the dividing line, along with regular infantry. The fort itself had a hospital which currently had a display of medical instruments used on the soldiers. They looked like a crude woodworking tool kit. If you were admitted to the hospital due to sickness or wounds... you were pretty much a "goner".

The rest of the fort consisted of a powder magazine, dragoon stables, barracks, some very fancy officer quarters and a guard house for military misfits... here are some picks but unfortunately my camera quit working (it may have been the heat, the camera was in black Beetle bags and it got a little warm).



The above pic is the powder magazine.... continued..
 
The Dragoon stables and mess hall:



A pic across the drill field, parade lawn, in the back, behind the tree you can see the officer's quarters...



The rest of the pics were lost...

As you went through this place you came away with a feeling of how hard life was back then. These buildings were made from timbers that were shaped by hand, I should say shaped by axe. If they needed a 2 x 12 they cut one by hand from a tree using an axe. Most of these buildings really had no heat, just a fireplace if you were lucky (or an officer). Very few candles or lamps. They grew their own food. During the Civil War many refugees from the south ended up here and many died during the winter because there were no supplies available. If you are looking for ghosts, this would be a good bet...

I'll post more later
 
Excellent pics and write up Tomo. I am glad someone had fun today..I am stuck at work for a planned outage
 
Thanks Mr. Vonbonds!!

Just a little more on the fort. In 1846 the US declared war on Mexico to defend the State of Texas (We know people from Texas, don't we??) The dragoons from Fort Scott were brought into the war because they were highly mobile for the day. These very same dragoons invaded Mexico and actually advanced as far as Mexico City before Mexico surrendered, but not without many bloody battles first. The fort's first commander, Benjamin Moore, was killed in this fighting.

During the Civil War a Confederate force tried to launch a raid from the north to capture the above pictured powder magazine along with other supplies, but was defeated in a battle 60 miles to the north of the Fort.

I got the feeling that back in the 1840s this was a very lonely and remote outpost and their very survival depended on their ability to fight as a unit. Even as we walked through the Fort today it seemed very remote and almost surreal.

Back to bikes.... there was very little traffic down by Fort Scott and we were able to make some time running back to KC. We kept the speed up around 80 to 90 mph (indicated) and got back to KC in very short order. The Rockets seem to be able to compress time and distance, don't they. There was a a section of 71 here we got trapped inbetween several large pickups and a HumVee and we were all doing 80 plus. Brian and I were able to "Rocket" out of all that turbulance, and did so quite impressively. I really can't think of another bike I've owned that I could be in a situation like that and not feel as comfortable as I do as when I'm on the Rocket. It is just an awesome bike..
 
Nice pics! Your bike is so shiny and clean! Was going to wash mine before my trip this weekend. But with potention "weather" guess I won't. Oh well! much more fun to ride than clean
 
Nice pics! Your bike is so shiny and clean! Was going to wash mine before my trip this weekend. But with potention "weather" guess I won't. Oh well!
Click to expand...

You sound like me Sunshine. Why wash when it's going to get dirty again. Here's some wisdom from my wife Trish: "Why wash it if it's going to get dirty anyway?.....because it's better to have it covered with new dirt than old,.....old dirt washes off harder". I have never been able to conjure a comeback........so I go and wash it........
 
Yeh Those Darn Bugs Get Baked On An Harder To Get Off Than New Splattered Ones. But I never Learn. By the time I take time out to wash the bike, them darn critters are super glued to the bike! So see what I mean it is still much more fun to ride. But when the bugs gets so stacked up no one notices my bike then I figure it is time to make it shine again. yeh I know I am bad! But I consider that domestic and I have never claimed to be Domestic.

Back about two months ago my honey bear was teasing me that his Biker B... never washes his bike. I laughed and said "Honey I was under the impression you wash it for the honor of riding passenger. Since I don't ride passenger anymore guess I am not qualified?" We had a friend standing there that I thought was going to fall on the ground laughing at us.
 
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