of their arms. Grierson returned to Fort Concho on May 16, but left the 10th Cavalry's M Company at the head of the North Concho in case the Apache appeared in the area. On June 17, 1880, Nolan and a battalion of the 10th Cavalry at Fort Sill returned to Fort Concho by Grierson's order. Ten days later, Grierson sent Nolan to patrol the Guadalupe Mountains and himself set out from Fort Concho on July 10. Grierson harried Victorio over the summer until he was defeated at Rattlesnake Springs and driven into Mexico, where Victorio's band was destroyed on October 15, 1880, by the Mexican Army. The 10th Cavalry transferred permanently to Fort Davis, farther to the west, in July 1882. Post-Texas Indian Wars and deactivation On January 27, 1881, the Texas Rangers fought and defeated what was left of Victorio's band in the final battle of the American Indian Wars fought in Texas. The 10th Cavalry was replaced at Fort Concho in 1882 by the 16th Infantry, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Alfred L. Hough. Ten days before Hough and the regimental headquarters arrived at the fort that August, the Concho River flooded, destroying the town of Ben Ficklin and badly damaging San Angelo. As a result, the 16th Infantry spent its first week on-site rendering humanitarian aid. After recovering, San Angelo began to prosper, while Fort Concho declined from poor maintenance. From 1882 until the fort's final closure, it served primarily as a base for troops awaiting transfer elsewhere in Texas. When Fort McKavett was abandoned by the US Army in June 1883, its garrison moved to Fort Concho. By the mid-1880s, ranches enclosed the surrounding plains with barbed-wire fencing; the soldiers, barred by law from cutting the wire, were reduced to patrolling roads. Many of the frontier forts, such as Forts Davis and Griffin, had either been abandoned or were awaiting deactivation. After the 16th Infantry left Fort Concho for Fort Bliss in February 1887, locals believed Fort Concho would also be abandoned. In early 1888, the 8th Cavalry gathered at Fort Concho from around Texas and then left in June for Fort Meade, South Dakota. With their departure, only the 19th Infantry's K Company was garrisoned at Fort Concho. On June 20, 1889, the men of K Company lowered the flag over the fort for the final time and left the next morning. Relationship with San Angelo,