sutler's building, the dairy and poultry yards were outside the rectangle on the west. The cemetery was about farther west. Conversion to Choctaw Agency After the construction of Fort Washita to the west in 1842, Fort Towson lost importance. It was garrisoned until June 1854. At that time, it was turned over to the use of the Choctaw Indian Agency, then run by Indian Agent Douglas H. Cooper. A storm in the same month blew the roofs off several buildings and did some other damage to the facility. A few years later, a fire destroyed all of the buildings except one of the barracks and the hospital. The remaining facilities are now managed by the Oklahoma Historical Society. Civil War and abandonment At the beginning of the American Civil War, the Confederacy took over the remaining buildings of the fort. They had created an alliance with the Choctaw, promising them and other tribes a state of their own if the Confederacy won their war. The fort was used as the headquarters of Confederate General Samuel B. Maxey. The last remaining Confederate Army troops were commanded by General Stand Watie (Cherokee), a principal chief of his nation until the end of the war. He surrendered to Union forces at Fort Towson on June 23, 1865. The post was abandoned at the close of the Civil War. Soldiers buried in the cemetery were moved to Fort Gibson. The buildings fell into ruin and foundation stones were hauled off by local residents to be used for other buildings. The location of the fort is designated as an Oklahoma Historic Site. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places (#70000531) in 1970. References Sources Morrison, W.B. "Fort Towson", Chronicles of Oklahoma 8:2 (June 1930) 226-232 (retrieved August 16, 2006). Morrison, W.B. "The Location of Cantonment Towsen—A Correction". Chronicles of Oklahoma 8:3 (September 1930) 255-256 (retrieved August 16, 2006). Rodriguez, Junius P. . "The Louisiana Purchase: a historical and geographical encyclopedia" (2002) 334-335 (retrieved September 10, 2009). External links Fort Towson Historic Site - Oklahoma Historical Society Fort Towson Historic Site photos - Civilwaralbum.com Fort Towson Historic Site info and photos on TravelOK.com Official travel and tourism website for the State of Oklahoma Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Fort Towson (fort) Oklahoma Digital Maps: Digital Collections of Oklahoma and Indian Territory Towson Towson Indian Territory in the American Civil War Military