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History Of Fort Union, New Mexico, Thomas J. Mclaughlin

History ETDs

Through the acquisition of the Territory of New Mexico, the United States fell heir to a problem different from any that it had encountered in any previous advance of the frontier. During the settlement of the area east of the Mississippi River it made little difference where, or how many, military posts were established once the plenitude of navigable rivers made their supply and upkeep a relatively inexpensive matter. The fertile lands of the region soon enabled a settlement to develop near the post which provided protection and a market for the surplus of a growing community. Within a few …