Fort Scott National Historic Site: Cultural Landscape Report, Fort Scott National Historic Site, National Parks Service

Susan Richards Johnson & Associates, Contractors

Beginning research for a FOSC CLR dates to 1992-93 and the work of an interdisciplinary team brought together to assess the Site’s cultural landscape. Although the 1970s reconstruction program initiated by the NPS was based on historic research and archeological investigation, it focused solely on the buildings surrounding the Parade Ground without reference to the wider context of the Site. With time, it became clear that in order to interpret the fort most effectively and to provide a broader view of history, consideration of the overall site needed to be addressed. Constructing this broader view began with the work of Erwin N. Thompson, Leo E. Oliva, and Sally Johnson Ketchum. Their collective effort provided the foundation for early research. Archeological investigation conducted in 1992-1995 at the Site by Caven Clark, NPS Archeologist, provided confirming documentation for the 1842-53 historic period. Landscape Architect Craig Hahn recorded the Site’s existing conditions in 1993. Allison Bacon’s history (1992; thesis 1993) of the cultural landscape through 1900 drew upon many of the primary source documents maintained by FOSC as did ongoing research by then-FOSC Historian Arnold Schofield and Museum Technician Alan Chilton. This collaboration was overseen by and included the work of Historical Landscape Architect Sherda Williams of the NPS Midwest Regional Office (MWRO), and a team of consultants from the NPS, and resulted in a Draft CLR in 1996. In 2009 Susan Richards Johnson and Associates, Inc. was contracted by the NPS to produce Cultural Landscape Treatment Recommendations (CLTR) for FOSC. As they began the project, the project team found that the vast amount of previous research already compiled for the Site in conjunction with the 1996 Draft CLR, could make positive contributions to their research. Two important decisions were then made after discussion with Site staff, MWRO Historical Landscape Architect Gail, Gladstone, and project team members. First, both past and present findings should be used to generate a CLR for the Site. Second, the narrow scope of the current interpretation did not adequately represent the full story of FOSC. As acknowledged in the 1976 NR nomination, not only was the initial period of military occupation (1842-1855) important, the period through 1873—the “Bleeding Kansas” and Civil War years and the return of the Army during construction of the railroad—was as well. The determination that this full period of significance should be better represented throughout the landscape, and providing treatment recommendations to that end, are the collective goals of this CLR. This FOSC CLR conforms to Parts 1 and 2 of a CLR. Relevant professional guidance includes the following: The Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties with Guidelines for the Treatment of Cultural Landscapes, National Park Service Cultural Resource Management Guideline 28, National Register Bulletin 18: How to Evaluate and Nominate Designed Historic Landscapes, National Register Bulletin 30: Guidelines for Evaluating and Documenting Rural Historic Landscapes, NPS Preservation Brief 36: Protecting Cultural Landscapes, A Guide to Cultural Landscape Reports: Contents, Process, and Techniques, and National Park Service Director’s Order # 28: Cultural Resource Management.

Fort Scott National Historic Site: Cultural Landscape Report, Fort Scott National Historic Site, National Parks Service

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