Donna Blake BirchellCritiques

A readable guidebook to military posts in New Mexico, with comments on people and places associated with them. Civil War era forts include Fort Union (a US National Monument, administered by the National Park Service) and Fort Craig (a National Historic Site, administered by the Bureau of Land Management); both of these figured in the Confederate invasion of New Mexico. The Indian Wars era features Fort Stanton and Fort Sumner. Various other forts and military posts get mentions; some of these are almost completely gone and others are on private property.

Commentary for the sites is eclectic and interesting – for example, a discussion of the Santa Fe custom of burning Old Man Gloom (mentioned with Fort Marcy), the Navajo Long Walk (Fort Sumner), and Buffalo Soldiers (several posts where they served). There are only general maps of New Mexico, but written directions to each visitable site seem adequate. Good illustrations; a bibliography, but mostly secondary sources.