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Arkansas
Territory, from December 1817 until his relief in February 1822. Age 50, Major Bradford then entered a retirement-oriented career pathway. It included honors such as his brief appointment, in 1823, as brigadier general of the Arkansas territorial militia. He is usually referred to by his Regular Army rank of major. When he laid down his commissions in 1824, his pension was only $ 15 per month. The retired major followed the Army to
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Bradford and 64 men arrived at Belle Point on
December 25, 1817, and began to raise a stockade. The fortification became the first Fort Smith on the banks of the Arkansas River. Major Bradford served as the fort commander, and thus as the senior U.S. military officer in what was to become western
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During the period of hostilities that immediately preceded the War of 1812, Bradford was commissioned in the U.S. Army as a captain. He fought against the
British and Native Americans in Ohio, and was wounded at
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in 1799, he became a local leader. He won distinctions that included a commission as deputy sheriff, a captaincy in the county militia, and was elected four times to the
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125:. National Park Service signage describes the work of Major Bradford and his men in their construction of the stockade.
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121:. The foundations of the first Fort Smith survived, however, and are marked within the overall boundaries of the
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101:. The Red River post was afflicted by wetland health conditions, and in October 1826 the sutler fell ill with
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William
Bradford was born in Virginia in 1771. He moved to Kentucky at an unknown date. Settling in
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and the period after the war. He is best known for having supervised the construction of the first
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in 1817–1818. He served as commander of the new fort from 1818 until
February 1822.
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The first Fort Smith was abandoned in 1824 in favor of
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in fall 1817 to lead a column of rifle regulars up the
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on
October 20, 1826) was a commissioned officer in the
152:, Carolyn Thomas (Winter 1954). "William Bradford".
206:Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture, The
361:Members of the Kentucky House of Representatives
38:on what was to become the western boundary of
69:As a major, Bradford was selected by General
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275:United States National Park Service
22:(born in Virginia in 1771, died at
200:Warren, Steven L. (July 9, 2012).
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270:Fort Smith National Historic Site
123:Fort Smith National Historic Site
56:Kentucky House of Representatives
366:People from Fort Smith, Arkansas
301:Arkansas: a Bicentennial History
265:"Places at the First Fort Smith"
210:Central Arkansas Library System
202:"William Bradford (1771-1826)"
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155:Arkansas Historical Quarterly
119:Fort Gibson, Indian Territory
107:Fort Smith National Cemetery
371:United States Army officers
237:"The First Fort, 1817-1824"
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298:Ashmore, Harry S. (1978).
241:ExploreSouthernHistory.com
306:W.W. Norton & Co.
24:Fort Towson, Oklahoma
16:American politician
235:Cox, Dale (2011).
40:Arkansas Territory
28:United States Army
333:Grave information
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351:1771 births
91:Fort Towson
79:Belle Point
32:War of 1812
30:during the
345:Categories
129:References
64:Fort Meigs
36:Fort Smith
308:pp.
46:Biography
280:March 6,
246:March 6,
215:March 6,
176:40024148
150:Foreman
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310:30, 31
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99:sutler
172:JSTOR
113:Today
314:ISBN
282:2017
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