Fort Bowie National Historic Site, National historic site in Arizona, US
Fort Bowie National Historic Site is a protected area in southeastern Arizona, near the town of Bowie, centered on the ruins of a 19th-century military post at Apache Pass. The site includes adobe and stone building remains, a small on-site museum with artifacts, and a trail that passes a natural spring.
Apache Pass was used by Spanish travelers long before the fort was built, and it was a key route for the Apache people for generations. The military post was established in 1862 to control the pass and remained active until 1894, spanning the years of conflict with leaders such as Cochise and Geronimo.
Reaching the ruins requires walking a trail of roughly 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the parking area, as no vehicles are allowed beyond that point. Summer heat can be intense at this elevation, so carrying water and planning the walk for the cooler parts of the day is strongly advisable.
Apache Pass was known by two Spanish names before the fort existed: Puerto del Dado, meaning Pass of Chance, and Puerto de la Muerte, meaning Pass of Death. The natural spring inside the pass was such a rare source of water in that desert that its location directly determined where the fort would be built.
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