Fort Griffin, Military historic site in Shackelford County, Texas.
Fort Griffin stands on a plateau above the Clear Fork of the Brazos River in northwestern Shackelford County. Of more than 90 buildings, only six were ever built completely of stone; the rest were picket huts, tents and rough frame structures. The surviving tan limestone ruin has three upright rectangular pillars, the left one rising to a peaked gable, with a tall square chimney behind the right pillar and no roof. Dry grass and cacti surround it.
Four companies of the Sixth Cavalry founded the post in 1867 to protect settlers from Comanche and Kiowa raids. The army abandoned the fort in 1881 after threats diminished.
The Fort Griffin Fandangle, staged in the last two weekends of June by Albany residents at the Prairie Theater, began in 1938 and is billed as "Texas' Oldest Outdoor Musical". Its content changes each year, drawing on the fort's frontier past.
The grounds offer 33 camping areas, hiking trails, and educational exhibits, while regular demonstrations of frontier military life take place. The ruins sit on open terrain, so sun protection and comfortable shoes are advisable.
A portion of the official state herd of Texas Longhorns is kept at Fort Griffin, not roaming free: the cattle are maintained on site as a living state symbol. The breed descended from animals brought by Spanish colonists and later driven north along the Western Trail through the town below the fort.
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