The newspaper also listed the names of the steamboats which were vying for the Natchitoches-Texas trade: The Florence, The Superior, The Alexander, The Chesapeak, The Courtland, The Eliza, The Governor Shelby, The Hornet, The Kiamechi, The Plaquemine, The Raven, The Teche, The Telegraph, The Shepardess and The Arkansas.
Henry Stoker, having received a government land grant, had by now established his home, and he enlarged his holdings by trading eleven horses for land belonging to several families of the Adais Indians who were living near his homestead.
Fort Jesup during its existence trained such men as Second Lieutenant Phil Sheridan, Lieutenant Thomas Lawson, Captain Bragg, Lt. L. B. E. Bonneville, Lt. James E. Goins, Captain Davie E. Twiggs, Capt. J. Hardee, and Lt. Rufus Ingalls. These men during the war between the states, became generals either for the North or the South. Lieutenant U. S. Grant, who was stationed at Camp Salubrity near Grand Ecore, was often a visitor at Fort Jesup.
Map of Area Around Camp Sabine—1836
Such important men as David Crockett, James Bowie, Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston; and such famous scouts as Ben S. Lilly and “Big Foot” Wallace visited there. Because they were welcomed and entertained at Fort Jesup, accusations were made by the Spanish that Fort Jesup was a meeting place for those planning the overthrow of the Mexican government. And this may very well have been true, for supplies necessary for the conduct of the war for Texas independence undoubtedly passed through Fort Jesup.
There is evidence that the United States did render secret support to the fighting Texans in their struggle for independence. This fort at such a strategic location could have blocked revolutionary movements in this frontier area if it had chosen to do so. Because of this Fort Jesup became recognized as the heart of the Texas-Mexican revolution. The garrison at Fort Jesup assisted by checking the border Indians of Louisiana, Arkansas and northern Texas, who may have otherwise aided the Mexican forces against the retreating Sam Houston just before the Battle of San Jacinto.
The Gaines Military Road, 1827-1828
The Military Road or The Gaines Military Road, sometimes referred to as General Jackson’s road, connected the two most remote western outposts of the United States’ army, Fort Jesup and Fort Towsin. This last was located at the confluence of the Kiamechi River of Oklahoma and the Red River. The military road was nearly three hundred miles long.
In 1831 Fort Jesup came under the command of Brevet Brigadier General Leavenworth, with six companies of the Seventh Infantry. In 1832 the garrison was increased to two hundred ninety-six men and officers, and Colonel James B. Many again assumed command.