Fort Juelson

Summary

Fort Juelson, designated 21OT198 in the state archaeological inventory, is a historic site located east of Underwood, Minnesota, United States. An earthen fort was built at this hilltop in July 1876 after rumors of Indian attacks in Foxhome, French, and Fergus Falls following the Battle of Little Bighorn in Montana.[3] Many settlers left the area. Charles A. Dollner, a local merchant, suggested the rest of the people band together and build the fortification under leadership of two American Civil War veterans, Hans Juelson and Berge O. Lee. The scare proved to be a hoax, and the fort was never used for defensive purposes.[4] Remnants of the sod barricade are still on the site.

Fort Juelson
Interior of what remains of the sod fort.
LocationAddress restricted[2]
NRHP reference No.13000836[1]
Added to NRHPOctober 16, 2013

It was discovered that the fort was built on the site of a Woodland period burial mound group, which is also a part of this historic designation. It is made up of four small elliptical and linear burial mounds. Two of the mounds were located inside the fort, one was along the western wall of the fort, and one is located 12 metres (39 ft) west of the fort. The site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013.[1]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  2. ^ Federal and state laws and practices restrict general public access to information regarding the specific location of this resource. In some cases, this is to protect archeological sites from vandalism, while in other cases it is restricted at the request of the owner. See: Knoerl, John; Miller, Diane; Shrimpton, Rebecca H. (1990), Guidelines for Restricting Information about Historic and Prehistoric Resources, National Register Bulletin, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, OCLC 20706997.
  3. ^ "The History of Fort Juelson". Otter Tail County Historical Society. Retrieved 2017-12-29.
  4. ^ Arnott, Sigrid; Scott Brosowske; David Maki. "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Fort Juelson" (PDF). National Park Service. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-12-30. Retrieved 2014-01-13.

External links edit

  Media related to Fort Juelson at Wikimedia Commons

  • Otter Tail County Historical Society site