YODER FAMILY INFORMATION--CYBERSPACE EDITION-2002

that the post was "Like a Plesant little village of nicely builthouses, mostof them of adobe brick and arranged on three sides of a square.Theofficers homes on the south side, all cottage houses, but largeandhandsomely built. On the east are Public buildings, chapel,library, lectureroom and entertainment hall. Along the north are the soldiersquarters andin the rear are various utility buildings and the stables , onefor the grayand another for the sorrel horses about one hundred of each, andalsoabout seventy mules.In the early days of Fort Niobrara the surrounding territory wasnot yetsettled and the garrison found it a lonely spot. For the firstyear mail andsupplies were brought by ox team freighting wagons. from Neligh,Nebraska at that time the end of the line of the Fremont,Elkhorn, andMissouri Valley railroad and the closest rail point. By 1882,however, theroad reached Thatcher only a few miles away and the followingyearcame to Valentine.,This ended the supply problem except for local hauling fromValentine tothe Fort.To the Eary settlers of the county the military post proved atremendouslyhelpful asset. Here they found a ready market for grain, hay andcordwood, as well as for meat, dairy and poultry products. wives ofsettlerstoo, helped out the family budget by doing laundry for thetroops. And,probably more important than these direct benefits was the Senceofsecurity which the presence of the soldiers gave, and theknowledge thatthe fort would be a place of refuge in the event of and Indianoutbreakfrom the Rosebud Reservation over the Dakota line to the north.Butthere was no trouble with the Brule Sioux. However, after theturbulentplans wars of the 1860's and 1870's civilians and soldiers wereunderstandably nervous and Indian scares based on unfoundedrumorscropped up occasionally. It was reported that more than once thesoldiersat Fort Niobrara had kept their horses saddled for days at atime ready torepel and attack that never materialized. Not until the winterof 1890-91