Fort Richardson was established in 1867 along Lost Creek near present-day Jacksboro as the northernmost and westernmost post in the line of forts guarding the Texas frontier, tasked with protecting settlers from Comanche and Kiowa raids and securing the road to Fort Sill. Cavalry and infantry companies garrisoned the post, conducting long, arduous patrols across a wide swath of North and West Texas; by 1872 the fort had grown to house roughly 666 officers and men, making it briefly the largest U.S. Army installation in the country. The post played a key role in the events following the 1871 Warren Wagon Train Raid, which led to more aggressive campaigns against raiding tribes and contributed to the end of large-scale frontier conflict in Texas by the mid-1870s. Daily garrison life was organized around barracks, officers' quarters, a hospital, a guardhouse, a commissary, a bakery, and a powder magazine. The Army abandoned the fort in 1878 as the frontier line moved west. Today Fort Richardson is preserved as a Texas state park and historic site, with seven restored original buildings, including the hospital, officers' quarters, morgue, commissary, guardhouse, and bakery, plus replica structures housing an interpretive center. Beyond its historic core, the property functions as a recreational state park offering camping, hiking, and trail access alongside its guided tours of the fort's military history.