Fort Concho was established in 1867, and protected the Texas frontier until it was deactivated in 1889. Over time, the fort was repurposed and integrated into the city of San Angelo, and filled up with unrelated and interfering buildings (including an elementary school on the parade ground). Finally in the 1960s, an concerted effort was made to preserve and protect the historic fort buildings, and eventually return the Fort to its 1870s appearance.
The Fort Concho was registered as a US National Historic Landmark in 1961. The Fort Concho National Register Historic District was created in 1985. Enlisted Men's Barracks No. 2 is listed as a contributing building to the Fort Concho National Register Historic District in San Angelo TX.
From the Fort Concho Historic District Nomination form: (
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"CONTRIBUTING BUILDINGS
III. Barracks Row
Barracks Row is located along the north side of the Parade Ground. Included within the row were six Enlisted Men's Barracks (E.M.B.s) and the Guard House. The E.M.B.s are numbered 1 through 6 from the west to the east with the guardhouse east of E.M.B. #6. The general plan of a typical E.M.B. consists of a 1-story, rectangular plan, linear dormitory unit with either one or two perpendicular (north) mess halls and kitchen wings. The E.M.B.s were constructed on stone foundations with cut limestone walls and a wood shingled hipped roof, a roof ventilator and internal stone chimneys. The buildings, both the dorm units and the mess hall wings, had symmetrical door and window arrangements. A 9-foot-wide, Territorial style, wood veranda is wrapped around all elevations of the dormitory units, but not around the perpendicular mess halls.
The City of San Angelo and Fort Concho Museum own all the land upon which the barracks and guard house are located. Development plans call for the restoration of E.M.B. #1 and #2, the reconstruction of E.M.B. #3 and #4 along with the guard house, and the continued maintenance of reconstructed E.M.B. #5 and #6. There were four variations from the basic plan.
. . .
E.M.B. #2
Construction of E.M.B. #2 was completed in 1869. This structure is similar in design to E.M.B. #1. However, the plan has only one perpendicular mess hall. The 1889 inventory report describes E.M.B. #2 as:
“Two squadrooms each 24 f 0" X 82' 0" with a sallyport 13' 0" X 40' 0" between them. The height of walls from the floor to the eaves in squadrooms 11' 0" -not cieled [sic]. An oblong wing, joining and forming part of the sallyport, extending to the rear (north). Contains an orderly room 24' 0" X 10' 0", mess room 24' 0" X 28' 0", and kitchen 24' 0" X 10' 0" -not cieled [sic].”
As previously mentioned, this building was incorporated into the modern Monarch Tile Company industrial plant. The remaining original fabric consists of heavy roof trusses, several window openings, sallyport masonry arches and two masonry fireplaces."
In 2016 EQ#2 hosts a display of period artillery.