Main Parade Field

The initial tent camp that would eventually grow to become Fort Leavenworth was established on this spot in 1827. The field was the epicenter of all post activity, and is still used today for major ceremonies including retirements and changes of command.

Structures that once ringed the Main Parade included offices, arsenals, stables, bachelor soldiers’ barracks and the Kansas Territory’s first post office. American Indian encampments were once a common sight, as the Parade hosted land negotiations between tribal communities and the federal government; in 1833, a major summit included representatives of the Delaware, Shawnee, Pawnee and Kickapoo.

Historic structures still lining the Parade include The Rookery, the oldest surviving building on Fort Leavenworth and the oldest continuously occupied residence in the state of Kansas. Famous former residents include General of the Army Douglas MacArthur, then just a lieutenant, and Andrew J. Reeder, the first territorial governor of Kansas. (Is this home haunted? It depends on who you ask.) On the east side of the Parade you’ll also see the 1855 Syracuse Houses, named for the New York construction team used to introduce this cottage style out west.

Another mark the Main Parade has made on the area is the site of Fort Leavenworth’s first flagpole. It was used as an early base of measurement, and places you can still explore today – Three Mile and Five Mile Creeks among them – were named for their distance from the flagpole.

Wayside Point of Interest #18