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History · Fort Apache

Fort Apache’s post office opened in 1879, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

Most of Fort Apache was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1978. 1 place in town is on the National Register, among them the Fort Apache Historic District, a National Historic Landmark, and a historic district with 18 buildings. Below: 7 old photos and papers and maps from 1967 on.

1879first post office
1on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
7old photos & papers
4famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Fort Apache’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Fort Apache began

When was Fort Apache founded?

1879

The Fort Apache post office opened in 1879, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 113147 years
Founding year: the first Fort Apache post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Fort Apache’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A National Historic Landmark1 place on the National Register, including Fort Apache Historic District, a National Historic Landmark.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

1 listing protects 18 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmark
1
Fort Apache Historic District
historic buildings protected
18
each building in a district counts
first listed
1976
Fort Apache Historic District
Fort Apache Historic District★
Districts★ landmark
★ Landmark
Fort Apache Historic DistrictDistrict

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

The story so far

Fort Apache, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Fort Apache yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Fort Apache (Western Apache: Tłʼog Hagai) is an unincorporated community in Navajo County, Arizona, United States. Today's settlement of Fort Apache incorporates elements of the original U.S. Cavalry post Fort Apache, and lies within the Fort Apache Indian Reservation, home of the White Mountain Apache Tribe, 2 miles (3 km) east of Canyon Day. Fort Apache has a post office with ZIP code 85926.

Its first post office opened in 1879. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 143 to 113 (-21%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Fort Apache, 1871 to 2012

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1871In the archiveOfficers' quarters, Camp Apache, A. T. - T. H. O'Sullivan, phot
  3. 1872Born hereFrank B. Upham is born here
  4. 1879Post officeThe Fort Apache post office opens
  5. 1884Born hereCortlandt Parker is born here
  6. 1886In the archiveAn old Chiricahua at Fort Apache, Arizona, "Got-chai-eh."
  7. 1886Born hereMarie Nordstrom is born here
  8. 1891Born hereWalter L. Reed is born here
  9. 20th century
  10. 1900In the archiveFort Apache, Arizona
  11. 1967On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  12. 21st century
  13. 2012LandmarkFort Apache Historic District named a National Historic Landmark
By decade

Fort Apache, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1870s to the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s–1900s7 items
Officers' quarters, Camp Apache, A. T. - T. H. O'Sullivan, phot1871Officers' quarters, Camp Apache, A. T. - T. H. O'Sull…An old Chiricahua at Fort Apache, Arizona, "Got-chai-eh."1886An old Chiricahua at Fort Apache, Arizona, "Got-chai-…Double Sets Quarters NCS [non-commissioned staff] Stall1889Double Sets Quarters NCS [non-commissioned staff] Sta…Fort Apache, Arizona1900Fort Apache, ArizonaFort Apache, Arizona1900Fort Apache, ArizonaApache Mother and Child, near Ft. Apache, Arizona1907Apache Mother and Child, near Ft. Apache, ArizonaBonito, an Apache Scout, Ft. Apache, Arizona. On line of Santa Fe Ry1908Bonito, an Apache Scout, Ft. Apache, Arizona. On line…
1910s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today3 recent
Fort Apache-Theodore Roosevelt School (118)-19232019Fort Apache-Theodore Roosevelt School (118)-1923U.S. Route 60 Whiteriver, AZ2016U.S. Route 60 Whiteriver, AZCamp Verde-Camp Verde Marker2014Camp Verde-Camp Verde Marker
On the map

Fort Apache on the map, 1967 to 1984

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Fort Apache. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Fort Apache on the 1967 USGS mapFort Apache on the 1978 USGS mapFort Apache on the 1984 USGS map1967Whiteriver sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Fort Apache.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Officers' quarters, Camp Apache, A. T. - T. H. O'Sullivan, phot
Retake this viewOfficers' quarters, Camp Apache, A. T. - T. H. O'Sullivan, phot, 1871

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Fort Apache’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

4 famous people were born in Fort Apache

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Marie NordstromAmerican actress · b. 1886
Walter L. ReedCareer United States Army officer · b. 1891
Cortlandt ParkerAmerican Army general · b. 1884
Frank B. UphamUnited States Navy admiral and Navy Cross recip… · b. 1872
Help out

Finish Fort Apache’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewOfficers' quarters, Camp Apache, A. T. …: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Seven MileIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townWhiteriverIts storyC−

Questions about Fort Apache’s history

What year was Fort Apache founded?

The Fort Apache post office opened in 1879, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Fort Apache?

One place: the Fort Apache Historic District (listed 1976).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (8), the Library of Congress (2), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.