Fort Sumner was established in 1862 to control the Diné (Navajo) and N'de (Mescalero Apache), who were forcibly marched from their homelands and interned at the Bosque Redondo Reservation, where conditions caused great suffering. The N'de escaped in 1865. In 1868, the reservation was deemed a failure and a treaty was signed establishing a new reservation in the Diné homeland. The fort was discontinued in 1869, and the buildings were sold to Lucien B. Maxwell, who established the precursor to the town of Fort Sumner. William "Billy the Kid" Bonny was killed in the nearby former officer's quarters, now known as the "Maxwell House," by Sheriff Pat Garrett on the night of July 14, 1881, and was buried in the former fort cemetery.