Fort Sanford was built in 1866 approximately 1.5 miles south of this site to protect settlers in Circleville and Panguitch during the Black Hawk Indian War, to prevent Indians from stealing livestock, and to serve as a supply depot for cavalry troops. Major Silas Sanford Smith and his troops designed, built, and named the fort, constructing it entirely of cedar juniper pickets that stood eight feet above the ground, with a deep ditch at the base of the wall surrounding the entire fort. It measured 363 feet by 363 feet, or about three acres, with block houses. Within three months of its completion, President Brigham Young directed the evacuation of smaller towns for greater protection, and most Panguitch residents moved to Parowan while Circleville settlers went to Beaver. After these two communities were evacuated, the fort was no longer needed, and farmers eventually salvaged the stockade poles to build houses, outbuildings, and fences.