Today, Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins’ (KS-02) bill (H.R. 1541) to authorize the donation of the Fort Scott, Kan., Civil War era blockhouse known as Lunette Blair to the National Park Service at the Fort Scott National Historic Site passed the House Natural Resources Committee and is now headed to the House floor.

“I am pleased to see this legislation passed with strong bipartisan support, and I will continue to monitor the status of this bill as it makes its way to the House floor,” said Congresswoman Jenkins. “This is a great step forward and I am honored to help the Fort Scott community preserve the Lunette Blair blockhouse’s historical legacy.”

Brief History of the Lunette Blair blockhouse:

• During the Civil War, the Union Army originally constructed four fortified structures, or lunettes, around Fort Scott. These structures were known amongst the soldiers as Fort Lincoln, Fort Henning, Fort Insley, and Fort Blair, of which Fort Blair, known today as Lunette Blair or the Western Blockhouse, is the only remaining Civil War blockhouse in the community of Fort Scott.
• Immediately after the Civil War, the federal government sold these structures to private owners. Lunette Blair itself had several owners since the 19^th century, including Dr. W.S. McDonald and later the Molly Foster Berry Chapter of the DAR who, along with the Bourbon County Historical Preservation Association and others presently, have continued the building’s historic preservation.
• Lunette Blair has been a fixture of the community for over a century. For decades its image even became the insignia for a local business, the Western Insurance Company, where the “Western Blockhouse” logo symbolized security and protection from 1924 through 1986 after the business ultimately closed down. Former Western Insurance employees have been passionate volunteer caretakers of the blockhouse for decades.