Fort Lowell Park

Photo by Ty Holland

B Troop made its annual appearance at the La Reunion de El Fuerte at Fort Lowell Park on 13 Feb. The event is sponsored by a local Tucson group that seeks to preserve the history and character of the neighborhood in the vicinity of Fort Lowell. Little of the original fort still remains but what does still exist is preserved at what is now called Fort Lowell park. However, some of the old houses surrounding the fort still exist and the character and history of an important part of the "Old Pueblo" can be seen and experienced during this annual event. The event kicks off with a procession at the San Pedro Chapel at which the troopers provide a saber arch through which the mass attendees pass on their way in. B Troop has been supporting this event for many years and is an important part of keeping the old heritage of this place alive. It was from Fort Lowell, after all, that Captain Whitside rode southeast to establish Camp Huachuca in 1877.

Although B Troop has faithfully supported this event for over 25 years, it is recognized that the ground at the park is the worst they ever have to perform on. The performance area is actually a playing field used for local youth soccer leagues. The field is a mixture of very hard earth and very soft earth. The hard parts are like cement with a thin layer of dirt and grass on top. The soft parts are dotted with gopher holes and it is not unusual to have a horse hoof sink a half foot into the soil. The field is notoriously slippery regardless of the weather conditions. This year the field was still wet from recent rains, so the Troop commander wisely chose to conduct the riding demonstration at a trot and did not perform any charges. Nevertheless, we still had one horse go down on the turf during warm ups. Fortunately, neither the horse or rider were seriously injured.

Regardless of the footing on the field, the event sponsors are always very gracious and appreciative of our appearance. They made sure we were well fed with an authentic meal of tamales and beans and provided a traditional desert of carrot cake (in honor of the horses). It is another of the unique and historic events in Arizona that B Troop attends in order to fulfill its mission of preserving the history and heritage of the cavalry. To learn more about the efforts to preserve the neighborhood see http://www.oflna.org/