Fort Brown and Historic Brownsville Museum

Fort Brown, established in 1846, housed Federal troops during the Mexican War. In 1861 Texas state troops occupied the fort. With the southern Atlantic coast blockaded, Brownsville became an important Confederate port, with cotton and war material flowing back and forth. To eliminate the trade a Union army landed near the mouth of the Rio Grande in November 1863, occupying Fort Brown and Brownsville. Eight months later a strong Confederate army drove out the Federal forces and held the fort until the end of the war. The original hospital building is now the administration building for Texas Southmost College. Other extant buildings include a medical laboratory, guardhouse, and morgue. The Historic Brownsville Museum houses materials related to Brownsville's long military history.