Who Or What Was Fort Collins Named After?

A lot of people have no idea who or what Fort Collins was named after. I think the most common answer I hear to the question is, "Uhh...I think it was a military fort."

So, read on to find out the real answer and some knowledge you can use to impress your relatives when they come to visit.According to the City of Fort Collins, our town was founded as a military fort in 1864. It was named in honor of Colonel William O. Collins who was the commander of the Ohio Cavalry troops, based out of Fort Laramie.

According to the Poudre Library, the military originally set up their post in 1862, in what is now LaPorte, but a flood forced them to look for a new location.

On August 20, 1864, Col. Collins signed the order setting aside the present location of Fort Collins as the new military reservation. Here the danger of flooding would be less and sufficient land was available without interfering with the claims of individuals. Thus it is August 20 that Fort Collins Historical Society honors as the celebration of Fort Collins' birthday.

Later that year the new post was ready for occupation and was referred to as "Fort Collins" instead of "Camp Collins."

There you have it; Fort Collins was named after Col. William O. Collins and for the first two years of its existence (1862-1864) Fort Collins was actually called "Camp Collins". It became Fort Collins in 1864 and was incorporated as a town in 1873.

Now to you know.

Picture from Fort Collins History Connection.