"F" Troop of the NWMP thundered across the Bow River in 1875 on the mission to curtail the whiskey trade.  The established Fort Brisebois, the second NWMP post, at the forks of the Bow and Elbow Rivers.  As with Fort MacLeod, Fort Benton's I.G. Baker Company constructed the fort.  Pine logs set upright side-by-side in three foot trenches formed the walls and poles covered in earth served as roofs.  Living conditions at Fort Brisebois, renamed Fort Calgary in 1876 were very primitive. 



 




 

The town of Calgary grew around the fort and rail travel transformed it from a remote frontier post to a bustling urban center.  Archaeologist have uncovered the remains of the original fort and a replica of the 1888 barracks has been constructed.  Designated a National and Provincial Historic Site, Fort Calgary was the northernmost link of the western branch of the Old Forts Trail.