In 1865, the Army decided it needed an outpost in the Warner Valley of south-central Oregon to facilitate the interdiction of Indian raiding parties passing through the area.

As a result, the soldiers decided to build their outpost 20 miles (32 km) east of the lakes on the eastern slope of Hart Mountain.

[1][2][3][4] The camp was hastily built at an elevation of 6,171 feet (1,881 m), so it was not well suited for the harsh winters typical of Oregon's high desert country.

It was reported that on several occasions, it was so cold inside the camp building the entire detachment had to march around the parade ground all night to keep from freezing.

Crook directed that the camp be moved to the Honey Creek site west of the Warner Lakes.

Known as the Stone Bridge, it was actually a quarter mile long causeway constructed by hauling basalt boulders and smaller rocks from nearby Hart Mountain and dumping them into the marsh.

This allowed the soldiers to construct solid timber frame barracks for 280 troops, officer's quarters, a guard house, commissary, hospital, bakery, blacksmith shop, wheelwright workshop, warehouses, stables, and corrals.

[7][9][10] By 1869, the Indian raids in south-central Oregon had ended and a treaty had been signed with Wewawewa, the chief of the area's dominant Paiute band.

The Fort Warner site is located on a privately owned ranch adjacent to Fremont National Forest.

[5] While nothing remains at either military site, the Stone Bridge the Army built to cross the Warner wetlands still exists and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.