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Journal of Western Travel
by John McTurk Gibson
edited by Weldon Hoppe
May 27th, 1859 -- We started this morning five miles below Kearney and had a little better chance to see the town, there are a good many houses, some built of wood and some of sod, rather primitive looking, the soldiers in part were on parade, but make a very poor show, there are several brass cannons, small sized. We met another government train, left the Fort some 17 miles behind, making the biggest drive today we have yet accomplished. We saw one of the Jack-ass rabbits that a fellow had shot. They are similar to, but lighter in color than the Scotch hares, and I think they are a little bigger, how they do run, I wish I saw a greyhound after one of them.Powell
Travelled twenty miles. We passed Fort Kearny. They have no regular Fort, they have a public square where they do their drilling. Thirteen pieces of canon are stationed around the edge of the square. It is nicely situated on raising ground, they have a large and stable and some other respectables. There are about thirty buildings in all, one half of which are constructed of sods. One hundred and sixty soldiers are there at this time, one store. We saw to day alkali for the first time.