Review of \u3ci\u3eForts of the Northern Plains: Guide to Historic Military Posts of the Plains Indians Wars\u3c/i\u3e By Jeff Barnes

Jeff Barnes\u27s book presents brief histories and the historical importance of about fifty military forts in Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North and South Dakota, and Wyoming. Only sites that played roles in the Indian Wars of the West, roughly from 1820 to 1890, are included. Each entry describes the post and its significance, and offers good suggestions for further reading. Barnes also provides a sidebar offering directions to each site, its hours of operation, admission costs, special events, and available amenities to help visitors plan their trips. Barnes offers updated information on posts that have been treated in a number of previous publications, such as those by Herbert M. Hart, who published several guides to military posts decades ago. The forts include sites under municipal, state, and federal jurisdictions, and some that are found on private land. Some sites, such as the Council Bluffs Blockhouse in downtown Council Bluffs, Iowa, no longer exist but are commemorated by markers. In many of the entries, Barnes suggests other related sites to visit in the same vicinity. A few abandoned or obliterated sites are commemorated by markers placed at interstate highway rest stops