Yuma Crossing
Immediately after the Mexican–American War in 1848, the U.S. Army built Fort Yuma here to protect travelers from Indians raiding the area. It was the center point of conflict in the Yuma War of 1850–53. From 1864–1890, the fort and nearby facilities was the main army base to support the US Army's efforts to control the Indians throughout the greater southwest.
Yuma Expedition
Following the failure of the California Militia against the Quechan people ("Yuma Indians"), in the Gila Expedition, the U. S. Army sent the Yuma Expedition under Captain Samuel P. Heintzelman, to establish a post at Yuma Crossing of the Colorado River in the vicinity where it met the Gila River in the Lower Colorado River Valley region of California. He was to protect travelers on the overland route from the east to California and to quell any hostilities by the Quechan people ("Yuma Indians").