The post quartermaster , Captain Thomas Swords , was in charge of building Fort Scott 's structures , and had to deal with the problems of construction on the Kansas prairie , which had few trees . He had only two bricklayers and three carpenters to rely on , as it were few civilians and most of the soldiers had other duties to perform . Wood was available , but the mill was built 1 @.@ 5 miles ( 2 @.@ 4 km ) away , making transport time consuming . Swords found his efforts plagued by lack of wood , skilled labor and working equipment . Freak accidents destroyed much of the wood intended for the fort 's construction . As a result , only one duplex of the five planned officers quarters ( four duplexes and post commandant 's house ) was built by 1844 , and the intended enlisted barracks were not completed . In his 1844 inspection of the fort , Colonel George Croghan reported that , in comparison to other frontier forts , he considered Fort Scott " above average " .