The US Army Camel Experiment

08/19/2026

This month in the history of The US Army Camel Experiment. . .

Aug. 9, 1855: the first camels were purchased in Tunis.

Aug. 12, 1857: photographic equipment was abandoned in Albuquerque during the Beale expedition, denying history any photographic record of the journey.


North American Camel Ranch Owners Association
USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
U.S. Department of Agriculture

07/08/2026

HOLD YOUR HORSES Fort Davis, Texas. . .

THE CAMELS ARE COMING!!!

We’ll be at Fort Davis National Historic Site in West Texas today and tomorrow from 9 AM until 4 PM for living history programs about the 19th century use of camels as military pack animals in the US desert southwest.



North American Camel Ranch Owners Association
U.S. Department of Agriculture

07/01/2026

HOLD YOUR HORSES Vicksburg, Mississippi. . .

THE CAMELS ARE COMING!!!

We’ll be at Vicksburg National Military Park tomorrow through Sunday from 9 to noon each morning teaching about Old Douglas the Confederate camel.

What?! A camel in one of the deadliest sieges during the US Civil War? Come by to learn more.


North American Camel Ranch Owners Association
U.S. Department of Agriculture

06/24/2026

HOLD YOUR HORSES Colorado City, Texas. . .

THE CAMELS ARE COMING!!!

We’ll be on the court house lawn across from the library today at 10, sharing stories and sing about the 19th century US Army Camel Experiment. West Texas folks come on by!


North American Camel Ranch Owners Association
USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
U.S. Department of Agriculture

Humps on humpday! Next week's Summer Reading Program is Wild About Camels!! Wed, June 24th at 10am on the Courthouse Lawn!

06/22/2026

Happy World Camel Day, y’all. Here’s a San Antonio TV news piece about our work at The Alamo this weekend to celebrate one of our favorite days.


North American Camel Ranch Owners Association
USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
U.S. Department of Agriculture

Visitors to the Alamo got an early look at a little-known chapter of Texas history this weekend as the Texas Camel Corps brought camels to the historic grounds ahead of World Camel Day. 👇 Full story at the link in the comments.

06/17/2026

HOLD YOUR HORSES San Antonio, Texas. . . THE CAMELS ARE COMING!

We’ll be presenting informal living history programs this Saturday at the world famous Alamo from 9 am to 12 noon.


North American Camel Ranch Owners Association
USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
U.S. Department of Agriculture

06/10/2026

Always an honor to present living history programs at the world famous Alamo in San Antonio, Texas!

June 20 we’ll be there celebrating World Camel Day (22 June) AND the nearly 200 years of camel history in America.



North American Camel Ranch Owners Association
USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
U.S. Department of Agriculture

Don't miss the Texas Camel Corps at the Alamo on Saturday, June 20th from 9 am to noon! 🐫

For a brief time in the 1850’s, the U.S. Army experimented with using camels. Camels had key advantages when compared to horses and mules, like being able to traverse areas with severe heat while using very little water. During this brief experiment, camels were used at the Alamo during the time that it was a U.S. Army outpost in the 1850’s.

06/03/2026

This week in the history of the US Army Camel Experiment. . .

June 4, 1855: The USS Supply leaves New York for what will be the first of two shipments of camels from the Mediterranean. Within a decade the government herd would grow to roughly one hundred camels, beginning what is now a lesser-known but vibrant part of American agriculture, where camels number over 8,000 today.

North American Camel Ranch Owners Association U.S. Department of Agriculture

05/20/2026

HOLD YOUR HORSES Harker Heights, Texas. . .

THE CAMELS ARE COMING!!!

We’ll be at Skipcha elementary today for on-campus programs about the 19th century US military use of camels as pack animals in the desert southwest. 

U.S. Department of Agriculture USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service North American Camel Ranch Owners Association