8/31/2013:
Fort Yates was established in 1876. For the next twelve years it was considered the major post in the Dakotas because of its placement on the Missouri River and the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. With the end of hostility on the Northern Plains and the construction of Fort Lincoln at Bismarck, it had outlived its usefulness as a military post. On this date in 1903, the remaining half dozen officers and sixty men began the transfer to other posts in the area. The sale of thousands of government items at the post had occurred on August 25th. The buildings were turned over to the Department of the Interior for an Indian School.
Dakota Datebook written by Jim Davis
Sources:
The Bismarck Tribune August 27, 19093
The Bismarck Tribune September 1, 1903