The outpost was built in 1875 as a part of the force's larger effort to curtail American rum and whisky runners in the region, and to create 'good relations' with the Indigenous peoples of the territory. The fort was designated as a "district post" in 1882, resulting in the fort's expansion. The North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) continued to use the fort until 1914, when the site was sold to Grand Trunk Pacific Railway. The fort was demolished to make way for a rail terminal.