| Fort Mary B | |
| Settlement Type: | Stockade |
| Nickname: | Fort Independence, Fort Independent, Fort Breckenridge, Fort Meribeh |
| Pushpin Map: | Colorado |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | The site was located very near the Wells Fargo Bank in Breckenridge |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Colorado |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Summit |
| Subdivision Type3: | Nearest town |
| Subdivision Name3: | Breckenridge |
| Unit Pref: | US |
Fort Mary B was the first permanent structure in the Breckenridge, Colorado area. It was a wooden stockade built by the first prospecting party in 1859 due to the presence of Ute people in the area. It was named Fort Mary B for Mary Bigelow, the only woman in the party. The stockade covered a couple of acres and had a log cabin at each corner. The first log cabin was built by Ruben Spalding.[1] The town of Breckenridge was established one mile south of the site, which is near the Wells Fargo Bank.[2]
It was first called Fort Independent or Fort Independence. The fort is also said to have been called Fort Breckenridge and Fort Meribeh.[3] The town charter only list two names for the former Breckenridge area: Fort Meribeh and Fort Mary B.[4]