Elk Camp was an American settlement between Redwood Creek

Redwood Creek (Humboldt County)

Redwood Creek is a river in Humboldt County, California. The river's headwaters are in the Coast Range at about and it flows roughly northwest until it empties into the Pacific Ocean near the small town of Orick, the only development in the -watershed....

 and the Klamath River

Klamath River

The Klamath River is an American river that flows southwest through Oregon and northern California, cutting through the Cascade Range to empty into the Pacific Ocean. The river drains an extensive watershed of almost that stretches from the high desert country of the Great Basin to the temperate...

, fifteen miles northwest of Fort Anderson

Fort Anderson

Fort Anderson can refer to:*Fort Anderson — A Union fort used in the American Civil War and site of the Battle of Paducah, Kentucky*Fort Anderson — A Confederate fort used in the American Civil War...

 in modern Humboldt County, California

Humboldt County, California

Humboldt County is a county in the U.S. state of California, located on the far North Coast 200 miles north of San Francisco. According to 2010 Census Data, the county’s population was 134,623...

. In May 1862, under threat of Indian raids on its cattle, the local settlers urgently requested military protection. A temporary post, garrisoned from Fort Ter-Waw, was probably established within the settlement. A trail was to be cut through the forest from Fort Ter-Waw to Elk Camp, to link up with the forts south of the Klamath River.