Bent's Old Fort on the Santa Fe
Frontier Trading Post for Furs, American, Mexican & Navajo Goods
Bent's Old Fort, located along the Santa Fe Trail on the banks of Colorado's Arkansas River is now a National Historic site, reconstructed as it appeared in 1833.
Bent’s Old Fort on the Arkansas River in Southeastern Colorado was privately constructed in 1833 by two brothers, Charles and William Bent and their business partner, Ceran St. Vrain. When first viewed by travelers along the Santa Fe Trail, the two-level fort appeared to rise up from the prairie in the form of a castle with towers on each corner and a small cannon that boomed the announcement of each approaching caravan.
Frontier Hub on the Prairie
Built as a trading post, it proved to be a hub on the vast frontier and along the busy trail, a welcoming beacon to those who had spent endless days in creaking wagons. One 1840 traveler described it as being "...built of simple prairie soil, made to hold together by a rude mixture with straw and the plain grass itself..."
Missouri Markets Extend to Mexico
Trading activities centered at the fort were many faceted. American manufacturers dispatched trade goods along the Santa Fe Trail from Missouri with a portion deposited at the fort and the remainder sent on down the trail into Mexican territory. The reverse application worked as well with goods of Mexican and Navajo origin returned to the fort and carried 600 miles to Missouri. The Southern Cheyenne, Arapaho, Ute, Kiowa and Comanche tribes also traded buffalo robes for goods at the fort as well as independent mountain men who traveled down from the high lonesome of the Rockies to barter beaver pelts and other furs for equipment and supplies.
Provisions and Services to Trappers and Travelers
There was a Council Room where Indian Chiefs sat, wreathed in clouds of tobacco to agree on peace councils and trade terms. A Trade Room served as a general store where everything from calico to gun powder and chocolate could be acquired. A spacious dining room offered weary travelers the opportunity to sit down and eat at a cloth covered table while gathering all the news.
A blacksmith as well as a carpenter were there to repair wagons. After a long, grueling trip up or down the trail, many wagons suffered broken axles, tongues and other breakdowns. Two warehouses were filled with barrels, bags and bundles of guns, tools, dry goods, gunpowder and foodstuffs. All were necessary items in an area where the heartbeat of the area was trade.
A billiard room on the second level provided entertainment for both travelers and fort employees. A bar ran across the length of one end of the room and an 1839 inventory recorded 12 boxes of claret wine, 37 gallons brandy and 58 gallons of rum.
Ideal Location for Military Strategy
The prime location on the international boundary between two countries with Mexico south of the river and the United States on the north, paved the way for the occupation of the west by the U.S. Army. In 1846, military operations quickened and armed conflict erupted between the two countries, bringing the Federal Government to designat the adobe trading post as advance base for the invasion of Mexico.
Bent’s Old Fort is now a reconstructed National Historic Site. Following a three-year archeological excavation and intensive research from diaries and journals, the Old Fort rose again from the prairie and was opened in 1976 as a bicentennial project.
Bent’s Old Fort is located eight miles east of La Junta and 15 miles west of Las Animas on Colorado Highway 194. For additional information, call 719-383-5010 or log on to Bent's Old Fort. It is open year round from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. June 1-Aug. 31 and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 1-May 31. Entrance fee is $3 for adults, $2 for children 6-12.
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