The National Park System, of which Fort Laramie National Monument is a unit, is dedicated to conserving the scenic, scientific, and historic heritage of the United States for the benefit and enjoyment of its people.
Contents
Page [EARLY FUR TRADE ON THE PLATTE, 1812-30] 1 [FORT WILLIAM, THE FIRST “FORT LARAMIE,” 1834] 3 [FORT PLATTE AND FORT JOHN ON THE LARAMIE] 4 [THE FIRST EMIGRANTS] 4 [THE MORMON MIGRATIONS, 1847-48] 6 [FORT LARAMIE BECOMES A MILITARY POST] 6 [THE CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH] 7 [THE FORT LARAMIE TREATY COUNCIL, 1851] 9 [THE EMIGRANT TIDE AND INDIAN TROUBLES, 1852-53] 9 [THE GRATTAN AND HARNEY MASSACRES, 1854-55] 11 [HANDCART TO PONY EXPRESS, 1856-61] 12 [THE CIVIL WAR AND THE UPRISING OF THE PLAINS INDIANS] 14 [PEACE TALK AND WAR ON THE BOZEMAN TRAIL, 1866-68] 17 [THE TREATY OF 1868] 21 [THE FIGHT FOR THE BLACK HILLS] 24 [LAST YEARS OF THE ARMY POST, 1877-90] 27 [THE HOMESTEADERS TAKE OVER] 31 [EFFORTS TO PRESERVE THE FORT] 32 [GUIDE TO THE AREA] 32 [HOW TO REACH FORT LARAMIE] 42 [ADMINISTRATION] 42 [RELATED AREAS] 42 [FACILITIES] 42
Fort William, the first Fort Laramie, in 1837. From a painting by A. J. Miller. Courtesy Mrs. Clyde Porter.
On the level land near the junction of the Laramie and North Platte Rivers stands Fort Laramie, long a landmark and symbol of the Old West. Situated at a strategic point on a natural route of travel, the site early attracted the attention of trail-blazing fur trappers, who established the first fort. In later years it offered protection and refreshment to the throngs who made the great western migrations over the Oregon Trail. It was a station for the Pony Express and the Overland Stage. It served as an important base in the conquest of the Plains Indians, and it witnessed the development of the open range cattle industry, the coming of the homesteaders, and the final settlement which marked the closing of the frontier. Perhaps no other single site is so intimately connected with the history of the Old West in all its phases.
Early Fur Trade on the Platte, 1812-30
American and French Canadian fur traders and trappers, exploring the land, traveled the North Platte Route intermittently for over two decades before the original fort was established at the mouth of the Laramie River. First to mention the well-wooded stream flowing into the North Platte River from the southwest was Robert Stuart, leader of the seven “Returning Astorians” on their path-breaking journey from Astoria at the mouth of the Columbia River to St. Louis, by way of South Pass in the Rockies and the valley of the Platte, during the winter of 1812-13. They journeyed eastward over what was to become the greatest roadway to the West, thus entitling them to recognition as the discoverers of the Oregon Trail.
Records of actual fur trade activity in this area for the next 10 years are extremely meager, but many geographical names bear witness to the gradual westward movement of the beaver hunters, some of them undoubtedly of Canadian origin. Among them was Jacques La Ramee who, according to tradition, was killed by Indians in 1821 on the stream which now bears his name and which was destined to become the setting of Fort Laramie. Famous only in death, his name was to be given also to a plains region, a peak, a mountain range, a town, a city, and a county in Wyoming.