Bent's Old FortAn Open Door into the American West

A TRADE CENTER ON THE FRONTIER—In the early 1800s, brothers William and Charles Bent and their friend, Ceran St. Vrain, discussed the possibility of monopolizing fur trade in the Arkansas Valley in the southwest part of the United States. A trade center between the Rocky Mountain trapping grounds and the St. Louis fur market could effectively become the middleman by buying the furs from the trappers and shipping them in bulk to the East.

At the time when the expansion of the United States was moving rapidly to the West, the location of Bent's Fort on the Santa Fe Trail provided trappers, explorers, adventurers and pioneers an opportunity to restock supplies, repair wagons, rest livestock, seek out company in the middle of the “ Great American Desert .” This site, on the north bank of the Arkansas River, also proved advantageous as a jumping-off point for the invasion of Mexico in 1846; Mexico at that time was located directly across the river from the fort.

On early maps, the outpost—which opened for business in 1833—was called Ft. William, after William Bent, but to the traders and trappers of the day it was simply “Bent's Fort.” As you step inside the fort today, imagine the scene that would have unfolded before you in 1833 . . . . .

INSIDE THE “CASTLE ON THE PLAINS”—Life in the fort centers around the central courtyard, which is always abuzz with activity. Children—offspring of white traders and their Mexican or Indian wives—play games in the dust. A man bends over a small fire, melting lead for bullets. Women work at various tasks, such as tanning hides, making candles or fashioning moccasins. A laborer uses the hide press to make compact bundles of buffalo robes, readying them for shipment east. Wagons, loaded with supplies, carefully make their way through the entrance gate. The noise originating in this area blends into a jumble of sounds as boys and girls shout while they play; women shriek at the children and each other; the blacksmith rhythmically clangs his anvil; mules bray; and a variety of other animals bellow, bleat, screech and scream.

As a visitor to the fort, you can trade for provisions such as coffee, compressed bricks of tea, tin cups, guns, lead for bullets, sugar, blankets, and calico fabric. An Indian, bringing buffalo robes for trade, receives a blanket for 10 robes, a cooking pot for 15 or a gun for 30 tanned hides. A mountain man, having gone without a bath for a year or more, trades for a bottle of “Florida water,” a concoction guaranteed to make him smell a little bit better. The trading room at Bent's Fort is a lively place, for it is here that the fort's primary purpose as a trade center

takes the spotlight.

Accommodations for most visitors and fort employees—other than the owners—are fairly rudimentary. Two families might share a very small living space and often the beds are often simply buffalo robes tossed onto the dirt floor. Most rooms have fireplaces to ward off the winter's chill; thick adobe walls insulate against the summer's heat.

Bent's Fort was known to have the sweetest water for miles around. A well has been dug inside the fort's walls; if there is ever an attack from the outside, the occupants will still have water. The compound even boasts an icehouse; you may be treated to a refreshing glass of water or lemonade, cooled by ice chips.

Bent's Fort is a mixture of many cultures, with no fewer than seven languages (English, French, German, Sioux, Cheyenne, Ute and Comanche) being spoken within its walls. However, there is a definite class hierarchy, most noticeable around the dinner table. At the top of the social ladder are, of course, the company owners and their families. Then come the free traders, the trappers, the Mexican laborers, and finally, the Indians, with the Cheyenne and Arapaho being of the highest rank. Apparently, the more status one holds, the higher off the ground one is able to eat. The company bosses and their guests eat at the formal dining table, set with linens, china and silver. In the corner is a smaller wooden table with low chairs; here sit the hunters and traders. Indians, if invited into the dining room, eat while seated on the floor.

Charlotte Green, William Bent's slave, is the undisputed mistress of the kitchen; you probably heard about her cooking long before you reached the fort. Meat is a staple in the diet of those within the fort; hunters make daily trips into the prairie for buffalo, antelope and deer. Dinner will most likely consist of meat, tortillas or hard tack, and delicious pastries. The mouth of many a traveler waters for days at the thought of a slice of Miss Charlotte's pumpkin pie!

After dinner, the men in your party will be invited to participate in a hand or two of cards

or a game of billiards, accompanied by drinking, gambling and boisterous storytelling. If any women are present, they will quietly retire to their quarters for the remainder of the evening.

To make the business as profitable as they can, the fort's owners attempt to make you feel comfortable. Bent's Fort is prepared to offer a well-appointed welcome to visitors, conveying to all who pass though its gates that life on the prairie, while harsh and unforgiving, still contains an element of graciousness.

A VISIT TODAY—William Bent destroyed the original fort in 1849, but painstaking reconstruction by the National Park Service allows today's visitor to experience a fascinating chapter in American history. Because researchers relied on detailed drawings of the fort made by visitors of the time and on modern archeological findings, the appearance is close to that of the original fort.

Park guides dressed in period costume describe daily life at Bent's Fort. Reproduction furnishings in the dining room, trade room, blacksmith shop, kitchen, and guest rooms offer a vivid image of life on the Santa Fe Trail as it transpired within the walls of Bent's Fort. The fort's bookstore offers park-related books and historically authentic reproduction trade goods for sale. Visitors are invited to join a ranger-led tour or explore on their own using the excellent self-guided tour brochure available at the fort's office.

A visit to this living history museum brings alive the sights and sounds of this place where traders, trappers, Indians, and travelers gathered

in the mid-1800s. The reconstructed fort helps us understand part of Colorado and American history in a way books never can.

IF YOU GO TO BENT'S OLD FORT NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE• Take I-25 south from Denver to Pueblo ; exit on Highway 50 east to La Junta; follow Highway 194

east and follow the signs to the fort. • Distance is approximately 190 miles south of Denver. • A small admission fee will be collected when you enter the fort.• Website: www.nps/gov/beol