Fort Laramie National Historic Site in Traveling Through Nebraska
Located in southeastern Wyoming near the town of Fort Laramie, the Fort Laramie National Historic Site is one of the most significant historical sites in the region, offering valuable insights into the fur trading era, and early military presence in the American West, and its impact on the local Native American tribes, within the broader context of traveling through the neighboring state of Nebraska. As a result of its strategic location, the Fort Laramie site played a pivotal role in shaping the course of Western American history.
Established as a fur trading post in 1834 by Robert Campbell and Jim Bridger, the site was initially known as Fort Laramie's early days centered on the lucrative fur trade, with the fort serving as a key hub for the exchange of goods such as beaver pelts and buffalo hides. Located in the Cheyenne River valley along the river, the fort's proximity to the Platte River Trail made it an ideal stopping point for settlers and travelers. In 1849, the United States government purchased the site from the American Fur Company and converted it into a military fort, which later grew into a strategic component of the US military's operations against the American Native population.
Between 1851 and 1890, Fort Laramie National Historic Site hosted numerous treaty negotiations with prominent Native American tribes, including the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851. The 1851 treaty brought together representatives from the US government and the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Crow, Gros Ventre, Apache Assiniboine, Mandan, and Arikara tribes, with the goal of establishing boundaries and regulating relations between Native American groups and European settlers. Furthermore, this meeting is notable for being one of the first times an official government-written treaty had taken place. Later, the site was a significant location for multiple operations during the US military's Powder River campaign.
Today, visitors to the Fort Laramie National Historic Site can explore the restored fort, including many of the reconstructed buildings such as the Commissary, Wheelwright Shop, and Powder Magazine. Visitors can also see many historical artifacts such as the original Treaty of 1851. In addition to historic buildings, the 833-acre historic site encloses almost 16,000 acres beyond those defined and an additional nearly one-mile wide along both sides of the river called the river corridor, holding evidence of previous occupation of the surrounding area, such as archaeological remains.
Despite being one of the more known sites of the American West, Fort Laramie remains a crucial site in delving deeper into the experiences and struggles faced by the pioneer settlers, American soldiers, Native American tribesmen, and other interested parties in the region as part of a larger study of multiple neighboring American state regions. Historians argue that its documentation can provide poignant understandings into, among many elements present in place, how the arrival and departure of horses had significant influence over existing societal demographics and dynamics at that time within one's study area. Similarly, historical visitor attention and focus are considered to reside with one who sets personal motivations in the formative pre-experiences of an expanded geographical boundary formation historically more broad reaching.
Established as a fur trading post in 1834 by Robert Campbell and Jim Bridger, the site was initially known as Fort Laramie's early days centered on the lucrative fur trade, with the fort serving as a key hub for the exchange of goods such as beaver pelts and buffalo hides. Located in the Cheyenne River valley along the river, the fort's proximity to the Platte River Trail made it an ideal stopping point for settlers and travelers. In 1849, the United States government purchased the site from the American Fur Company and converted it into a military fort, which later grew into a strategic component of the US military's operations against the American Native population.
Between 1851 and 1890, Fort Laramie National Historic Site hosted numerous treaty negotiations with prominent Native American tribes, including the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851. The 1851 treaty brought together representatives from the US government and the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Crow, Gros Ventre, Apache Assiniboine, Mandan, and Arikara tribes, with the goal of establishing boundaries and regulating relations between Native American groups and European settlers. Furthermore, this meeting is notable for being one of the first times an official government-written treaty had taken place. Later, the site was a significant location for multiple operations during the US military's Powder River campaign.
Today, visitors to the Fort Laramie National Historic Site can explore the restored fort, including many of the reconstructed buildings such as the Commissary, Wheelwright Shop, and Powder Magazine. Visitors can also see many historical artifacts such as the original Treaty of 1851. In addition to historic buildings, the 833-acre historic site encloses almost 16,000 acres beyond those defined and an additional nearly one-mile wide along both sides of the river called the river corridor, holding evidence of previous occupation of the surrounding area, such as archaeological remains.
Despite being one of the more known sites of the American West, Fort Laramie remains a crucial site in delving deeper into the experiences and struggles faced by the pioneer settlers, American soldiers, Native American tribesmen, and other interested parties in the region as part of a larger study of multiple neighboring American state regions. Historians argue that its documentation can provide poignant understandings into, among many elements present in place, how the arrival and departure of horses had significant influence over existing societal demographics and dynamics at that time within one's study area. Similarly, historical visitor attention and focus are considered to reside with one who sets personal motivations in the formative pre-experiences of an expanded geographical boundary formation historically more broad reaching.
