Fort Laramie

Beginning in 1812-1813 with the passage of Robert Stuart and his party returning from Astoria, white men penetrated the high plains and mountains of present-day Wyoming. By 1890, with a white population permanently established in the region, the frontier of the American West was, according to a paper delivered by historian Frederick Jackson Turner, closed. Thus, so far as white men were concerned, the northern plains frontier lasted a bit more than three-quarters of a century. For fifty-six of the seventy-eight "frontier" years one post, perhaps the longest-lived institution/establishment associated with the northern high plains frontier, maintained a continuous presence. Stuart and his companions passed the mouth of the Laramie River, then camped near present-day Torrington, Wyoming. Just over two decades later, in 1834, Fort William was constructed by the employees of two entrepreneurially-inclined mountain men-Robert Campbell and William Sublette. Timber-stockaded Fort William was located one to two miles above the confluence of the Laramie River with the North Platte.

Within a year or so, Sublette and Campbell sold their interests to the newly formed Rocky Mountain Fur Company which numbered among its owners such luminaries as Milton Sublette, Jim Bridger and Thomas Fitzpatrick. Accomplished mountain men though the owners were, the fledgling company was unable to compete with with one of the fiscal giants of the American frontier-John Jacob Astor and his American Fur Company. Thus Fort William (named, of course, after the elder Sublette) passed out of mountain man ownership, its wooden stockade replaced by adobe walls and its name changed to Fort John.

By this time commonly known as Fort John-on-the-Laramie, the post changed hands one more time. In 1849, responding to the traditional American demand that their government permit them to do what they wanted but protect them while they do it, the United States Government purchased Fort John and turned it into the military post, Fort Laramie, whose purpose it was to protect the emigration sparked by the siren call of land in Oregon and gold in California. For the remainder of its institutional existence, the name "Fort Laramie" became virtually synonymous with the frontier itself as the post served as a way station for emigrants and a principal staging area for what came to be known as the "Indian Wars". With the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869 and the imposition of reservation existence upon the indigenous population during the 70s and 80s, the role of Fort Laramie steadily diminished. As a result, in 1890 the post buildings were sold at public auction; it would be almost half a century before Fort Laramie would once again return to public ownership.

In 1937 the area was acquired by the State of Wyoming and turned over to the National Park Service of the Department of Interior to be administered, first as a National Monument then as a National Historic Site. Thus, on the plains of eastern Wyoming, just above the confluence of the Laramie and North Platte Rivers, a contemporary visitor can wander among a cluster of some fifteen restored and semi-restored buildings, as well as a number of additional stabilized ruins, all of which serve to recall memories of those who earlier passed this way.

Sallie Hester, 1849 Fort Laramie, June 19. This fort is of adobe, enclosed with a high wall of the same. The entrance is a hole in the wall just large enough for a person to crawl through. The impression you have on entering is that you are in a small town. Men were engaged in all kinds of business from blacksmith us. We stayed here some time enjoying it to the fullest extent after our long tramp. We camped one mile from the fort, where we remained a few days to wash and lighten up.

Lucena Parsons, 1850

August 1 [Thursday]. Travelled 15 miles. This brought us to Fort Larimee which we were glad to see as here we crosst the Larimee fork of the Platte. The main river is also near. The Fort is built on the Larimiee fork some 1 1/2 miles from the river. We had no trouble in fording it the water being low, though there have been 5 men drowned here this spring in crossing their teams. They were carried down by the current which is very swift even now. We passt a camp of Indians to day that have the small pox. They have it very bad & many of them have died. We saw one squaw dead under a blanket & her papoose wailing round her sick.

August 2. This morn went to the Fort to get some blacksmithing done but could not they have so much work. This is a very pretty place to look at, it is so clean. The Fort is commanded by a Major Anderson [Major Winslow Sanderson of the Regiment of Mounted Rifles-footnote], he is a fine man. There are 250 soldiers & some 12 families. They have a saw mill, one publick house, one store. They hold goods high & work is also high. They offer for carpenter work 60 a month & find them, & a woman to cook 20 a month. Flour is 18 per hundred & whiskey 8 per gallon in the emigrants store. They say there have 75 thousand pass here this (p. 256) season & some days there were 1500 here. There was some sickness among them & some deaths. There are hundreds of waggons left here which can be bought for a few dollars each from the soldiers. Started about 10 & went 9 miles. Passt 6 graves. Roads very sandy, one bad hill to come down. Campt on river with rest of the company. Wether dry & very dusty.

Amelia Hadley, 1851

Thursday June 5 Travelled 22 miles had some verry sandy road, road still near the river, cotton wood plenty, good grass, within 6 miles of Fort Larimi, camped here and lay by a day. plenty of timber. There is an Indian village where we are camped where the Sioux wintered last winter, cut nearly all the trees off about as high as their heads here we had a hard hail storm hailed about an hour as hard as I ever saw it so that the ground was perfectly white hailled also last night not so much but considerable larger see nothing much worthy of note to day but expect to when we arrive at the fort. It is over 900 miles from home to fort Larimie shall soon be half our distance.

Saturday June 7 travelled 20 miles came to the fort which was beyond all expectation about as large a town as henderson and much handsomer on main street the building are brick 3 story high stores in the lower stories here you can get almost any thing you want. It seems as though I could hardly contrive how they could get goods there the town is a square, block, and brick side walks It is on the south side of platte there are quite a number of frame buildings. her is a good blacksmith shop here are any quantity of wigwams and Indians about 5 or 6 hundred, soil sandy there are only about 80 soldiers here now some of them have their wives with them. . . . They have a sawmill, about 10 miles from the fort, which is strange for this place. They have a good ferry at or opposite the fort, we are not obliged to cross we still go up on the north side. some of our boys went over to put some letters in the office.

>Harriet A. Loughary, 1864

June 8th. This morning all was bustle and hurry. We wanted to get to the Fort. [Laramie] Our eyes were strained to see it if possible to see some marks of civilization, and still more to get news. At 11 oclock we arrived. As soon as possible a great many men hastened to the fort It also is on the other side of the river. The stars and stripes were proudly floating over it. At the sight of which brought forth cheer after cheer from the throats of hundreds of lusty men, women and children, who all know and feel what true patriotism means. A small flag had been tucked away in our wagon, which was immediately brought forth, fastened to a willow rod, and tied to our wagon bow, which soon attracted the attention of the train and then another burst of cheering rang out. At this point some of the men returned with letters from loved ones at home, which filled our already glad hearts with joy. The news that filled us to overflow was the great Union victories by Gen Grant's Army. At night we proposed a ratification out in the wilderness. We could not have any fire works, but by a united effort we got together enough willow and sage brush to make a camp fire, around which all gathered to have a good time and to give vent to our patriotism. An old battered violin and a wheezy accordion was brought out to give tone to the occasion. We sang with hearty good will "The star spangled banner" "The red white and blue" "Hang Jeff Davis in a sour apple tree" and every war song that we knew. At the close of each such shouts of patriotism rent the air of the quiet evening were never heard. There are a number of rebels in our train who joined it for protection, that did not enjoy our ratification of Union victories, but they skulked off in silence and went to bed.

For additional information on Fort Laramie, see the following:

Merrill Mattes, The Great Platte River Road, Chapter XV: "Fort Laramie and the Forty-Niners" and Chapter XVI: "Fort Laramie, Gateway to the Mountains".

Robert L. Munkres, "Fort Laramie: Symbol of the Frontier." Overland Journal, Summer, 1986.

Robert L. Munkres, "Tales of Old Fort Laramie." The National Tombstone Epitaph, November, 1981.

The information presented about this site has been adapted from Robert L. Munkres, "Fort Laramie," English Westerners' Tally Sheet, Autumn, 1996.