Fort Osage
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Fort Osage (1808-1827) - First established in 1808 by Gen. William Clark as Clark's Fort. Named after Gen William Clark and officially named Fort Osage on 10 Nov 1808. Abandoned in 1827. Also known as Clark's Fort, Fort Clark (3), Fiery Prairie Fort and Fort Sibley.
HistoryThe fort was originally sited by the Lewis and Clark expedition in 1804, and General William Clark returned in 1808 to superintend the construction. It was built as both a government trading post and a military post to assert American control of the area and was the first U.S. government post in the Louisiana Territory. George C. Sibley was the first U.S. Factor to oversee the trading operation of the post. The first military garrison consisted of one company 1st U.S. Infantry and one company of St. Charles Dragoons. The post was built by the initial garrison as a five-sided log fort with a blockhouse at each corner on a high promontory overlooking the Missouri River. The post was abandoned in June 1813 during the War of 1812 and regarrisoned in July 1816. The trading operation continued until 1822 when the U.S. Factory system was discontinued. The military garrisoned the post sporadically until 1827 when Fort Leavenworth was built and then it was abandoned. On May 1, 1832, the fort would be the starting point of Benjamin Bonneville (Cullum 155)'s exploring expedition through the West (1832‑1834). Current StatusThe fort is reconstructed as it looked in 1808 and contains original blockhouse cannon.
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Links: Visited: 23 Jun 2010 Picture Gallery
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