Bents Old Fort

Bents Old Fort (1833-1849) - A fur trading post started in 1828 and completed in 1833 by William Bent, Charles Bent and Ceran St. Vrain in Otero County, Colorado. Abandoned in 1849. Originally known as Fort William.

Ceran St. Vrain's Second Floor Quarters	Bents Old Fort Period Cannon
Bents Old Fort Exterior
Bents Old Fort Interior from the Second Story

Bents Old Fort History

An elaborate adobe fur trading post built along the Santa Fe Trail in Otero County, Colorado. Construction started in 1828 and was completed in 1833 by William Bent, Charles Bent and Ceran St. Vrain as "Bent, St. Vrain & Company". The massive post was two stories high built of adobe brick with two bastions on opposing corners. The post was located at a strategic point along the mountain route of the Santa Fe Trail adjacent to the Arkansas River.

Bent established a relationship of mutual trust with the Indian tribes and the fort became a gathering place for Indians, travelers, trappers and military. Treaties were concluded and boundaries established at the post and at times as many as 20,000 Indians were camped nearby to participate in the trading.

At the time of the Mexican War (1846-1848) Mexico lay claim to much of the territory south of the Arkansas River and Bent's Fort lay right on the north side of the river and that border. During the war Bent's Fort was use as a supply depot by the U.S. troops in their invasion of the northern Mexican provinces. General Stephen Watts Kearny use the post as his advance base for his push into Mexico. John C. Fremont used it as a jumping off point in November 1848 for his expedition to find a railroad route from St. Louis to San Francisco.

All of the traffic through Bent's Fort stripped the surrounding land of timber and forage in the 1840s and by the end of the Mexican War the Indians had moved on to better land. The fur trade had declined and William Bent wanted to move to a new location some 40 miles down the Arkansas River. Charles Bent was killed in January 1847 and the two remaining partners sought unsuccessfully to lease or sell the post to the U.S. Army. The post was abandoned in 1849 and partially destroyed by William Bent.

Current Status

The fort has been almost completely rebuilt and is operated by the National Park service as Bents Old Fort National Historic Site, Otero County, Colorado.

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Location: Bents Old Fort National Historic Site, Otero County, Colorado. Maps & Images Lat: 38.0405635 Long: -103.4293827 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: 4,006'

Sources:

• Roberts, Robert B., Encyclopedia of Historic Forts: The Military, Pioneer, and Trading Posts of the United States, Macmillan, New York, 1988, 10th printing, ISBN 0-02-926880-X, page 101-103
• Hart, Herbert M., Tour Guide to Old Western Forts, Pruett Publishing Co., Boulder CO, 1980, ISBN 0-87108-568-2, page 42

Links:

• North American Forts - Bents Old Fort
• Ghost Towns - Bent's Old Fort
• National Park Service - Bent's Old Fort
• Wikipedia - St. Vrain
• Wikipedia - William Bent]
• Wikipedia - Charles Bent

Visited: 22 Sep 2011

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