Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site [CO]
Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site consists of a reconstructed 1840s fur trade post. The structures are made of adobe, and the fort sits along the Santa Fe Trail. Built in 1833, the fort soon became central to the activities of the Bent, St.Vrain Company, particularly the trade with the Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho peoples for buffalo robes. In 1846, during the Mexican-American War, Colonel Stephen Watts Kearny used the fort to assemble his troops. Trade at the post involved U.S. citizens, Native Americans, and Mexicans.
The site offers a 20-minute introductory film, self-guided tours, tours led by costumed interpreters, demonstrations, school tours and demonstrations, living history encampments which qualify for continuing education credit, a traveling trunk, children's encampments, and Junior Ranger activities. The website offers video podcasts of trade demonstrations, a narrated virtual tour, a video presentation of the experiences of Lewis Garrard (1846-1847) at Bent's Old Fort, and lesson plans.