Bent's Old Fort | |
 Bent's Old Fort | |
   | |
| Location | Otero County, Colorado, United States |
|---|---|
| Nearest city | La Junta, Colorado |
| Coordinates | 38°02′26″N 103°25′46″W / 38.0406°N 103.4294°W |
| Area | 799 acres (3.23 km2)[1] |
| Built | 1833 |
| Architect | William Bent; Charles Bent |
| Visitation | 28,131 (2009)[2] |
| Website | Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site |
| NRHP reference No. | 66000254 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | October 15, 1966 [3] |
| Designated NHL | June 3, 1960 |
| Designated NHS | December 19, 1960 [4] |
Bent's Old Fort is a fort located in Otero County in southeastern Colorado, United States. A company owned by Charles Bent and William Bent and Ceran St. Vrain built the fort in 1833 to trade with Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho Plains Indians and trappers for buffalo robes. For much of its 16-year history, the fort was the only major white American permanent settlement on the Santa Fe Trail between Missouri and the Mexican settlements. It was destroyed in 1849.
The fort was reconstructed and is open to the public. The area of the fort was designated a National Historic Site under the National Park Service on June 3, 1960. It was further designated a National Historic Landmark later that year on December 19, 1960.[4][5][6]
- ^ "Listing of acreage – December 31, 2011" (XLSX). Land Resource Division, National Park Service. Retrieved March 30, 2012. (National Park Service Acreage Reports)
- ^ "NPS Annual Recreation Visits Report". National Park Service. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
- ^ a b "Bent's Old Fort". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. September 28, 2007. Archived from the original on February 6, 2009.
- ^ "Bent's Old Fort or Fort William", April 20, 1984, by Carl McWilliams and Karen Johnson". National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination. National Park Service. 1983.
- ^ "Bent's Old Fort or Fort William--Accompanying 20 photos, from 1983". National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination. National Park Service. 1983.